By Kevin Hanson-The Courier-Herald

A busy highway intersection between Buckley and Bonney Lake may finally be in line for funding that would allow for major improvement.

Of course, motorists who regularly travel state Route 410 through the intersection at 234th Avenue have heard that story before. Money has been earmarked by the state Legislature for years, but the dollars have been pulled that allowed for anything more than design work.

This could be the year something happens.

State Rep. Chris Hurst, D-Greenwater, reports he has been promised the necessary money will be included in the transportation budget passed through the Legislature this time around. That promise, he said, came from Rep. Judy Clibborn, a fellow Democrat who happens to chair the House Transportation Committee.

Hurst made the heavily-traveled intersection a priority when voters returned him to Olympia after a two-term absence. In a letter to Clibborn, Hurst noted how the project was initially funded with Referendum 51 money but was subsequently pushed down the priority list. Along the way, money for a traffic light at the intersection disappeared completely.

&#8220It is imperative that not only the realignment be completed, but the addition of a traffic light as well,” Hurst wrote.

His memo to Clibborn noted that the intersection has &#8220an extraordinary number of accidents,” and is also in close proximity to a fire station and elementary school. &#8220Both of these have great difficulty and encounter significant peril in accessing state Route 410,” he added.

Aside from two housing developments close by, the intersection will only get busier as the city of Bonney Lake promotes expansion of its business district to the east. Through an annexation process a few years ago, the city took in a strip of land on each side of 410 extending all the way to 234th. The area along the highway between 234th and 214 has been identified as Bonney Lake's &#8220Eastown” distict.

At the heart of the proposed improvement is a plan to align 234th and 233rd; they're now slightly offset, adding one more dangerous element as motorists turn left from each county road onto the state highway. The ultimate control over the flow of cars and trucks would be a traffic light.

While admitting nothing is official until receiving the governor's signature, Hurst said &#8220we're in great shape on this project.”

Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com.