State transportation officials in Washington were forced to close a highway entrance ramp after dozens of frustrated motorists began driving the wrong way down the road to bypass a massive construction detour.
The emergency closures occurred along southbound Interstate 405 in Kirkland, where the Washington State Department of Transportation has been managing a major fish passage restoration project. The work, which began Friday evening, required shutting down all southbound lanes to cut through the roadway and build an underground fish migration tunnel.
The resulting traffic congestion quickly led to dangerous conditions on local roads.
Transportation officials decided to shut down additional entrance ramps at Northeast 124th and 116th Streets after witnessing dozens of vehicles driving against traffic on the ramps.
“This decision was made to protect travelers and workers alike,” agency officials stated on social media.
The gridlock quickly spread to local city streets, prompting the Kirkland city government to post an urgent warning on Facebook.
“Traffic Alert: Access from 114th Ave NE to NE 85th St is RIGHT TURN ONLY. There is no access to Kirkland Way or eastbound NE 85th St from this location at this time,” the city wrote. “If you need to travel eastbound on NE 85th St, please use 6th St S. We are seeing heavy congestion and multiple collisions on local roads. Please slow down and allow extra travel time.”
The situation sparked significant backlash from area residents and commuters, many of whom blamed local officials for failing to adjust traffic light patterns to handle the heavy influx of vehicles.
The volume of critical responses eventually led the city to disable responses on its update, stating: “UPDATE 6/1 due to the volume of comments received, commenting has been shut off consistent with the City’s social media policy.”
Residents expressed frustration over how the detour was managed, with some reporting that the gridlock trapped them in their neighborhoods.
“I’m literally blocked into my home by the traffic this has created,” resident Bjorn Townsend posted online.
Others pointed to poor infrastructure coordination as the root cause of the gridlock.
“It’s a mess because the lights aren’t timed at all,” Dayna Hall wrote. She explained that cars were backed up on Northeast 124th Street at long red lights despite a total lack of cross traffic. “These freeway closures continue to spotlight how poorly run our signaling timing in Kirkland is.”
Kim Johnston questioned the lack of a physical police presence during the bottleneck.
“Why aren’t there officers out directing traffic through the detour routes??“ Johnston wrote. “Could have helped a LOT considering the timing of lights wasn’t adjusted for the huge influx of cars.”
Local businesses were also a concern for community members.
“This really is going to affect so many businesses also,” Kayleen Shinners-Fontanilla wrote. “People aren’t going to want to come into Kirkland and I don’t blame them.”
Southbound I-405 was closed from the Northeast 85th Street interchange to Northeast 70th Place throughout the weekend while crews excavated the road, installed the tunnel and repaved the highway.
The interstate and its corresponding ramps were scheduled to reopen by 4 a.m. Monday.
