Avoiding Rush Hour (Seattle, Bellevue, Kent: renting, construction, live)

[coolcats]

Hi – I am flying into Sea-Tac on Wednesday, arriving about 5 p.m. I am then renting a car and traveling east to Leavenworth, near Wenatchee. What is the best route out of the Seattle metro to avoid rush hour traffic?

[CityGirl72]

OHHHH you picked a horrible time to come to Seattle. They are retro-fitting the freeways - biggest construction project in 40 years!

YOu'll be stuck in some SERIOUS traffic because you'll need to go from Sea Tac (which is South) THROUGH Downtown.

I like taking the 2 free way (through Monroe) when I go to Leavenworth - but maybe it's best to take 520??? You might want to ask -

Either way - I'd say the 99 freeway North til downtown - and catch the 5 freeeway somewhere til you get to the 2 east. Those are the simplest directions - but maybe not the fastest because of all the HELL happening on the freeways -

Check out Seattletimes.com, they have a continuing front page article on the I-5 mess.

[coolcats]

Originally Posted by CityGirl72

OHHHH you picked a horrible time to come to Seattle. They are retro-fitting the freeways - biggest construction project in 40 years!

YOu'll be stuck in some SERIOUS traffic because you'll need to go from Sea Tac (which is South) THROUGH Downtown.

I like taking the 2 free way (through Monroe) when I go to Leavenworth - but maybe it's best to take 520??? You might want to ask -

Either way - I'd say the 99 freeway North til downtown - and catch the 5 freeeway somewhere til you get to the 2 east. Those are the simplest directions - but maybe not the fastest because of all the HELL happening on the freeways -

Check out Seattletimes.com, they have a continuing front page article on the I-5 mess.

That’s what I was worried of. I travel to Leavenworth semi-regularly and usually go on Highway 2. It’s a beautiful drive. But I hate getting stuck in the downtown traffic. What about I-90 east to Ellensburg and then north? Does I-90 get clogged up during rush hour?

[CityGirl72]

Well everything gets clogged - and I 90 too - but now everyone is trying to get AROUND the crappy I-5 construction, so they'll be using the other freeways, I90 included - it could get ugly

I'd say if you can get yourself North of Downtown - then still take the 2, once out of Downtown the traffic is VERY minimal.

[scirocco22]

I'd try to avoid the metropolitan area entirely if possible. Yes, that would mean not taking Hwy 2 but rather I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass. The problem would be getting to I-90. Once on I-90, I'd take Hwy 97 over Blewett Pass rather than going all the way into Ellensburg and to Wenatchee via Vantage and Quincy. That's the way I'd usually go to Wenatchee when I lived in Ellensburg because it seemed to be a bit faster than going over Blewett Pass but that would be backtracking to you.

Let me think about it a bit and I'll get back to you with a suggested route to take to get to I-90.

--'rocco

[scirocco22]

Ok, this might be the route I’d take if I were in your shoes and because of the I-5 resurfacing debacle:

When leaving the airport, turn right on International Blvd (aka Pacific Hwy) and head south.

When reaching the intersection of S. Kent Des Moines Rd (Hwy 516) and Pacific Hwy S., turn left on Kent Des Moines Rd and continue to downtown Kent.

Hwy 516 will eventually turn into Willis St. once reaching Kent. Continue east on Willis St. until it ends at Central Av. S. (the main drag in Kent).

Turn left on Central Av. And continue north for 4 or 5 blocks to E. Smith St. (Hwy 516)

Turn right on Smith St. (Hwy 516). Continue on Hwy 516 --it will change street names several times but will eventually be called Kent Kangley Rd.-- and continue east until you reach the interchange at Hwy 18.

At that interchange, take the northbound direction. It believe it’s labeled “North Bend.”

Continue on Hwy 18 until you reach the interchange at I-90.

Once reaching I-90, take I-90 east. You’ll go over Snoqualmie Pass and then eventually get to the “Wenatchee” exit at the junction of Hwy 970 (just past Cle Elum) which will take you to Hwy 97 that will be the road over Blewett Pass.



You may encounter some traffic in downtown Kent but otherwise, you’ll be going against rush hour traffic leaving the metro area.

I surely wouldn’t recommend this route if it weren’t for the resurfacing project on I-5 but to be safe, I’d try to steer clear of the metro area if possible.

--'rocco

[scirocco22]

If you absolutely wanted to take Hwy 2 over Stevens Pass, you could still take the above routing and once getting to I-90, go in the westbound direction (toward Seattle) for a few miles until you get to the Preston exit. From there, you could Hwy 203 through, Fall City, Carnation, Duvall, and then to Monroe but be warned, 203 is a very tedious drive and you definitely wouldn't be saving any significant time ...just avoiding sitting in the traffic jam going through the Seattle or Bellevue areas.

As CityGirl has said, the Seattle Times website has updates as well as all the local media (TV) websites will have up-to-date information on the traffic situation on the resurfacing project. The Washington D.O.T. also has a hotline for updates: 206-440-4704.

Good luck and have fun in Leavenworth.

--'rocco

[coolcats]

Thanks to both of you for your input. No, I’m not set of Highway 2. I’ve done both routes before. Maybe I’ll do Highway 2 on my way back – that will be non-rush hour. I just want to avoid the traffic nightmare.