Seemingly odd detour could save Tacoma drivers a lot of time
Jun 24, 2015, 5:06 AM | Updated: Jun 25, 2015, 3:33 pm
The I-5/Highway 16 interchange in Tacoma is one of the worst chokepoints in the region. It’s been even worse recently with a massive construction project in the area.
Drivers coming off I-5 to City Center converge with those on eastbound Highway 16, and they merge with all the normal I-5 northbound traffic.
Listen: Snickering over WSDOT detour map
What’s making the backups worse is new striping for the construction project that is forcing the merge to I-5 earlier than normal.
Wouldn’t it be nice if someone had a secret detour?
There is a solution direct from the Washington State Department of Transportation. Blow off that merge by taking the City Center/Highway 7 exit.
“Rather than stay on that collector-distributor and go straight onto northbound I-5, instead, veer-off and take southbound SR 7 up the hill into Tacoma. Make a U-turn on 38th street, come back on northbound SR 7, and join I-5 at a different merge point,” said WSDOT’s Claudia Bingham-Baker.
You’ll be driving three miles out of your way, but saving a lot of time.
“We’ve had people out there clocking those routes and we know that when congestion is bad that can save half the time,” Bingham-Baker said.
Bingham-Baker also suggested Highway 16 drivers exit to southbound I-5 and pull a U-turn at 56th to get to northbound I-5.
Though it appears that might just put you back in the I-5 mess. The Highway 7 idea makes more sense.
“Although, it may not feel very intuitive to people to go out of your way, off of the most direct route to get from point A to point B. We have extra capacity in those other interchanges,” she said.
Bingham-Baker said it wouldn’t take a lot of drivers trying this option to free up traffic for all. And you’ll have plenty of opportunity. The construction project lasts another three years.
