Curious about the plan to reroute +40K Richland drivers a day? Learn more tonight

Richland will share details of its $25 million plan to create a one-way loop around its downtown at a community meeting this evening.

The session begins at 6 p.m. in the Doris Roberts Gallery Room of the Richland Public Library, 955 Northgate Drive.

The city will create what it calls the “Downtown Loop” by converting stretches of George Washington Way and Jadwin Avenue into one-way streets.

The plan will route northbound traffic onto George Washington Way at Jadwin Avenue on the south side the of the city.

Southbound traffic, will be routed onto Jadwin Avenue via Symons Street at the Uptown Shopping Center.

The goal is to create a more comfortable downtown while making better use of the traffic lanes running north and south through the heart of the city.

The loop will reduce the number of traffic lanes, freeing up room to improve sidewalks, bike lanes and add on-street parking in some spots.

It will affect homes as well as about 300 businesses, including the Uptown area and the Richland Federal building, The Parkway and the stores, hotels and restaurants along Howard Amon Park.

Sources of money

• $11.7 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation Safe Streets 4 All program. (December 2023, with revisions in 2025)
• $6 million in city funds via the capital improvement plan. (2021, 2023, 2025 and 2026)
• $3.5 million from the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board. (December 2022)
• $2.5 million from the Benton Franklin Council of Governments. (August 2022 and December 2023)
• $1 million from the Washington State Department of Transportation. (January 2024)
• $47,000 from the Washington Department of Ecology’s Water Quality Program to design stormwater upgrades. (November 2024)