Luke Rambo has asked that I provide an update on the SR162Traffic.org meetings I sometimes attend.  I was planning on doing this at the last Sunrise Terraces meeting but was unable to attend.   —- Wayne Reibold

• I attend some of the periodic SR162Traffic.org meetings.  They’re very eager to involve Sunrise Terraces residents in their activity.  Currently I’m the only Sunrise Terraces resident that attends the meetings and I’m unable to attend all of them.  Anyone interested in attending meetings please e-mail me your interest at WynsWrld98@yahoo.com and I’ll put you in touch with the SR162Traffic.org meeting coordinator.  sr162traffic.org has a lot of information on their activity and also a link to their Facebook page where you can request to become a member and follow the activity.
• The attached map shows the activity on/around SR162 that SR162Traffic.org is involving themselves as oversight.  A very notable thing on the map is a new FIVE LANE road being built from Tehaleh to intersect SR162 at 128th St E.  It is expected to be open within 5 years.  This road is of particular concern for many Sunrise Terraces residents due to it being so wide at five lanes and that it runs angled from south to north making it more visible to some Sunrise Terraces residents when looking towards Mt Rainier vs if the new road was running angled north to south.  The County will be putting very tall silver street lights along the new road which will make the road especially visible to some Sunrise Terraces residents at night.  SR162Traffic.org requested of the County that the street light poles be painted green or brown to blend but this was denied since it is a County standard for them to be silver and they can’t make an exception just for one project in the County.
• Tehaleh (see attachment) is planning on having 9,500 “residential units” (including apartments, duplexes and single family residences) at full build out.  It’s believed currently there are over 1,000.  What this will do to the already significant traffic on Military Road/122nd St E is alarming since it’s the likely artery to get from Tehaleh to Puyallup/South Hill.  And of course the load it will add to the already overloaded SR162…  Here is a link of importance: https://sr162traffic.org/Military-Road-2/
• One of the main things SR162Traffic.org is trying to accomplish is to make sure signals are placed at the intersection of SR162 and 128th St E vs a roundabout that is the current plan.  The SR162Traffic.org proposal is two left turn lanes from southbound SR162 going onto the new road to Tehaleh to keep evening traffic moving.  The decision for a roundabout at that intersection is deemed flawed due to not considering the unique nature of that intersection such as the large number of gravel trucks that travel up and down SR162 that will undoubtedly result in long delays at the roundabout since a gravel truck would require a lot of space to get through the roundabout as well as increased accidents of cars and gravel trucks interacting in a roundabout.  SR162Traffic.org is pushing for proper modeling of this intersection which should show a roundabout is a very bad idea and that signals would be far safer and better move traffic.  But there is a big push for roundabouts so it’s a challenging situation.
• As shown on the attached map the County may do a study to extend 128th St E up the hill as an access point to South Hill to take some traffic load off of Military Road/122nd St E.  The County is also discussing widening Military Road to 3 lanes but only a short distance west of SR162 due to the “cliff” that exists that would be very expensive to deal with.  It is expected none of these studies would happen until after the new Tehaleh road opens.  The County states its top priority right now is the work they’re doing on Canyon Road extending it from where it ends at Pioneer Way East in Puyallup to 70th Avenue E in Fife.
• NOTE: You can click on the map above to enlarge it on your computer.
• The current plan is to put several roundabouts on SR162 including at the intersection of Military Road/122nd St E and 128th St E among others.  SR162Traffic.org is against this plan and is pushing for signals.
• Regarding possible widening of SR162 between Orting and SR410 the only thing being discussed long-term is to add ONE lane.  You’d think four or five lanes would be a good idea due to how much traffic already travels on SR162 but the reason even SR162Traffic.org isn’t pushing for that is they want to keep the area more rural with farms vs a large highway running through the area.  There is talk of having an alternate corridor parallel to SR162 east of it to get people (especially from Tehaleh) up towards SR410/Sumner/Bonney Lake.  The road being discussed is McCutcheon Road East/Riverside Road East.  Many people including myself take the back roads in this area during rush hour to avoid some of the SR162 traffic between Military Road E/122nd St E and SR410.
• New Tehaleh Road Level 3 Reforestation (see attachment) to deal with removal of trees/foliage during excavation – this is something Tehaleh brought up as a probable “mitigation” they would have to do and that they seemed quite willing to do.  Pierce County has not yet required it.  That’s where we all might come in…to push the County to require it so Tehaleh can’t change their mind and do anything less.  It needs to be in writing from the County to be sure we really get it.