Originally published July 2, 2009 at 2:15 PM | Page modified July 2, 2009 at 10:20 PM

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Get ready for heavy traffic for July Fourth holiday

Holiday traffic will be heavy all around Western Washington, especially on Interstate-90 westbound near Seattle on Sunday afternoon when construction work will close all but one of the westbound lanes on the floating bridge.

By Kristin Jackson

Seattle Times Travel staff

Busy times and trouble spots

Around the Puget Sound, the busiest holiday traffic times are expected to be from noon to 9 p.m. on Friday and on Sunday from about noon into the late evening. Travelers can phone 5-1-1 for statewide traffic information.

(Within Seattle, expect very heavy traffic on Saturday evening for the Lake Union fireworks by Gas Works Park. Roads around Wallingford and Fremont and much of Lake Union will be particularly congested.)

• Interstate 5 / Stanwood:
While most road construction is suspended for the holiday, one of the three northbound lanes of I-5 will remain closed all weekend for four miles through Snohomish/Skagit counties from milepost 213 to 217 near Stanwood. The right lane is being repaired and resurfaced, a months-long project. For information, see www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/SR532ToHillDitch/.

• Interstate 5 / Olympia-Chehalis:
This is a traditional trouble spot, with traffic for Tacoma, Olympia and Seattle converging.

The DOT predicts the most congested times there will be: Friday, northbound 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; southbound 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Sunday, the worst traffic is expected northbound noon to 7 p.m.; southbound from 1 to 6 p.m.

• Snoqualmie Pass:
Traffic will be heavy on eastbound I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. On Sunday, westbound traffic will be heavy from Cle Elum to North Bend over Snoqualmie Pass from noon to 9 p.m.

• Stevens Pass:
The heaviest traffic on US 2 over Stevens Pass is expected westbound on Sunday from noon to 6 p.m.

• US 101:
If you're driving on the Olympic Peninsula on US 101, July Fourth parades will close the highway on Saturday in Forks and Port Angeles; detours will be signposted. The Forks parade goes from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the Port Angeles parade is from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

• Border crossings:
Expect delays at the U.S.-Canada border, especially at the Peace Arch crossing at Blaine where reconstruction of the U.S. inspection station has reduced the number of lanes. Friday and Sunday afternoons, plus Sunday evening, will be particularly busy. Get real-time border-delay and more information at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/border/

Stricter ID requirements for crossing land/sea borders between the U.S. and Canada began June 1. Adults must have a passport, passport card, enhanced driver's license or a "trusted traveler" card; get details at www.getyouhome.gov

If you're hitting the road for the July Fourth weekend, be ready to cope with lots of traffic in Western Washington — and severe congestion on westbound Interstate-90 near Seattle on Sunday afternoon because of floating-bridge lane closures.

Starting at 4 p.m. Sunday, and continuing until 5 a.m. Monday, traffic on I-90 will be funneled into a single westbound lane on the floating bridge across Lake Washington. (The express lanes will close at 1 a.m. Sunday, and two of the three westbound lanes will close at 4 p.m., leaving open just one westbound lane on the bridge.)

Road crews will be doing prep work Sunday and overnight so they can start replacing massive steel expansion joints on the bridge on Monday. At 5 a.m. Monday, all westbound I-90 traffic will be diverted into two express lanes across the bridge when work begins. That project will continue until July 20, says the Washington State Department of Transportation, with commuter peak-time delays of an hour expected.

"It's an unfortunate reality... if we don't start at 4 p.m. on Sunday, we run the risk of not having two lanes open Monday morning," said DOT spokesman Mike Murphy.

For those travelers returning to Seattle on Sunday afternoon from east of the Cascades, the DOT suggests using alternate routes such as State Route 202 to SR 520, or SR 18 to Interstate-5. Drivers on the Eastside also can use Interstate-405 to head around the south or north ends of Lake Washington.

But, says Murphy, "your best option is to get home before 4 p.m."

Get information on the I-90 floating bridge project at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I90/
HomerHadleyBridgeRepair.

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Comments (5)

Why start road construction on a holiday weekend, when you KNOW there is going to be heavy traffic? Posted on July 2, 2009 at 4:57 PM by northseattle. Jump to comment

Heavy traffic on I-90?!?! Forget going to Snoqualmie casino for eats and gaming. Posted on July 2, 2009 at 9:34 PM by MrJimmy. Jump to comment

FYI, the back-up on Thursday afternoon from the Anacortes Ferry terminal went all the way back to downtow, a distance of about 4 miles. Today was a... Posted on July 3, 2009 at 9:06 PM by frank d. Jump to comment

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