Washington State Route 397

State Route 397 (SR 397) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Washington, serving the Tri-Cities region. It primarily functions as a truck route through industrial areas in Finley, Kennewick, and Pasco, running 22 miles (35 km) between junctions with Interstate 82 (I-82) and I-182. The highway crosses the Columbia River on the Cable Bridge, built in 1978 to replace an earlier bridge.

State Route 397
A map of the Tri-Cities with SR 397 highlighted in red.
Route information
Auxiliary route of US 395
Defined by RCW 47.17.577
Maintained by WSDOT
Length22.31 mi[1] (35.90 km)
Existed1991–present
Major junctions
South end I-82 / US 395 near Finley
North end I-182 / US 12 / US 395 in Pasco
Location
CountiesBenton, Franklin
Highway system
← US 395SR 401 →

SR 397 was added to the state highway system in 1991, as a short route connecting Finley to Pasco. Two years later, the highway was extended further south into Finley. The remaining highway between I-82 and Finley in the Horse Heaven Hills was constructed by the state government and Benton County from 2004 to 2008 and was signed as part of SR 397 in 2009.

Route description
Looking eastbound on Ainsworth Street, which carries a section of SR 397 in Pasco

SR 397 begins at an interchange with I-82 and U.S. Route 395 (US 395) in the Horse Heaven Hills southwest of Kennewick. The highway runs east along the barren top of the ridge, arcing to the north, crossing several canyons and gulleys, and traveling through several cuts in the hills. The road takes a turn north at Nine Canyon, descending into the predominantly rural Finley area. SR 397 turns east to cross an irrigation canal and a section of the Fallbridge Subdivision railroad operated by the BNSF Railway, which also carries Amtrak's Empire Builder service.[2][3] After passing several chemical plants and industrial facilities on the west bank of the Columbia River, the highway turns northwest onto Chemical Road and follows the railroad into Kennewick.[4]

The highway skirts the east side of downtown Kennewick, running along Gum Street through an industrial park on the north side of the railroad. Its main connection to downtown Kennewick is Columbia Drive, which continues west to Clover Island and the junction of US 395 and SR 240 near Columbia Park. SR 397 then crosses the Columbia River on the Cable Bridge (officially the Ed Hendler Bridge), the first modern cable-stayed bridge to be constructed in the United States.[5] The bridge's north end is in Pasco (seat of Franklin County), where SR 397 turns east on Ainsworth Street and crosses over the BNSF Lakeside Subdivision before continuing north.[2][3] The highway travels around the south and east edges of downtown Pasco on Oregon Avenue, serving the Port of Pasco industrial area and the east side of a railyard and the city's Amtrak station.[6] SR 397 makes a gradual turn to the northeast before terminating at a cloverleaf interchange with I-182, US 12, and US 395 near the Tri-Cities Airport.[4]

SR 397 is maintained by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), which conducts an annual survey on the state's highways to measure traffic volume in terms of average annual daily traffic. The highway's daily vehicle counts range from a minimum of 760 vehicles in Nine Canyon to a maximum of 18,000 on the north side of the Cable Bridge.[7]

History
The Cable Bridge carries SR 397 across the Columbia River

The Cable Bridge, which carries SR 397 across the Columbia River, was opened on September 16, 1978, and built using $30 million in federal, county, and city funding (equivalent to $92.5 million in 2018 dollars).[8][9] It replaced the "Green Bridge", which was built in 1922 and carried a section of the Inland Empire Highway (later part of US 410) until the opening of the Blue Bridge in 1954.[10][11][12]

Chemical Road was built in the late 1950s to serve a number of new industrial facilities in Finley, following the general path of the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway towards Kennewick.[13][14] The county government had previously considered paving nearby roads as early as the 1910s.[15] The county government constructed a $82,000 railroad overpass and several realigned sections of Chemical Road that were completed in 1965.[16][17] The state legislature designated a state highway on Chemical Road and the Cable Bridge in 1991, numbering it SR 397. The road and bridge were transferred to state control in April 1992, originally terminating at Game Farm Road in central Finley.[18][19] SR 397 was extended south by one mile (1.6 km) to Piert Road in 1993.[20]

An east–west road connecting Finley to I-82 in southern Benton County was first proposed by the county government in 1966 to allow truck traffic to bypass the Tri-Cities.[21] The 10-mile (16 km) highway, named the "intertie", was built with 12-foot (3.7 m) lanes and 6-foot (1.8 m) shoulders to accommodate truck traffic; additionally, several streets in Kennewick and Finley were extended to connect with the new road.[22] The $15.4 million project was funded using a $5 million allocation from the legislature's 2003–05 transportation budget, as well as $4.3 million from the state gas tax, $3.7 million from Benton County, and additional funds from the Port of Kennewick and the federal government.[23] The first phase, a 3.24-mile (5.21 km) section between I-82 and Olympia Street, began construction in March 2004 and was completed in October.[23][24] The second phase, extending to Finley Road on the south side of Nine Canyon, began construction in 2005 and was completed in November 2006.[22][23] The final phase, connecting to SR 397 in Finley via a railroad overpass, was completed on October 8, 2008.[21][25] The highway was initially signed as a county route until it was transferred to the state by a legislative action in 2009 extended SR 397 to the Locust Road interchange.[18][26][27]

Major intersections
CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Benton​0.000.00 I-82 / US 395 south – Pendleton, YakimaContinues west as Locust Grove Road
Kennewick17.9028.81 To US 395 / SR 240 via Columbia Drive
Columbia River18.08–
18.56		29.10–
29.87		Cable Bridge
FranklinPasco22.3135.90 I-182 west / US 12 / US 395 north – Richland, Walla Walla, Lewiston, SpokaneContinues north as US 395
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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References
  1. Multimodal Planning Division (January 3, 2018). State Highway Log Planning Report 2017, SR 2 to SR 971 (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. pp. 1339–1346. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  2. BNSF Subdivisions (PDF) (Map). BNSF Railway. September 1, 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  3. 2015 Washington State Rail System by Owner (PDF) (Map). Washington State Department of Transportation. January 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
  4. Google (August 8, 2018). "State Route 397" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  5. Dietrich, William (January 27, 2008). "Awesome Engineering". The Seattle Times. p. 10. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  6. Lord, Kristina (June 2017). "Big Pasco Industrial Center offers blank slate of possibilities". Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. Retrieved August 11, 2018.
  7. 2016 Annual Traffic Report (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. 2017. p. 182. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  8. Thomas, Ryland; Williamson, Samuel H. (2019). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved April 6, 2019. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series.
  9. Trumbo, John (September 14, 2008). "Cable bridge celebrates 30 years of suspense". Tri-City Herald. Archived from the original on February 17, 2012. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  10. Gibson, Elizabeth (October 31, 2005). "Pasco-Kennewick (Benton-Franklin Inter-County) Bridge spanning the Columbia River is dedicated on October 21, 1922". HistoryLink. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  11. Pasco Quadrangle, Washington 15 Minute Series (Map). 1:62,500. United States Geological Survey. 1964. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  12. Soderberg, Lisa (October 1980). "HAER No. WA-8: Pasco–Kennewick Bridge" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. National Park Service. p. 3. Retrieved August 8, 2018 – via Library of Congress.
  13. H. M. Gousha Company (1956). Highway Map of Washington (Map). 1 in ≈ 18 mi. Shell Oil Company. Retrieved August 9, 2018 – via David Rumsey Historical Map Collection.
  14. Gibson, Elizabeth (March 29, 2004). "Benton County — Thumbnail History". HistoryLink. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  15. Fifth Biennial Report of the State Highway Department of Washington. Washington State Department of Highways. 1914. p. 98. Retrieved August 16, 2018 – via Google Books.
  16. "Finley-Kennewick Bridge Will Help Speed Traffic". Tri-City Herald. December 6, 1962. p. 19.
  17. "Chemical Road Renamed Drive; 'Finley Freeway' Loses Out". Tri-City Herald. September 22, 1965. p. 12.
  18. "RCW 47.17.55: State Route No. 397". Washington State Legislature. 1991. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  19. Pasco Quadrangle, Washington 7.5 Minute Series (Map). 1:24,000. United States Geological Survey. 1992. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  20. "Senate Bill Report: SHB 2023" (PDF). Washington State Legislature. March 24, 1993. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  21. White, Franny (October 9, 2008). "Finley intertie project wraps up final phase". Tri-City Herald. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  22. "I-82 to SR 397 Intertie: Project Folio" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. August 2008. Retrieved October 6, 2008.
  23. "SR 397 - I-82 To SR 397 Intertie". Washington State Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on April 24, 2005. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  24. Fitzpatrick, Cara (October 28, 2004). "First phase of Kennewick, Wash., roadway project to open with ceremony". Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. Knight Ridder. Archived from the original on August 9, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2018 – via HighBeam.
  25. "The Finley Intertie is Now Complete and Will Help Ease Traffic". KHQ. October 9, 2008. Archived from the original on May 2, 2014. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  26. "Final Bill Report: HB 1000" (PDF). Washington State Legislature. April 2009. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  27. "Preliminary Finding: Benton County CR 397 Route Jurisdiction Transfer Request". Washington State Transportation Improvement Board. June 2008. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
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