A mostly smooth transition to express-lane tolling on I-405

The first full week of tolling is under the seat belt.

Overall, express toll lane drivers saved from 15 to 25 minutes on the Lynnwood-to-Bellevue commute for average toll rates of $1 to $1.50. At the same time, travel times in the general purpose lanes the whole length stayed close to average, despite increased traffic volume overall compared to last year.

That uptick in efficiency is reason for encouragement, said Craig Stone, assistant secretary for tolling with the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Only time will tell, he added. “We have a long ways to go.”

During the first week in operation, express toll lane volumes increased 15 to 20 percent. The highest volumes occurred Thursday near NE 132nd Street in Kirkland. Typical HOV lane volumes were about 1,600 an hour. The double express toll lanes south of Highway 522 carried 2,400 vehicles an hour.

There were 119 collisions on I-405 from I-90 to I-5 from Sept. 27, the first day of tolling, to early Monday. The figure includes collisions south of the tolling corridor. But it’s still “a significant number,” Washington State Patrol Trooper Chris Webb said.

The majority of the collisions were between NE Sixth Street in Bellevue and NE 70th Street in Kirkland. Of the 119 collisions, 25 occurred on Saturday alone.

In the first week of tolling, troopers issued 40 citations but focused mostly on education, handing out 358 warnings to drivers, most of whom illegally crossed double white lines.

“We can only give verbal warnings for so long,” Webb said.

Drivers tempted to cut over the double white lines into the express toll lanes also pose a safety risk, going from a dead stop to entering free-flowing lanes of traffic. “That’s not a good recipe,” Webb said.

Trouble spots highlighted by Snohomish County drivers already are getting tweaks.

Extra striping and labels were added near NE 160th Street in Bothell, where a second express toll lane begins, clarifying where drivers need to go if they want to stay in the general purpose lanes.

Stone also held out the possibility that temporary striping could be reworked at other entry points where merging is required, in order to make them longer.

One of those entry points is that same NE 160th Street access area, the first available for drivers entering I-405 southbound from Highway 522.

Meanwhile, Sound Transit express routes operated by Community Transit start training this week on new transit-only shoulder lanes. Buses will drive on the shoulder when traffic dips below 35 mph weekday mornings between Highway 527 and NE 195th Street and between Highway 522 and NE 160th Street.

The change had been in the works since 2010, with active planning the past two years. The goal is to give reliability to buses going from exit to exit. WSDOT is looking at the possibility of similar shortcuts on I-5 near transit stations, though shoulders on that interstate aren’t wide enough for more extensive use.

WSDOT also plans to post signs clarifying what vehicles can not use the express toll lanes, which are part of a statewide HOV network that bars vehicles with gross weight ratings above 10,000.

Some popular medium-duty pickup trucks should stay out of the lanes based on that law. Stone said WSDOT is exploring through the state rules-making process whether to increase the weight limit.

Local experiences

After a 1.5 hour slog last week, Janet Perkins, of Everett, and her carpool buddy started using the toll lanes in their commute to Boeing in Bellevue. One day it cost 75 cents. On Monday, they went in after it dipped from $2.25 to $1.

But Perkins is sick of expending so much energy just thinking about how to get to work. She’s hunting for apartments in Bellevue, cringing at the high rents but not seeing another way.

“It’s so stressful. Every day you have to think about it,” she said.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Lynnwood
Crash in Lynnwood blocks Highway 99 south

The crash, on Highway 99 at 176th Street SW, fully blocked southbound lanes. Traffic was diverted to 168th Street SW.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Search underway to find missing Everett child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday morning at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive.

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.