Washington State Route 240
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Washington State Route 240 is a busy state highway servicing the Tri-Cities of Washington and the Hanford Site. Its eastern end begins at the southern end of the Blue Bridge in central Kennewick as an offshoot of U.S. Highway 395. It continues through northern Kennewick just south of the Columbia River—passing near the Columbia Center Mall on the way—all the way up to Richland, where it effectively enters into town as the heavily-traveled George Washington Way at the interchange with Interstate 182. However, it is possible to continue on the highway by taking an exit and traveling around the west side of town—the highway is known for that stretch of land as the "Bypass Highway". This name, given when the highway actually avoided most of the rush-hour gridlock and constant stoplights of George Washington Way, is somewhat ironic nowadays as the six stoplights on this section of the highway impede drivers just as the traffic-laden main street has for decades. In any case, after traveling north for roughly five miles, the highway itself basically ends (though the road itself continues as Stevens Drive), but again the highway does continue as an offshoot, this time heading to the northwest. The highway enters the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and goes on for dozens of miles. Eventually, it ends in Washington State Route 24. Going north onto Highway 24 leads to Interstate 90 and George, Washington; going west instead leads to Yakima, Washington.
Due to the heavy traffic pressed upon the highway during rush hour, the road is currently undergoing significant construction from the Columbia Center Boulevard exit in Kennewick all the way up through the first mile or so of George Washington Way.
[edit] References
- RCW 47.17.455: Legal definition of SR 240
- Yakima River Bridge Project
- Tri-Cities Additional Lanes Project
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State routes in Washington related to SR 24 |
| SR 240 - SR 241 - SR 243 | |
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