Landslide creates issues for travel between Vancouver and Seattle
A landslide is causing some issues for folks who are choosing to travel between Vancouver and Seattle.
Despite travel at the border being way, way down compared to last year, there are still folks travelling between Vancouver and Seattle.
Daily Hive Urbanized has received some information from the Washington State Department of Transportation about some of the detours caused by the landslide and potential alternative routes travellers can take.
“The good news is that I-5 southbound remains open and unaffected currently to travellers,” WSDOT Deputy Communications Director Ryan Overton told Daily Hive, adding that folks wanting to travel between Vancouver and Seattle southbound can do so without having to worry about a detour.
However, if you’re travelling northbound on the I-5 from Seattle north to Vancouver, there are other routes you can take.
“For general vehicle traffic I-5 closes at North Lake Samish Drive exit at milepost 246. So if travellers choose to stay on I-5 they will be routed off at this location. They would then follow Samish Way north and rejoin I-5 at milepost 252, which is the Samish Way Interchange. This is the easiest route for normal vehicle traffic,” Overton said.
The situation is slightly different for freight or large truck traffic. Drivers of these types of vehicles are encouraged to take State Route 9 around the detour completely to stay off local county roads.
For folks wanting a more scenic experience, the alternate would be State Route 11/Chuckanut Drive by taking the I-5 exit 231.
“Travellers will follow SR 11 north until it rejoins I-5 in Fairhaven at milepost 250. This route is a little longer but also quite scenic,” Overton adds.
This weekend, KING5 reported that the landslide is near Bellingham and that it sent thousands of cubic yards of boulders and debris onto Interstate 5 on Thursday night last week.
Folks were also discussing the situation on the Bellingham subreddit in response to someone asking if there was a way around when coming from Vancouver.
“getting to seattle is the easy part. detour coming home will suck depending on the time of day,” one Redditor said in response.
Others echoed Overton’s suggestion to take the scenic Chuckanut Drive route.
“Should I take the Chuckanut?” the Redditor asked.
Another Redditor responded, “Only if you want an enjoyable drive.”