Cushman Trail Project to Get $663,000 From Puget Sound Regional Council

The Cushman Trail project Phases 3 and 4 will receive some financial relief after the Puget Sound Regional Council’s Executive Board approved the 2013-2016 Regional Transportation Improvement Program on Thursday, Oct. 25.

The Gig Harbor trail will get $663,000 in PSRC funding, according to the news release from Puget Sound Regional Council.

The $3.1 million project includes the construction of the final mile of a six-mile non-motorized regionally significant trail through Gig Harbor generally along the alignment of existing Tacoma Public Utility right-of-way.

Phase 3 begins where the trail currently ends at 96th Street and continues north about 1/3 mile, to Burnham Drive. Phase 4 begins at Burnham Drive and continues north about 2/3 mile, connecting to a trailhead at Borgen Boulevard. Plans also include restrooms and public parking.

When completed, trail users will be able to travel the north-south City limits and access businesses, transit facilities, parks and the new regional hospital.

The project is one of the planned transportation projects totaling more than $7.9 billion.

The Regional Transportation Improvement Program provides a list of current transportation projects in all four counties of the region – King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish. These projects are funded with federal, state and local funds, including recent federal grants awarded through PSRC.

“Securing federal transportation funding for communities in the region is one of the key roles of the Puget Sound Regional Council,” said Commissioner Josh Brown, PSRC President. “These projects are advancing a better system that gets people and goods where they need to go, provides transportation choices, and helps grow jobs in the region.”

To find out more, visit PSRC’s online Project Map, which makes it easy to zoom in and see projects planned in different parts of the region.

The Transportation Improvement Program is required under federal and state laws, and helps to ensure that transportation projects are meeting regional policies and federal and state requirements such as those under the Clean Air Act.