Interstate 5 is open to traffic from Vancouver, Washington to Vancouver British Columbia. Two of Washington’s three main east-west mountain passes through the Cascades have been reopened but WSDOT officials today warn that there is much recovery work left to do.
More than 1200 Washington State Patrol and National Guard personnel have worked around the clock since midday Tuesday battling a series of warm winter storms that brought extensive damage to nearly all of western Washington and the Cascades.
Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond briefed the US Secretary of Transportation, US Senators and Governor Gregoire about the status of Washington roads and recovery efforts. She provided the briefing at Boeing field before embarking on an aerial tour of flood damage. As of noon Friday WSDOT has reopened 90 sections of state highway. There are 34 sections still closed and 14 restricted.
Eastbound I-90 opened to traffic at 9 a.m. Friday, with the westbound direction reopened at noon. Hundreds of commercial trucks were rolling on I-5 through Lewis county also during the noon hour. Passenger cars were allowed onto I-5 around 12:30 p.m.
US 2 was reopened to traffic Thursday afternoon after a two-day closure caused by flooding and avalanche danger. US 12 White Pass is not a viable east-west route at this time due to flooding at Randle (mile post 116) and a large washout near Glenoma (mile post 108).
WSDOT estimates the economic impact of the I-5 closure through Lewis count is $12 million per day and I-090 is $6 million per day. A summary of this information is at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Freight/publications.htm
Route information is available at the WSDOT web site, www.wsdot.wa.gov and drivers are encouraged to check conditions along their entire route. WSDOT has established a county-by-county list of road closures at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/news/update/.
Due to extreme weather conditions in the Pacific Northwest, Amtrak service throughout portions of the region continues to be disrupted through Saturday, January 10.
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