The Senate on Monday, March 8 gave final approval to a bill brought by Sen. Rodney Tom (D-Bellevue) allowing the state to move forward with millions of dollars in Eastside projects associated with efforts to replace the State Route 520 floating bridge.

Senate Bill 6392 was approved 37-10 and was approved in the House of Representatives 78-19 last week. It now goes to the governor’s desk to be signed into law.

“The Legislature is sending a strong message that it’s time to get going in replacing the 520 bridge,” said Tom. “We’ve been debating this long enough. This bill gets us moving.”

Last year the Legislature authorized the use of tolling to help fund the replacement of the 520 bridge. But that legislation limited the use of bonds backed by toll proceeds to pay for the replacement of the bridge structure itself.

Tom’s bill would expand that use to include all projects within the 520 corridor between State Route 202 in Redmond and I-5. And it does so in one of the best bidding environments in history. Statewide, construction bids are coming in 17 percent below original engineering estimates.

“By starting some construction activities now, we’re saving taxpayers a pile of money,” Tom said. “Not only that, these projects will create 5,000 good paying jobs to bolster the construction industry, which has really taken it on the chin in this down economy.”

The corridor makeover, which is expected to cost between $4.4 billion and $4.5 billion, will take place in separate east and west phases.

Projects on the Eastside will include adding an inside HOV lane in both directions from Medina to SR 202 in Redmond, building a new direct-access interchange for transit and HOV at 108th Ave. NE in Bellevue, constructing three new highway lids to connect neighborhoods divided by the corridor, and creating a bicycle/pedestrian path along the north side of 520.