Washington State's highways are designated by the Washington Legislature and codified in chapter 47.17 RCW.  The state highway routes are defined generally by termini and points along the route.  State Route 501 (SR 501) is a 14-mile route in Clark County located in Southwest Washington.  The SR 501 is split into two sections:  (1) a 3-mile northern section that runs east-west through the city of Ridgefield and serves as the main street in Ridgefield; and (2) an 11-mile long southern section that begins at an interchange at Interstate-5 (I-5) near downtown Vancouver and follows the Columbia and Lake Rivers north, ending south of Post Office Lake in the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge.  The southern section is designated as the "Erwin O. Rieger Memorial Highway."

The 3-mile split northern section of SR 501 within the city of Ridgefield that begins at Pioneer Street, at an intersection with Main Avenue at the Ridgefield City Hall, and continues east through Downtown Ridgefield and a couple of roundabouts, before ending at a diamond interchange with I-5, is removed from the state highway system.  The 11-mile split southern section known as the "Erwin O. Rieger Memorial Highway" remains SR 501 in the state highway system.

(In support) The 3-mile stretch of SR 501 that is proposed to be transferred from the state to the City of Ridgefield is completely within the city limits and serves as the main street of Ridgefield.  The SR 501 functions more as an east-west arterial that connects businesses, schools, and a route to I-5.  The city of Ridgefield is the fastest growing city in the state with a lot of construction and developments happening along the stretch of this state highway.  Every time Ridgefield needs to make any changes for new development, the city must work with the WSDOT, which is an extra process for the city and state to approve changes.  To accommodate the rapid growth, the city needs transportation infrastructure including a $30 million widening project to increase capacity and provide multimodal transportation options.  The WSDOT's standards would cost an additional $3 million to $5 million if this were to remain a state highway. 

The city council passed a resolution to implement transferring the northern section of SR 501 to the city to assume maintenance and preservation of the state highway.  Public notice was issued on the requested change by the city of Ridgefield and a six-month process was undertaken to analyze the request.  Based on the analysis done by the Transportation Improvement Board, the Washington State Transportation Commission supports the transfer of this portion of SR 501 to the city.

(Opposed) None.

Representative Ed Orcutt, prime sponsor; Reema Griffith, Washington State Transportation Commission; and Steve Stuart and Jennifer Lindsay, City of Ridgefield.