Tell state your opinion of tolling I-405 ‘HOT’ lanes

Anyone who commutes on I-405 has a chance to weigh in on fees for new toll lanes planned on the freeway in the coming years.

The state plans to invest $334 million to create one or two toll lanes, or “HOT” lanes as they’re sometimes called, between Lynnwood and the Pierce County line on I-405 and Highway 167.

The project will be done in two phases, the first being Lynnwood to Bellevue in 2015. The rest is targeted to begin in 2018.

The toll lanes allow drivers to pay to drive in a less-congested lane during heavy traffic, to spread out the traffic between regular lanes and toll lanes and collect revenue. Fees, which have not been determined, would be levied electronically like bridge tolls. The state Transportation Commission is expected to set rates as soon as early 2014.

The commission has been gathering input on the plan. The next opportunity to speak to the panel in person is an all-day meeting scheduled for 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 19 at the Hilton Garden Inn, 22600 Bothell-Everett Highway, Bothell.

An advisory group of local government officials along the corridor is expected to make a recommendation to the commission the following day, Nov. 20, at a meeting in Kirkland.

The lanes would be divided into three areas — Lynnwood-Bellevue, Bellevue-Renton and Renton-Pacific. One study assumed a minimum toll of 50 cents per area to start, increasing to 75 cents in 2018.

Rates will depend partly on how far a driver will travel. The toll will automatically increase and decrease based on how many people are using the lanes.

The toll automatically increases when traffic in the express toll lanes is heavier and decreases when traffic is lighter.

As drivers approach the entry point to the express toll lanes, they will see a sign listing up to three destinations. The toll for each destination at the time is the price of that trip.

Planners have determined that allowing two-person carpools to ride for free in the toll lanes at all hours would discourage single drivers from paying to use the lanes and would not bring in enough revenue to make the lanes worthwhile.

The remaining options would be to allow three-person carpools ride for free; allow three-person carpools to ride for free at peak times; allow two-person carpools to ride for free at off-peak times; or allow all carpools to receive a discount.

For more information on the project, go to tinyurl.com/WSDOThot.

Written comments are being accepted. They can be sent to the Washington State Transportation Commission, P.O. Box 47308, Olympia, WA 98504-7308. The email address is transc@wstc.wa.gov. The phone number is 360-705-7070.

Comments also may be submitted on a feedback page.

New signal on Highway 99: A new traffic signal at the intersection of Highway 99 and Gibson Road in south Everett is set to be activated Thursday evening.

That stretch of road has been the site of many accidents over the past five years and the new signal should help reduce this risk, according to the state Transportation Department. The $2.7 million project also includes new sidewalks in that area, a broader shoulder and better drainage.

E-mail us at streetsmarts@heraldnet.com. Please include your city of residence.

Look for updates on our Street Smarts blog at www.heraldnet.com/streetsmarts.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Everett police searching for missing child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. The child was missing under “suspicious circumstances.”

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

T.J. Peters testifies during the murder trial of Alan Dean at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Bothell cold case trial now in jury’s hands

In court this week, the ex-boyfriend of Melissa Lee denied any role in her death. The defendant, Alan Dean, didn’t testify.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.