The widening of Imjin Parkway is a good thing, but it will hurt for a few years.

This month, Imjin Parkway will begin to undergo a major transformation. A 1.7-mile segment in Marina, from Imjin to Reservation roads, will be widened from one lane each way to two, and four roundabouts will be added to what are now signalized intersections. It’s going to take two years to complete.

The long-contemplated project will without question create periodic inconveniences to commuters – 20,000 to 30,000 commuters drive on the corridor everyday – and for that reason, there’s been a yearslong effort to apprise the public of those impacts. Since 2014, Marina’s senior engineer Edrie De Los Santos says, there have been two to three public meetings about it every year, approaching 30 in total.

Construction is expected to begin in July and last until the fall of 2025. Per De Los Santos, “This is the biggest project Marina has ever done.” It’s also the trickiest: The first phase of construction will be building a one-lane road – separate from the existing Imjin Parkway, just to the north, that will ensure there will be two lanes for travel for the majority of the project. Construction will be timed to avoid peak commute hours, and much of it will happen at night.

The project will also create two-lane roundabouts. Todd Muck, Transportation Agency for Monterey County’s executive director, says signage will direct drivers in the right lane to either turn right at the intersection or continue straight, and those in the left can go straight or turn left.

While it may take some getting used to, the roundabouts are expected to slow down traffic on the road overall, but speed up travel times, and Muck says there’s about a 90-percent less chance of fatal accidents in roundabouts as opposed to signalized intersections.

The project was initially federally funded in the environmental review stage, and got all of its approvals in 2019. Going forward it will be funded by state and local dollars: $18.25 million from Measure X – a 30-year countywide sales tax to fund local transportation infrastructure projects – and $20.25 million from the state through Senate Bill 1, and another $2 million from local impact fees.

The project will also add a protected, off-road bike lane. Mike Zeller of TAMC says, “It’s all part of a bigger picture of how we get people to move around the county. This is just a piece of the puzzle.”

It’s a big piece: This is the first Measure X road project that will break ground since the ballot measure was passed.