Tolls now in effect for WA's SR-509 Expressway. Here's what to know

New tolls on WA's SR-509 Expressway

It's been a free road since it opened in late June, but starting today, drivers on the State Route 509 expressway in SeaTac will now pay tolls.

SEATAC, Wash. - It's been a free road since it opened in late June, but starting Monday, drivers on the State Route 509 expressway in SeaTac will now pay tolls.

The new one-mile section of the expressway connects I-5 to SR 509 near the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, and has four lanes of traffic.

How much will the SR-509 Expressway cost?

By the numbers:

What you will pay driving the 509 will depend on the time of day, and if you have WSDOT's Good To Go! pass.

According to a table on the WSDOT website, the rate fluctuates between $3.20–$4.40 for pay-by-mail and between $1.20–$2.40 for Good To Go! pass drivers, with the highest prices between 6:00–9:00 a.m. The Good To Go! toll light came on for the first time on Monday.

Officials say the tolls are expected to drum up some $213 million of the total $2.83 billion Puget Sound Gateway Program — a sweeping, 15-year project aimed at linking state highways, improving the movement of freight, reducing congestion around the I-5 corridor and expanding bike and pedestrian paths.

Map of the new SR-509 Expressway. (WSDOT)

Where does the SR-509 Expressway go?

Big picture view:

It is currently just a one-mile stretch that will eventually be extended as further projects are completed.

SR-509 used to end at S 188th St right near Angle Lake in SeaTac, but now WSDOT is building it out as a way to shift the Port of Seattle's freight and commuting traffic away from I-5. Officials say SR-509 will eventually extend into Federal Way. 

Crucially, the tolls are only in place for the new portions of this SR-509 project. If you regularly take SR-509 and the construction has not impacted you so far, you are probably in the clear when it comes to paying anything at all.

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