Interstate 405 drivers and bus riders use the express toll lanes for a faster trip but during the peak of the afternoon commute even the fast lanes have their slow spots. Next week, the Washington State Department of Transportation will help address a spot where cars slow down to exit the northbound express toll lane south of State Route 527.

The WSDOT will add a new lane in Bothell to give drivers space to pull out of the express toll lanes before merging into the regular lanes.

The new lane will give drivers a place to pull out of the express toll lane before slowing down to merge into the regular lanes. The new lane will stretch for almost one-half of a mile between Northeast 195th Street and SR 527, about as long as eight football fields, to give drivers more space to move over to where they need to be. The new lanes will not impact the number of multi-purpose lanes during this stretch of road way (see diagram).

This new lane is not to be confused with the new peak-use shoulder lane. The signs for those lanes are being tested right now and are expected to open ahead of schedule this spring. That improvement will give drivers a new regular lane to use between SR 527 and I-5. The new lane for merging in and out of the express toll lanes is another of more than a dozen improvements to the express toll lanes we’ve made over the past year-and-a-half based on driver feedback. Other improvements have included giving drivers more room to merge and opening the lanes to everyone for free on nights and weekends.

Next week, crews will need to restripe all the lanes in this area between Northeast 195th Street and SR 527. During this work, I-405 will be reduced to one lane nightly between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. This work requires favorable weather conditions to complete the lane striping and wet weather could postpone the work.

For the most up-to-date information regarding these closures, visit the I-405 Construction Update page.