Early May is the anticipated completion date for the Edmonds segment of the Interurban Trail — running from the intersection of Highway 104 and 76th Avenue West in the Lake Ballinger neigborhood to 228th Street in Mountlake Terrace. That’s the word from Carrie Hite, Edmonds Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Director.

The project is 92-percent complete, with one section remaining to be paved — a Snohomish County Public Utility District crossing that links the trail from 76th Avenue West and McAleer Way to a new four-way stop at 74th Avenue West — and that work is likely to start after April 15. According to Hite, Washington State Department of Transportation regulations prohibit paving after Nov. 15 due to cold temperatures. WSDOT “opens up the paving season when the weather is at least 50 degrees and rising in order for the pavement to cure. They want to ensure the pavement doesn’t fail,” she said.

The last task is completion of the striping, Hite added. “We estimate that it [the project] may be complete by the first part of May if everything goes smoothly.”

The Interurban Trail Project will complete the missing Edmonds link of the 30-mile regional trail that runs from North Seattle to Everett. The $2.4 million project — with $1.3 million coming from state and federal grant funds — includes the addition of bicycle lanes on 76th Avenue West both east and westbound.

Those who want a more scenic (and slower) route can leave 76th at the PUD crossing and will be able to take a breather at Ballinger Station, a landscaped rest area for users of the Interurban Trail. Highlights will include a drinking fountain, an open shelter with a park bench and two interpretive historical panels that tell the story of the Interurban Trolley Line, which ran from Seattle to Everett until 1939.

A spur trail heading west from this location has been built to Mathey Ballinger Park, with a 12-foot trail through power line right-of-way.

The trail continues lakeside along 74th Avenue West, which has been paved with new asphalt and striped with a walking area for pedestrians on the east side and shared use for cars and bicycles on the west. In the final section of the Edmonds trail, a portion of 74th (commonly referred to as an alley) has been paved and widened, and exits to a crosswalk at 228th Street Southwest, rejoining the already-completed Mountlake Terrace portion.