EVERETT — Holiday travelers should leave early and plan their routes ahead of time to avoid road damage that still persists after the floods earlier this month.
A projected 122.4 million Americans are expected to travel at least 50 miles from home between Dec. 20 and Jan. 1, according to AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz in a press release. That’s 2.2% higher than last year’s record-setting 119.7 million travelers.
The Washington State Department of Transportation expects most major routes be busy beginning Christmas Eve and continuing through the weekend, spokesperson Tina Werner said in an email. Motorists should also be increased traffic on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
WSDOT only provides Christmas travel charts when the holiday lands on a three-day weekend. With the Thursday holiday, travelers can stay informed using the department’s real-time travel map at wsdot.com/travel/real-time/map/ or with the WSDOT mobile app.
Area-specific email alerts are available at public.govdelivery.com/accounts/wadot/subscriber/new. Alerts can also be found on Bluesky, @wsdot.wa.gov, and X, @wsdot. Traffic information can be heard on the radio on channels 530 AM and 1610 AM.
At most other times of the year, the worst times to drive are between 1-7 p.m., per data from AAA and INRIX, a Bellevue-based transportation analytics company. Between Christmas and New Year’s, expect the worst traffic 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The best time to drive is before 10 a.m.
Plan for delays and consider alternate routes where appropriate, Werner said.
“Some locations remain severely damaged from the atmospheric river that impacted the Pacific Northwest earlier this month,” she said.
Photos of the road damage and ongoing repair work can be found at flickr.com/photos/wsdot/albums/.
Sound Transit’s Sounder train will not run on Dec. 25, 26 and Jan. 1. The Link light rail will follow a Sunday schedule on Christmas and New Year’s Day, but will operate regularly otherwise.
Around 700,000 passengers are expected to ride Washington ferries between Dec. 19 and Dec. 31, a press release said. This surge is projected to push 2025 ridership above 20 million, a number the service hasn’t seen since 2019.
The busiest ferry times occur around the weekends before and after the holiday. Historically, fewer people catch a ferry around New Year’s.
At Paine Field, spokesperson Jessica Kilgore expects the airport to be busy the remainder of the year, she said in an email.
“We encourage passengers to arrive early, stay up to date on their travel itineraries with their airlines, and share in the holiday cheer at PAE,” she wrote.
Just over 2.5 million people are projected to travel through the SeaTac International Airport from Dec. 18 to Jan. 4. The busiest days are Dec. 23 (159,000 passengers) and Dec. 26 (154,000). For comparison, the busiest summer days have over 200,000 travelers.
Despite that, it is recommended to arrive two hours early. If you check in online beforehand, you can head straight to security. Better yet, skip the line entirely with SEA Spot Saver at portseattle.org/seaspotsaver.
Checkpoint 6 is now open at the north end of the ticketing lobby, creating more space for security screening. The checkpoint allows quick access to the D and N concourses.
Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay
Travel information
Traffic alerts: wsdot.com/travel/real-time/alerts
Airport info and tips: portseattle.org/sea-tac
Winter preparations: wsdot.wa.gov/about/
Winter driving tips: wsdot.com/travel/real-
Mountain pass conditions: wsdot.com/travel/real-
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