An East Coast solution to Seattle’s I-405 express lane problem

If you’re one of the drivers stuck in the I-405 general purpose lanes, you no doubt have some growing animosity for the people zooming past in the HOV lanes.

Drivers willing to pay a toll or commute with two other people have been able to experience the bliss of the new HOV lanes. Travel times between Lynnwood and Bellevue in those lanes have been less than 20 minutes.

Unfortunately for those who are lacking funds or enough friends to commute in the lanes, drive times are as long as 68 minutes on the same route. And the only way to improve those times is to find an alternate route, carpool, or pay up.

Related: Should WSDOT lower the 3-plus requirement for I-405’s express toll lanes?

It might be time for Seattle drivers to consider adopting slug lines.

Slug lines, or slugging, has been adopted on the East Coast, specifically in Washington D.C. and Virginia, where people fed up with strict HOV requirements have become willing to pick up complete strangers to improve their commutes. Drivers pull up to unofficial staging areas where people who need a ride congregate, pick them up, and drive for free in HOV lanes.

Slug lines save drivers thousands dollars a year, KIRO Radio’s John Curley pointed out.

John Curley: HOV goes against who we are as Americans. In Europe, people carpool all the time. But here we enjoy our freedom and like to be alone. We want alone time and don’t want to be forced into conversation.

Brian Moote: If it is business oriented, it would fit Seattle folks because it wouldn’t require talking.

And it doesn’t. There are unwritten rules for those in slug lines, such as not talking, no smoking or eating. Basically, no communication except for a “hello” or “thank you.”

Curley: It saves you thousands a year and time and frustration. Life is just better off. I think if things get bad enough, people will start to do that [in the greater Seattle area].