The Washington State Department of Transportation will host an open house in Snoqualmie next week to provide more information about upcoming construction along Highway 18.

The event is being held at the Snoqualmie Elementary School gym on Wednesday, Nov. 16, from 4 to 6 p.m. It will allow residents to learn more about project benefits, what to expect during construction, view displays and talk with project managers. A simulation of the new interchange will also be available for residents to test drive.

The open house comes as construction at the Highway 18/I-90 interchange kicked-off this month. The $188 million project will build a diverging diamond interchange, which officials say will decrease congestion and reduce possibilities for collisions. Construction will also expand the highway between the interchange and Deep Creek.

Work at the interchange is expected to wrap up in 2025.

The interchange construction is happening in conjunction with a separate widening project farther down Highway 18. That project will widen a 5 mile stretch between Deep Creek and Issaquah-Hobart Road. Funding for that project came last winter, with construction expected to start in 2025.

When both projects are finished, all of Highway 18 will be four lanes wide.