Our plans for a trip to Seattle are almost complete; one little question remains: at what time should we leave Seattle heading north on I-5 to get ahead of the evening rush hour?

Thanks in advance.

Dear traveler:
I have commuted to and from Seattle for the last twenty years and, I am sorry to say that the northbound rush hour keeps getting worse. You'll have to take pot luck, so to speak. It used to be that you could zoom right out of town if you left before three p.m., but that's no longer true--the huge Boeing plant in Everett is the culprit. On some days I've left at two in the afternoon, and it has taken me two hours to get out of town; on others I could not get away till five--and I've been able to zip right through. Once or twice I've gone north at midnight, only to encounter huge traffic jams.
Bring some nice CDs, have plenty of pop on hand, and relax. (But don't drink too much--the next northbound rest area is at Smoky Point, south of Arlington, some forty miles out of the city.)
It helps if there's more than one of you, because you can take the commuter lanes which--sometimes--speed things up.

Thanks, John. Thought either you or Sheri might reply. We live in the SF Bay Area and the traffic scenario is the same around here. Appreciate the commuter lane tip because there are two of us.

If we leave Seattle around 3 and stop at Ikea, would that help?

The only IKEA I know is southeast of Seattle, in Renton, and stopping there at 3pm would get you into a real mess. But maybe there's one north of town I'm not familiar with it. In that case, the answer is yes, especially if you plan to have dinner nearby.

Oh John, you are absolutely right about the location of Ikea. I thought it was around Everett, but a quick trip to Mapquest confirmed the location in Renton. So glad to learn this before we headed out to find it. Thanks again. (Now order a bit of sun for next week, OK?)

Traveler, If you live in the Bay area, do you know of the new IKEA which is in the East Bay--think Berkeley/Walnut Creek or thereabouts--which just opened this week? Perhaps you can shop closer to home and enjoy more of Seattle? I am assuming that you mean the furniture store, IKEA.

Hi Kam

Yes I do know about the new IKEA (guess it's all caps) here in the Bay Area and that's exactly why I thought I'd try to visit the one near Seattle. Their new East Bay store is mobbed and probaby will be until mid-summer! Don't worry, we are planning to enjoy lots of the wonderful opportunities offered in Seattle.

We have lived in Seattle most of our lives. It is getting more congested and traffic jams by the day. Nothing to do but get in and wait, or go early. If you are going from Seattle accross the border to Canada, get their early, not Saturday a.m.

Julie, or anyone can you also help with the I-5 traffic (Seattle). We will coming from Salem, OR on Saturday, Aug 26. Should we take I-405 around Seattle? A big problem will be on our way to Newport, Or. Leaving Blaine, WA on Friday, Sep 1 (Labor Day weekend). We could shorten our stay in Blaine and maybe leave on Thur or Sat. Anyone have a suggestion?

Hi, Marge,
I don't think you'll save much time using I-405 northbound on a Saturday. There may be some congestion right in Seattle but it will be minor and the chances on congestion on I-405 in Renton or Bellevue are just as high if not worse.
In order to get to Newport by a decent hour on Sept. 1 you'd probably want to leave Blaine early enough that you'll miss the heaviest Seattle traffic anyway. Be advised that there are jams possible in downtown Tacoma and especially near Ft. Lewis on Friday afternoons, too. I'd worry more about the Oregon traffic out to the coast, anyway.

We have returned from the Seattle area and easily navigated I-5 due to the commuter/express lanes. We avoided the weekday rush hour and had no problems at all.

Thanks for your help.

Thanks...John