SEATTLE — If there’s any consolation to the hectic first week of lane closures on northbound I-5, it’s that it started out about as awful as it could.
“On Monday, it looked like everyone pulled the same lever. That is, everyone left early and so, when everyone does the exact same thing, we don’t get quite the spread that we’d love to see.” RB McKeon, a Public Information Officer with the Washington Department of Transportation’s Northwest region.
McKeon says Tuesday morning improved, and Wednesday was even better. Even still, speeds are slower and travel times are longer, according to Bob Pishue, a transportation analyst for Washington-based Inrix. The spillover from people avoiding I-5 shows in the data as well.
“Travel speeds have dropped pretty significantly throughout the day on some of these key detour routes.” Pishue said.
Pishue says the data shows that Southbound commuters from North of Seattle are having the hardest time, as the I-5 Express lane is only open to Northbound traffic, to make up for the Northbound lanes that are closed until August 15th.
“It can start picking up as early as four or five in the morning.” Pishue said.
On I-5
Southbound from 7 a.m. - 10 a.m., speed are 35% slower than last week. The traffic lingers into the 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. Time frame, moving 32 percent slower. Southbound traffic is moving faster in the evening, but that’s when Northbound speeds drop to 29 percent slower than last week.
On SR 99
Data shows this is one of the routes people seem to be choosing the most to get around I-5. Southbound morning traffic is moving 36 percent more slowly compared to last week and 32 more slowly at midday. In the evening, Northbound traffic is 29 percent slower.
15th Avenue NW
The furthest west thoroughfare (though nowhere near interstate capacity) to Downtown Seattle is seeing major slowing as well. While midday traffic is comparable to last week, Southbound traffic in the morning is 14 percent slower than last week and four percent slower in the evening.
I-405
The only other interstate option means looping around the Metro area in order to access Seattle from Lake Washington. Plenty of people appear to have had that idea as Southbound traffic is two percent slower in the morning, 20 percent slower in midday while Northbound traffic picks up in the evening, moving 19 percent slower.
25th and Montlake
Like 15th to the west, 25th Avenue NE is a main road not build for highway traffic, but also seeing more drivers during the I-5 lane closures. This road in between Lake Washington and I-5 is getting hammered with more drivers. 17 percent slower speeds in the morning drop to 19 percent slower in the middle of the day for southbound travel, compared to last week. In the evening, Northbound traffic is 14 percent slower.
Pishue says rush-hour volume of traffic is starting an hour earlier, especially on I-5. Data shows that on Monday and Tuesday of this week, speeds start dropping around 5 in the morning on I-5. Already at 6 a.m., speeds were dropping below 40 miles per hour. Rush hour congestion has set in around 7 a.m. And southbound travel speeds don’t recover to normal speeds until after 4 p.m., when Northbound traffic begins to increase.
“You kind of get a double whammy. Not only is the traffic a little more severe, but it’s an hour earlier as well.” Pishue said.
Comparativley, speeds on southbound SR 99 recover around 11 a.m. Sound Transit reports more riders this week as the lane closures began. Parking lots and garages in communities to the north had already been filling up regularly since opening in 2024. This week, they are filling up an hour earlier, before 8 a.m. According to Sound Transit Public Information Officer David Jackson.
“If you’re wanting to snag a parking spot, you’re going to have to be an early bird to get that worm.” Jackson said.
“People should probably be thinking about taking transit to transit.” Jackson suggested.
There are ways to plan your route via transit in King and Snohomish Counties:
McKeon understands that not everyone’s schedule is flexible and allows shifts to be made, but where people can travel outside of the peak hours, she urges they try doing so.
“If you have that flexible, please do consider how you can help the system. We really do think that we’re all in this together and we’ll get through it together.” McKeon said.
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