Relief for north end of I-405 is a long way off

The express toll lanes are moving more cars per hour than their HOV predecessors.

But that’s not true for every spot along the way, particularly the one-lane section of the northbound lanes in Snohomish County, according to a Street Smarts look at state data.

Here, traffic volumes in the former HOV lanes have stayed unchanged or gone down northbound. And what bright spots there are going south are well short of dramatic.

The challenge northbound is most pronounced at the end of the lanes — near the junction with I-5 — where the former HOV lane used to move 11 percent of all northbound vehicles. That share slipped to 9 percent a year later in December 2015.

The state aims to help the north end in both the coming weeks and the coming years.

In the short-term, crews will move back double-white striping by about 400 feet to give drivers more room to merge to I-5 — offering an incentive to stay in the lanes until they end rather than bail early to aid a slow-moving crawl across multiple lanes of heavy traffic.

In the long-term, the state plans to use toll revenue to add a second toll lane in the northern half, both northbound and southbound, eliminating a bottleneck it created when it added a second toll lane at Kingsgate. Transportation officials also plan a direct access connection to Highway 522 with a new interchange. Together, the projects total an estimated $570 million.

There’s no timeline for the work. Expanding tolling to Renton for a 40-mile network is the next step, and that likely won’t be completed until 2022 at the earliest.

The state continues to tweak striping and stenciling to address concerns in other spots along the Lynnwood-to-Bellevue corridor.

“We’ll continue to monitor access points and listen to driver feedback to identify challenging areas,” said Ethan Bergerson, a spokesman for the Washington State Department of Transportation.

It is early in the project. State officials have said it will take six months to a year for tolling patterns to settle in on I-405. They are aware of problems in the north end, but remain committed to seeing tolling through its first two years before making any dramatic changes.

With about 4 in 10 express toll lane users coming from Snohomish County, though, relief can’t come soon enough.

A second express toll lane is the kind of added capacity that has brought more dramatic improvements in the southern half of the project, which follows national trends.

South of Bothell, vehicle-counting checkpoints have logged as much as 62 percent more vehicles in the two express toll lanes than were in the single HOV lane the previous year.

At its most dramatic, the two southbound express toll lanes in Kirkland approaching NE 85th Street were carrying nearly 1 in 4 of all southbound vehicles last month. That’s a leap from the 15 percent share the single HOV lane had last year.

With the number of general purpose lanes remaining the same, that spells relief for those choosing the “free” lanes. In the north end, general purpose lane volumes have not changed significantly.

That translates to differences in speed, too.

At the height of the morning rush hour in December, drivers in the double-express toll lane section south of NE 160th Street were going nearly 58 mph — compared to 34 mph in the single toll lane coming out of Snohomish County.

Speeds in the general purpose lanes also reflect the difference, though it remains slow-going no matter where you are. Average general-purpose lane speeds in the southern half came in at 29 mph, compared to about 16 mph in the north end. There are more general purpose lanes in the southern half, too.

Have a question? Email us at streetsmarts@heraldnet.com. Please include your first and last name and city of residence. Look for updates on the Street Smarts blog.

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.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

The Washington State University Snohomish County Extension building at McCollum Park is located in an area Snohomish County is considering for the location of the Farm and Food Center on Thursday, March 28, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Year-round indoor farmers market inches closer to reality near Mill Creek

The Snohomish County Farm and Food Center received $5 million in federal funding. The county hopes to begin building in 2026.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

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.