Crews work on the new southbound bridge over Chuckanut Creek while traffic continues through the temporary construction corridor. (Photo: WSDOT)
BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Southbound Interstate 5 traffic will return to its usual alignment and cross a new bridge over Chuckanut Creek south of Bellingham Thursday night, Sept. 17, as Washington State Department of Transportation crews continue work on a major fish-passage project.
WSDOT says drivers should expect lane closures and rolling slowdowns from 8 p.m. Thursday through 5 a.m. Friday, Sept. 18, while crews make the traffic switch near milepost 247.
Northbound I-5 will continue using the temporary bypass road.
WSDOT North announced the change Thursday afternoon, warning of the overnight changes.
The switch comes after a summer of crashes in and around the temporary I-5 configuration near Lake Samish and Chuckanut Creek.
Northbound traffic remains on the bypass
The southbound traffic shift will remove one direction of traffic from the temporary roadway, but northbound drivers will continue navigating the historically dangerous bypass.
The temporary configuration has been the site of a growing number of crashes since traffic was shifted for construction.
PNW Daily has identified at least 11 crashes in and immediately around the active construction corridor since the traffic shifts began, including seven crashes documented by the Washington State Patrol during one week in June.
The incidents have included vehicle collisions, barrier strikes, rollovers and a motorcycle crash.
The latest crash occurred Tuesday afternoon when a collision on northbound I-5 near North Lake Samish Road blocked the right lane and backed up traffic for more than 2 miles.
Washington State Patrol responded while traffic moved through the active construction corridor.
This Crash Report is sponsored by CrashLaw.NET, a legal resource for crash victims in Whatcom County.
Seven crashes in one week
The largest documented cluster occurred June 19-25, shortly after traffic shifted onto temporary bypass roads around the Chuckanut Creek construction area.
WSP reported seven crashes during that one-week period.
One of the most serious occurred June 24 near milepost 246 when an 83-year-old Elma man failed to merge through the construction zone, struck a barrier and rolled his Hyundai Kona onto its roof.
The driver was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. His passenger was taken to PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham.
WSP determined that failure to merge caused the crash. Investigators found no evidence that drugs or alcohol contributed.
The previous evening, a two-vehicle collision near milepost 246 involved a WSDOT water attenuator truck. Both drivers went to St. Joseph Medical Center.
Crashes continued through the summer
The crashes did not stop after the June cluster.
WSDOT continued reporting collisions around milepost 246 and the Lake Samish interchange.
A northbound collision Aug. 27 partially blocked the right lane near milepost 246. Another collision was reported Aug. 29.
On Aug. 30, PNW Daily encountered a group of motorcycles in the right lane while traveling northbound. Riders were helping lift a motorcycle that appeared to have slid after reaching the center of the traffic revision.
Tuesday’s crash again showed how quickly an incident can affect traffic through the constrained corridor.
The lane eventually reopened, but the backup extended for more than 2 miles.
Construction changed the normal freeway configuration
The Chuckanut Creek work is part of a larger fish-passage project that requires WSDOT to replace barriers to fish migration beneath I-5.
The temporary roadway uses lane shifts, barriers and narrowed travel lanes around the construction area. WSDOT also lowered the temporary speed limit to 50 mph when the bypass opened.
The project includes several fish-passage locations between mileposts 241 and 247, including Lake Creek at milepost 245, an unnamed tributary near milepost 246 and Chuckanut Creek at milepost 247.
The repeated crashes do not by themselves establish that the construction configuration caused them.
In some cases, investigators identified specific driver behavior as the cause. WSP determined that failure to merge caused the June 24 rollover.
Still, the incidents have occurred in a concentrated area where drivers are navigating lane shifts, temporary barriers and changing traffic patterns.
What changes Thursday night
The southbound traffic switch should eliminate the southbound bypass at Chuckanut Creek.
WSDOT says southbound I-5 will return to its usual alignment and use the new bridge over Chuckanut Creek beginning Thursday night.
Northbound traffic will remain on the bypass road.
Drivers should expect construction activity and temporary traffic impacts during the overnight transition. WSDOT says the work will involve lane closures and rolling slowdowns between 8 p.m. Thursday and 5 a.m. Friday.
For drivers heading north toward Bellingham, the temporary configuration will therefore remain in place after the southbound switch.
CrashLaw.NET offers advice for drivers
We asked our expert at CrashLaw.NET, Ziad Youssef, about driving through the construction corridor.
Youssef urged motorists to slow down, remain alert and anticipate that another driver could make a mistake.
He also recommends using a dash camera. A dash camera can provide an independent record of what happened when a collision occurs, particularly on a busy highway where traffic continues moving around the crash scene.
Frequently Asked Questions
PNW Daily brings you this Crash Report as part of the ongoing series sponsored by CrashLaw.NET. If you’ve been seriously injured, give Ziad Youssef and the team a call today at (360) 255-5046.
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