DRYVE - Driving Rural Yakima Valley's Economy

WHAT ARE DRYVE’s TRANSPORTATION NEEDS / ISSUES?

• CONNECTIONS BETWEEN COMMUNITIES Improving access to valley residents through such multi-modal opportunities as transit, pathways, and the use of technology.
• FREIGHT ACCESS / TRANSPORTATION FUNDING – Many rural communities have ample land and services to host new business, but lack adequate road networks to optimize these opportunities.  Increased investment is needed.
• AG-TOURISM / CORRIDOR REVITALIZATION – Promoting the Yakima Valley’s greatest asset: Agriculture, with visitor friendly signage, landscaping, and amenities, while enhancing the public image of the Yakima Valley.
• PUBLIC SAFETY & HEALTH – Developing safe infrastructure and promoting wellness.

Why is DRYVE needed?

As local, state, and federal transportation budgets are finding themselves with rising construction costs and shrinking funding sources, the need to prioritize within a region is great.  While the needs of metropolitan (urban) areas are well understood and financially supported, the needs of rural Washington State, as a whole, and rural Yakima Valley, specifically, are often forgotten.  Through DRYVE, citizens, businesses, communities, agencies, and governments of the valley have come together to address transportation needs that improve the quality of life for all valley residents through:

• Improved infrastructure for farm-to-market roads that provide agricultural goods to local, regional, national, and international markets.
• Attracting new business through improved access to quality low-cost industrial and commercial lands
• Improving recreational opportunities and access for tourism and local residents
• Promoting programs and infrastructure enhancements that improve access to employment, retail, education, medical and social services, tourism, and recreation.
• Enhancing community image and pride through investment in corridor beautification, promotion of tourism, and highlighting the valley’s natural beauty.
• Reducing and eliminating substandard transportation infrastructure, chokepoints, obstructions, missing transportation links, and inadequate mobility services.

DRYVE’s mission is to provide a conduit of education, outreach, and technical support between the residents, businesses, and communities of the Yakima Valley and our state and federal lawmakers regarding investment in transportation projects and services.