Nearly all the highway work has been completed in Buckley and installation of a new traffic light on state Route 410 could less than a month away.

Placement of a traditional red-yellow-green light is the final element in a project aimed at eliminating the appropriately-named “malfunction junction.” In city circles, the project is known as the SR 410/SR 165/Ryan Road/112th Street East Realignment Project.

The project, which saw new pavement added and existing roads eliminated or altered, has been talked about in recent years. Necessary funding was secured and the City Council called for bids in April.

The math behind the project began with a total expected cost of $2.4 million. The city received federal funding, passed through the state’s Department of Transportation, in the amount of $1.6 million; more than $600,000 came in the form of a grant from the state’s Transportation Improvement Board and the city funded the rest – an amount initially identified as a bit less than $170,000.

The city last week posted a notice that work was substantially done, with a couple of key exceptions. Puget Sound Energy will need to shift some overhead power lines and the state Department of Transportation needs to complete its testing of the traffic signal equipment.

The city anticipates that the signal will be installed in early January.

Earlier steps in the project included:

• Realignment of SR 165, bending it slightly west to create a “T” intersection at SR 410. The traffic light will be added where the highways meet, just west of where 410 curves.

• Realignment of River Avenue so it connected to Ryan Road at a “T” intersection.