Traveling North from Vancouver up to Canada on a Friday -- how to avoid Seattle traffic? (Tacoma: bus)

[LiverpoolGlasgow]

I did a quick search to see if this had been asked and answered before but I didn't see anything. I will be traveling up to Canada on a Friday but I am trying to avoid Seattle traffic. I will most likely be leaving the Vancouver area around 1pm and I'm well aware I would be hitting Seattle during some of the worst times for rush hour. What are some alternative routes I could take in order to avoid the traffic but not add a lot of extra travel time to my trip?

[jm31828]

Unfortunately given the "squeeze" you have geographically in the Seattle area, there really isn't an alternate route. You can either take I-5 straight through the city, or take I-405 around the east side suburbs. I-405 is going to be better on almost any non rush hour time, but at actual rush hour both options will be very clogged.

This is where Seattle really needs an outer loop to route pass-through traffic around the city/metro area like so many other big cities have.

[prosin]

You could detour from Tacoma through the Kitsap Peninsula (Hwys. 16, 3, 307, and 104) and catch the Edmonds/Kingston ferry back to I-5, but that adds at least 1 and 1/2 hours (and ferry fare) to the trip. And it wouldn't bypass Everett.

But it would be a much prettier drive!

[mkarch]

You can't skip downtown all together but taking either west marginal or 518 to 509 near the airport, then continuing up 99 through downtown can get you past the congestion heading into the city. You still have to deal with i5 north through Everett, but 509 is often empty when i5 is at a standstill.

[Kayela]

Unfortunately given the "squeeze" you have geographically in the Seattle area, there really isn't an alternate route. You can either take I-5 straight through the city, or take I-405 around the east side suburbs. I-405 is going to be better on almost any non rush hour time, but at actual rush hour both options will be very clogged.

405 sucks after 3 pm. Regardless of how they look on the traffic map - I almost always make better time on I-5. Sorry, but if you must go at that time, it's just going to be ugly in some spots. Due to geographic constraints, there just aren't any practical ways to bypass the entire metro area. Parts of it - yes, but then you have to drive back into it to get back on track and haven't really saved yourself anything.

[Botev1912]

I-5 is better at rush hour because it has express lanes.

[HandsUpThumbsDown]

Train & Bus Tickets - National Railroad - USA & Canada | Amtrak

[folkguitarist555]

travel after 10pm that is the only way

[Adrian71]

You could take 16/3/19/20 all the way up to Burlington, taking a ferry at Port Townsend. That would bypass Seattle metro completely, but it would add a lot of time to your trip.

[sean98125]

Leave earlier or later. You want to be through Seattle before 3 pm, or after 6:30.