Our nickels wasted in north county

It has been years now, hundreds of millions of dollars, and what do the Snohomish County northbound I-5 commuters get? Nothing but gridlock as usual between Everett and Smokey Point. It isn’t “holiday shoppers,” it’s everyday average speeds of 15 mph, seven days a week. The money and the improvements on the bridges and overpasses are not working and never have. I know it is not complete yet but I can tell you that it is not “the fix” they planned on or dreamed of.

Mass transit will be going 15 mph just like the cars, so what’s the point of that? The Department of Transportation cameras show the same pictures every day. Daily commuters like myself see it every day and it’s not getting better. It is not “rush hour,” it is a four- to six-hour window that I like to avoid if possible.

There is no solution for what was a simple commute at one time, now grinding down to a daily marathon of virtual tailights for up to several miles long. I hate to see more money wasted and every day its a sad reminder that things are only getting worse for the commuters who have to head north. DOT cannot fix it, we are stuck with the worst I-5 miles in the state. “It’s my nickel, watch it work”? Yeah, right.

John F. Forsberg

Marysville