As is currently visible looking at the WSDOT I-5 traffic cameras, traveling either direction through Bellingham on I-5 right now is no fun and should be discouraged.
Update 4:50pm
We were holding out hope but it appears I-5 is not clearing up in time for the evening commute. Word is the side streets are not any better. According to WSDOT, in both directions the left lanes are blocked and the right lanes are open.
Original story (4pm)
We currently do not know the cause of the traffic jam. According to witnesses, a vehicle trailering fishing nets (complete with floats) got turned around in the southbound lane and its cargo became strewn across the barrier into the left northbound lane. No aid units were dispatched but there appear to be a few tow trucks in the view of the camera southbound I-5 at Sunset Drive.
As of 4pm, traffic was backed up from Northwest Avenue southbound and Samish Way northbound. Both directions resume flowing normally in the area between the Sunset Drive and Iowa Street interchanges.
Click for more information
Click for more informationThis is the second traffic jam impacting both directions of I-5 through Bellingham today. An earlier incident at the northbound onramp at State Street was the trigger for the earlier traffic snarl.
Hopefully this will clear and be gone by the time the evening commute starts. We will continue to monitor.