Final Viadoom commute is almost upon us

Viadoom is nearly over, and the region has largely been spared significant traffic snarls. But the Thursday morning commute around Seattle got off to a slow start after a collision on northbound I-5 caused massive backups.

Outside of Thursday’s slow start, the Viadoom commute — what some call the Seattle Squeeze — has gone quite well. Which has surprised many, including KIRO Radio Traffic Reporter Chris Sullivan.

“We’ve done OK,” Sullivan said. “The worst drive is the West Seattle Bridge and driving north on I-5 at Albro (Place) into downtown.”

“Our travel times have actually been better than when we had the Alaskan Way Viaduct and everyone was commuting in their normal way,” he said. “I’m still trying to figure out where those 90,000 cars went that usually use the viaduct.”

We also now know when the new SR 99 tunnel will officially be opening, with WSDOT sticking to its Monday, Feb. 4 date that it originally had targeted.

With just one day of Viadoom commutes left to go, the evening commute on Thursday ended up being just as uneventful as most.

Full updates from KIRO Radio Traffic Reporters Tracy Taylor and Chris Sullivan are below.

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5:50 p.m.

Transit Alert – Expect delays on bus service traveling along Rainier Av S near S College St due to a blockage.

— King County Metro🚏🚎⛴ (@kcmetrobus) February 1, 2019

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5:25 p.m.

looks like there's something blocking on NB 405 near SR 527

— TracyTaylorTraffic (@TracyTTraffic) February 1, 2019

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5:00 p.m.

Current Traffic Conditions (5 PM):
🔴Heavy NB/SB on I-5 to downtown
🔴Heavy EB WS Bridge btwn midspan & I-5
🔴Heavy EB Mercer St btwn I-5 & 5th Ave N
🔴Heavy EB Denny Way btwn I-5 & 4th Ave
🔴Heavy SB 1st Ave S in SODO
🔴Heavy on major roads downtown
🔶Moderate SB on SR 99

— seattledot (@seattledot) February 1, 2019

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4:25 p.m.

Due to switch issues and speed restrictions, all Sounder south line trains departing King Street Station will be delayed approximately 10 minutes.

— TracyTaylorTraffic (@TracyTTraffic) February 1, 2019

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4:15 p.m.

Current traffic conditions (4 PM):
🔴Heavy SB on I-5 into downtown
🔴Heavy EB WS Bridge btwn to I-5
🔴Heavy EB Mercer St btwn I-5 & 5th Ave N
🔴Heavy EB Denny Way btwn I-5 & 4th Ave
🔴Heavy SB on 1st Ave S in SODO
🔴Heavy on major roads downtown
🔶Moderate NB I-5 to downtown

— seattledot (@seattledot) February 1, 2019

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3:30 p.m.

#Renton update: Tow is at the scene for the collision on southbound I-405 to SR 167. Progress is being made as crews transfer the load to the forward bed, but this will take some time to clear. Expect delays on SB I-405 from Bellevue! #Bellevue to #Renton: 46 minutes pic.twitter.com/88o6bLsMRc

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

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3:20 p.m.

Things aren’t looking great on surface streets in Seattle as traffic starts to fill in during the early evening commute.

We've moved 150 yards in 20 minutes. #Viadoom #SeattleSqueeze pic.twitter.com/0FZsOLjwLo

— Tim from Puyallup (@TimFromPuyallup) January 31, 2019

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3:00 p.m.

The afternoon commute starts with a closure of the 1000 to 1200 blocks of Industry Drive.

1000-1200 blocks of Industry Drive are closed due to a Tukwila FD response. Media staging area is at Minkler Blvd and Industry Dr. pic.twitter.com/8bypoyWulS

— Tukwila Police (@TukwilaPD) January 31, 2019

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9:30 a.m.

Federal Way to Seattle is about 50 minutes. The heaviest slowing starts at Boeing Field.

“If you want to bail from I-5 at Boeing Access Road and use Airport Way, now would be a pretty good time,” Sullivan said. “It’s a little slow by Lucille, but it clears up the rest of the way into downtown.”

“The West Seattle Bridge is not loosening up,” he said. “We are solid from Delridge all the way to I-5.”

It’s 35 minutes from Everett to Seattle on southbound I-5, or to Bellevue via I-405.

9:15 a.m.

Current Traffic Conditions (9 AM):
🔴Heavy NB/SB I-5 into Downtown
🔴Heavy EB W Seattle Bridge
🔴Heavy NB 1st Ave S in SODO
🔶Moderate SB SR 99 into Downtown
🔶Moderate NB 1st Ave Bridge
🔶Moderate on Mercer St
🔶Moderate NB 4th Ave S in SODO
🔶Moderate on Downtown roads

— seattledot (@seattledot) January 31, 2019

9 a.m.

LYNNWOOD: Vehicle facing the entirely wrong way is blocking the SB I-5 off-ramp to 220th St SW. pic.twitter.com/RPkFtJCMLB

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

And don’t forget if 🚗🚚 to #Seattle terminal Sat 2/2, the following roads will be closed for this event:
🚫5-11a: SB lanes of 1st Ave S btwn Royal Brougham & Columbia
🚫4a-8p: Alaskan Way south of S King St
✅Bypass closures by taking Madison➡️Alaskan➡️#ColmanDock https://t.co/6Ydr3ODJMf

— Washington State Ferries (@wsferries) January 31, 2019

8:30 a.m.

There is a collision on southbound I-5 near 45th Street in the University District is slowing up traffic as far as Northgate. Travel time overall from Everett to Seattle is still holding at 50 minutes.

The floating bridges over Lake Washington into Seattle are slowing down. It’s 25 minutes on I-90, and 15 minutes on SR 520 to drive from Bellevue to Seattle.

The West Seattle Bridge is backup up to 35th Avenue.

8:15 a.m.

BURIEN: Crash blocking two lanes of EB SR 518 about a mile east of SR 509. Just the center lane getting through. pic.twitter.com/4NM0wZkQDV

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

8 a.m.

8 a.m. traffic check: Travel times are trending 📉 with the longest delay at 6 minutes from #Renton -> #Seattle. pic.twitter.com/s7P3TWhXFx

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

7:40 a.m.

It’s getting better, but it’s also still slow as traffic recovers from a crash on northbound I-5 at Kent -Des Moines Road. Beyond that, it’s a grind from the middle of Boeing Field into downtown Seattle.

Sullivan says ejecting from I-5 at Boeing Access Road and taking MLK into Seattle is a good option. Airport Way is congested. It’s an hour and five minutes from Federal Way to Seattle.

It is 30 minutes to travel westbound from Bellevue to Seattle over the I-90 floating bridge.

7:20 a.m.

Federal Way to Seattle is an hour and five minutes on I-5. Slowing into Seattle is considerable after Boeing Field.

It’s under 55 minutes to drive southbound I-5 from Everett to Seattle or Bellevue.

There is some slowing on I-90 into downtown Seattle, right after the floating bridge and the Mount Baker Tunnel feeding into I-5.

The West Seattle Bridge is a crawl, though Sullivan notices many drivers attempting to use the bus-only lane to sneak by traffic. Careful, though, he has also noticed a significant Seattle police presence on the bridge.

Looks like @SeattlePD is out on West Seattle Bridge again this morning watching for bus only violators.

— KIRO Radio Traffic (@KIROTraffic) January 31, 2019

7 a.m.

“We are not enjoying a great drive at this point, though things have normalized a little bit,” Sullivan said. “We still have six miles of off and on slowing to deal with and it’s really tough out of the Federal Way area … because of this earlier crash. The travel time has improved. Federal Way to Seattle is back to under an hour.”

The drive from Everett to Bellevue is an hour, and Everett to Seattle is 45 minutes.

On the ⬅️: South end traffic at 5:48 a.m.
On the ➡️: South end traffic at 6:50 a.m.

Backup starting to dissipate on NB I-5 from Fed Way to Kent, but NB SR 167 looking more crowded. Plan for big delays no matter which road you take.

More travel times: https://t.co/BLWs7KOg3a pic.twitter.com/fYC6Y1X2Vu

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

6:45 a.m.

“It’s all clear on northbound I-5 trying to getup past the Kent-Des Moines Road,” Sullivan said. “The crash that started all this nonsense is finally out of the way.”

“It is solid up from Fife up towards Highway 18, I see a big line at Highway 18,” he said. “I think a lot of people are bailing and using Highway 18 to Highway 167 interchange to avoid the crash on I-5 and to avoid the early commuters up near Boeing Field.”

The drive from Federal Way to Seattle is about an hour and 12 minutes — it’s 55 minutes from Southcenter into downtown.

The West Seattle Bridge is packed and slow heading east to I-5.

It’s 42 minutes from Everett to Seattle. But it’s 50 minutes to drive from Everett to Bellevue.

6:30 a.m.

“We are dealing with significant slowing going north on I-5,” Sullivan said. “It’s nearly an hour and a half from Federal Way to Seattle.”

There is a six mile backup on northbound I-5 after a collision near Kent-Des Moines Road, which is also close to SR 509 and SR 516. The HOV lane of the freeway is blocked.

ALL CLEAR on NB I-5 just after SR 516 in #Kent…but don’t expect the backups to clear anytime soon. Seeing HUGE delays out of the south end.

Tacoma->Seattle: 79 min (+22)
Fed Way->Bellevue: 78 min (+21)
Fed Way->SeaTac: 50 min (+28)
Fed Way->Seattle: 70 min (+22) pic.twitter.com/PdNZnZeeg2

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

6 a.m.

UPDATE: Aid has arrived to crash on NB I-5 at Sr 516 in #Kent and are blocking the left general purpose lane. Backup five miles and growing.

A quick glance at the south end for those about to leave home. NB SR 167 already getting crowded as folks use it as an alternate to I-5. pic.twitter.com/Ywh8NMWqkZ

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

5:30 a.m.

Here’s how your commute’s starting out if you’re traveling from the south end. It ain’t great. 😒

From left to right: Highway, Route Description, Distance, Avg Travel Time, Current Travel Time pic.twitter.com/KTYjI8rNtp

— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 31, 2019

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