Everett wants a look at I-5, U.S. 2 interchange options

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

EVERETT — Anyone who regularly commutes on I-5 through Everett knows when and where the backups start.

You can usually count on it by 6 a.m. heading south and west, then again around 2:30 p.m. until 7 or 8 p.m. heading north and east, Monday through Friday. The nexus seems to be the interchange with U.S. 2 and the ensuing reduction of lanes just before the freeway crosses the Snohomish River.

It’s even officially counted in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Annual Roadway Congestion Index, in which anything rated higher than 1 is “undesirable.” Seattle was a 1.03 in 2011. For comparison, San Francisco’s index was 1.41 and Spokane was 0.68.

Plenty of people think more lanes would work, but traffic engineers and data don’t support that idea.

What about changing the actual design on the interchange?

Everett wants to explore the question and see what can be learned through a $2.3 million study called an interchange justification report. The city is spending $165,000, Snohomish County partnered on the endeavor with $150,000, and a $2 million Federal Surface Transportation Program grant covers the rest.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/everett-wants-a-look-at-i-5-u-s-2-interchange-options/&utm_source=DAILY+HERALD&utm_campaign=1cc47e216f-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d81d073bb4-1cc47e216f-228635337

[regnaD kciN]

1. While any help would be welcome...

...I doubt the interchange has all that much to do with it. When I get stuck in northbound traffic through Everett (in other words, virtually any time I travel it on weekdays), the complete standstill lasts until the Marysville exits, miles north of the interchange.

It's become a complete nightmare. When I lived in Everett in the 1980s, traffic on I-5 through the city center could be a pain at times, but it was never the consistent, miles-long stop you get now. Of course, the same could be said of traffic through Seattle as a whole. (And I bet Seattle's number on the DOT index would be a lot higher than 1.03 now, as opposed to the 2011 results.)