Gridlock keeps many in Sultan feeling trapped in their homes

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

SULTAN — Come midday most Sundays, Dolly Green and her husband retreat home as the onslaught of cars begins to clog U.S. 2 heading west as the weekend comes to a close.

It’s not unusual for bumper-to-bumper traffic on the two-lane to stretch from east of Gold Bar to the western edge of Sultan.
“We’re home by noon and stay there until Monday,” said Green, who has lived in Sultan for many years.

The procession of cars through the town of 5,000 peaks in the summer months, during the ski season and following a big event in the tourist town of Leavenworth. Cars slowly roll along the Stevens Pass Greenway Scenic Byway, a key recreational route between Puget Sound and the Cascades, in a hurry to make it through Sultan’s one roundabout and three traffic lights.

On Sunday afternoons, the number of cars can more than double along the corridor that links Skykomish and Sultan compared to weekday volumes, according to state Department of Transportation data. A similar trend is also building Friday afternoons.

-snip-

Residents are organizing to free themselves as well as weekend travelers from the gridlock. State Rep. Carolyn Eslick, R-Sultan, who took office in 2017 and has endured the congestion for years, has made it one of her top priorities, as have mayors along the corridor.

https://www.heraldnet.com/news/gridlock-keeps-many-in-sultan-feeling-trapped-in-their-homes/?utm_source=DAILY+HERALD&utm_campaign=aa86d20af6-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d81d073bb4-aa86d20af6-228635337

Looking at election results Sultan voted yes on I-976 at around 65%.

https://www.snohomishcountywa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/68946/Precinct-Report?bidId=

[Wounded Bear]

1. Had some weekends in Gold Bar over the years...

this is not news, per se. Anybody familiar with that stretch of road knows it.

I-976 is in the courts, though the Highway admins are already re-scheduling and shuffling shit around just in case. Why anybody would support anything that Eyman proposes is beyond me.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

2. Likewise

I almost always take I-90 when going to eastern Washington. Even that can be a mess these days on the weekend.

The last time I took US-2 was last year when I went to a nephew's wedding in Wenatchee.

[Wounded Bear]

3. US2 is a great route for scenery and such...

but you have to schedule properly to drive it.

[SonofDonald]

4. The two lane bridge in Purdy Washington

There's a line of cars backed up around 3/4 of a mile from it back to the freeway during rush hour

They have to stop at a light to turn left onto the bridge, the entire key peninsula has to sit there in traffic every weekday

Biggest bottleneck I've ever seen

They are supposed to do something about it but they're only ten years too late.