As traffic congestion on I-90 grows drivers increasingly seek alternate routes, including local roads like West Lake Sammamish Parkway. Below you'll see visual representations of traffic congestion on westbound I-90 between the hours of 5 a.m. and noon. The first image shows traffic congestion in September 2004. The second image shows traffic congestion a year later in September 2005.
The images show the severity of congestion by time of the morning (across the bottom axis) on the I-90 westbound mainline. Picture yourself as an I-90 driver going from Issaquah to Eastgate moving from the top to the bottom of the graph. Green indicates free flowing traffic. The colors change from yellow to red to black as congestion builds. Black indicates stop-and-go traffic.
In September 2004, and for several years prior, Interstate 90 carried drivers almost reliably at the speed limit on the morning commute from Issaquah to Eastgate.
In September 2005, traffic has increased to stop and go conditions (indicated with the section of black) in the vicinity of West Lake Sammamish Parkway.