Construction at JBLM

Exit 120 to be closed for summer

By J.M. Simpson on May 10, 2018

Commuters to and from Joint Base Lewis-McChord will have to pardon the construction at the Lewis Main Liberty Gate at Exit 120.

Work will begin the beginning of June and should be completed by the end of September. Only two of the four access lanes will be open for incoming traffic while the construction work occurs.

Base officials said that about 17,000 people daily enter the base through the Liberty Gate, and approximately 14,000 use it to depart the base. JBLM is the county's largest employer with about 60,000 full-time employees.

Base officials recommend that commuters use other gates to enter or depart.

"The other gates on the installation have sufficient capacity to manage that for inbound and outbound," Joe Piek, a base spokesman, said. "We're working a month early to get the word out to all our employees to be sure they're prepared to find a different gate to use."

He went on to say that commuters could use the DuPont Gate at Exit 119, the Madigan Gate at Exit 122, or the Logistics Center Gate that is off of Exit 123.

"There are plenty of gates and access points to the base," Piek added.

According to a post on JBLM's Facebook page, the work will include pavement repair, improved lane alignment, changes to the Visitors' Center parking area, and upgrading the appearance of the Access Control Point and the historic Camp Lewis Gate.

Base officials ask the commuters to adjust their driving habits before construction begins.