We previously cautioned how the pieces were in place for a repeat of yesterday’s nasty traffic jam on northbound I-5 between Bellingham and Ferndale but it was just a guess. In the past half hour the feared traffic mess has begun.
Perhaps it is the nice weather or perhaps the rear-ender accident that happened about 3:30pm just south of the Main Street interchange or perhaps a combination of those things along with the need summer traffic volumes have for at least two uninterrupted lanes of interstate. Regardless, a repeat of yesterday’s traffic jam is forming and there’s no turning back.
Check back here for updates as we monitor the traffic situation. As always, you can get real-time information from the Discover Ferndale traffic page.
UPDATE 4:10pm
The northbound I-5 traffic back up is nearly reaching Slater Road from Portal Way. The right lane merges into the left just after the Main Street interchange.
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Click for more informationUPDATE 4:55pm
The gates are about to open to unleash evening commuters onto the roads. At this point the northbound I-5 backup extends from Portal Way to just south of the Smith Road overpass. It has been holding fairly study at that point for some time. But the backup is likely to quickly get much longer as commuters join in.
UPDATE 5:15pm
It looks like many have chosen to take side roads today as backup are beginning to happen at intersections off the mainline. The I-5 northbound backup is starting to reach back as far as the Slater Road interchange. No reports of accidents on I-5 in the back up. Main Street is likely not your best route into Ferndale as it is backed up to I-5.
UPDATE 5:30pm
No significant changes to report. The back up now reaches back to Slater Road and then some. Main Street is moving but backed up to I-5. With Washington Street closed, best alternate routes into Ferndale are Slater Road to Imhof Road, Portal Way to Brown Road and Grandview Road to Vista Drive.
Road crews are already on the job in the Portal Way interchange area (originally scheduled to start at 7pm) as they work to finish resurfacing the Portal Way overpass before the rains arrive. This will eliminate the need for future lane closures in the area outside of the project hours (7pm to 11am). According to the radar images, rain becomes a possibility in just a few hours.
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UPDATE 5:55pm
The commute home may be slow but happily fire, aid and police have not been needed so far. The backup on northbound I-5 from Portal Way extends south of the Slater Road interchange.
UPDATE 6pm
Been watching the traffic by Barrett Road and Main Street/W Axton Road and now it is beginning to back up. Yesterday this backed up to the S-curve by the Deer Creek neighborhood. It currently appears to be backed up east of the WTA Park-n-Ride lot. This is an extension of the Main Street backup heading west.
Northbound traffic on Northwest Drive is backed up almost a half mile before W Smith Road. And traffic on LaBounty Drive is backed up to the curve by Les Schwab Tires from Main Street.
It’s easy going if you are headed east or south. Heading north or west is going to require patience. Remember, yesterday’s backup did not start showing significant improvement until around 7pm but there was still a substantial backup.