Pines Road/BNSF Grade Separation Project

Pines Road is one of the region's key transportation corridors, carrying both private and commercial/industrial traffic from Trent Avenue (SR 290) across the Spokane River to I-90 and commercial areas south of the freeway.

On average, 65 BNSF Railway freight trains and two AMTRAK passenger trains travel through the Pines/BNSF Railway crossing each day, resulting in nearly 31,000 vehicle hours of delay each year. BNSF plans to add a second main track to the existing rail line, possibly as early as 2023. A second track will likely increase train traffic and vehicle delays.

In addition, about 35,000 vehicles pass through the adjacent Pines/Trent intersection, including freight trucks from Canada and northern Idaho. There were 49 collisions in or near this intersection from 2017 to 2021.

Pines Road is also the primary access to nearly 230 acres of nearby undeveloped mixed-use, commercial and industrial land in the area.

Proposed improvements

The Pines/BNSF Grade Separation Project will replace the existing at-grade BNSF crossing on Pines Road with an underpass, and redesign the adjacent signalized Pines/Trent intersection with a roundabout.

These improvements will:

Save four hours per day of vehicle wait time (based on gate down time) at the Pines/BNSF crossing, improving traffic flow and the movement of workers and goods
Improve access to I-90 and key arterials in Spokane Valley
Increase safety by eliminating the risk of train/vehicle, train/school bus, and train/pedestrian collisions at the railway crossing
Add a parking lot and trailhead that will connect to Centennial Trail in coordination with Avista
Improve emergency access to Trent Elementary and the neighborhoods to the north
Add sidewalks and shared use paths for the safety of pedestrians, schoolchildren and bicyclists
Make adjacent neighborhoods quieter by eliminating the need for train horns at the crossing

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Economic benefits

Completion of the Pines/BNSF Grade Separation Project will improve access to nearly 230 acres of undeveloped mixed-use, commercial, and industrial land, and help attract new businesses and jobs to the Spokane Valley economy. Over 25 years, the projected economic and tax impacts include:

$1.3 billion in total economic output in Spokane County ($686 million in direct spending),
8,719 new jobs supported in Spokane County (4,312 direct job impacts),
$8.2 million in new general fund taxes to Spokane Valley (25 years at 4 percent), and
$101.9 million in new general fund taxes to Washington State (25 years at 4 percent).

More information regarding the project's benefits are outlined in this ECOnorthwest Economic Benefits Study.

Project cost and funding

Total project cost, as of February 2022, is estimated to be about $34 million, based on construction starting as early as 2023. To date, the city has secured $9.75 million comprised of the following: