We’ve passed the halfway point of the five-week Interstate 5 southbound closure. Before the closure began Sept. 11, the Oregon Department of Transportation warned that travel times through the sticky parts—such as getting around the 2-mile closure via I-205 or I-405—could take two to three times longer than usual. It hasn’t been quite that bad, but almost: Travel times are double to 2.25 times as long as normal during the afternoon peak.
“It’s not the worst-case scenario we could have anticipated,” says Rose Gerber of ODOT.
Gerber attributes that, in part, to the public messaging campaign and travelers being willing to make a cultural change in how they get around town. This month has forced a unique partnership among the city, TriMet, ODOT and the public, Gerber says. Drivers are hopping on public transit, biking, walking, working from home and shifting their commutes earlier and later to ease the load on the streets…