Tri-Cities US 395 and SR 240 - Commute times
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Commute times for the US 395 and SR 240 corridor in the Tri-Cities region
Commute times
This page displays average (mean) and reliable (95th percentile) morning and evening peak commute times for weekday trips on US 395 and SR 240 in the Tri-Cities region — Richland, Pasco and Kennewick.
The average peak commute times indicate how long it took, on average, to make these trips during the worst part of the morning (or evening) commute in a given year. The reliable peak commute time shows how much time someone traveling during the worst part of the morning or evening commute would have to allow for their trip in order to arrive at their destination on time on 19 out of 20 days. For details on the methodology to calculate commute times, see WSDOT's Handbook for Corridor Capacity Evaluation (PDF 5.9MB).
Highway capacity constraints vary based on the presence of managed lanes and multimodal travel options; the US 395 and SR 240 corridors in the Tri-Cities region are served by transit buses. Commute times for GP lanes and transit lanes are shown for each commute trip.
Sources: WSDOT Transportation Safety and Systems Analysis Division and WSDOT TRACFLOW (https://tracflow.wsdot.wa.gov/)
Note: Commute times are rounded to the nearest minute.
Multi-year trends
In 2022, commute times continued to worsen compared to 2021 and reached pre-pandemic levels, due to the ongoing recovery of traffic volume in the wake of COVID-19.
In 2020, due to the statewide response to COVID-19 there was a significant decrease in average travel times at peak and reliable peak travel times on US 395 and SR 240 compared to previous years.
From 2018 through 2019, average and reliable peak travel times for US 395 from Kennewick to Pasco during morning commutes in the
Tri-Cities region saw some changes. Both measures decreased between 2018 and 2019. Average travel times for the US 395 evening commute remained relatively steady. Similar morning and evening commute trends were observed on SR 240 as well.
Annual highlights
In 2022, commute times worsened compared to 2021 and reached the pre-pandemic levels, due to the continued recovery of traffic volume across the state in the wake of COVID-19. This made the nine-mile commute from Kennewick to Pasco in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak morning commute take an average of 12 minutes—three minutes more than the nine minutes at the posted speed limit and three minutes below the reliable travel time of 15 minutes.
Making the same trip in the opposite direction during evening peak took an average of 16 minutes—seven minutes more than the nine minutes travel at the posted speed limit, and six minutes below the reliable travel time of 22 minutes.
In 2021, commute times for most locations were similar to 2020, however they did not reach the pre-pandemic levels. Making the nine-mile commute from Kennewick to Pasco in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak morning commute took an average of 11 minutes—two minutes more than the nine minutes at the posted speed limit and two minutes below the reliable travel time of 13 minutes.
Making the same trip in th opposite direction during evening peak took an average of 14 minutes—five minutes more than the nine minutes travel at the posted speed limit, and four minutes below the reliable travel time of 18 minutes.
In 2020, due to the statewide response to COVID-19 there was significant decrease in commute times compared to previous year. Making the nine-mile trip from Kennewick to Pasco in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak morning commute took an average of 11 minutes—two minutes more than the nine minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, but three minutes below the reliable travel time of 14 minutes.
Similarly, making the 10-mile trip from Pasco to Kennewick in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak evening commute took an average of 12 minutes—three minutes more than the nine minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, and four minutes below the reliable travel time of 16 minutes.
In 2019, making the nine-mile trip from Kennewick to Pasco in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak morning commute took an average of 12 minutes—three minutes more than the nine minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, but three minutes below the reliable travel time of 15 minutes.
Similarly, making the 10-mile trip from Pasco to Kennewick in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak evening commute took an average of 16 minutes—six minutes more than the ten minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, and four minutes below the reliable travel time of 20 minutes.
In 2018, making the nine-mile trip from Kennewick to Pasco in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak morning commute took an average of 14 minutes—five minutes more than the nine minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, but one minute below the reliable travel time of 15 minutes.
Similarly, making the 10-mile trip from Pasco to Kennewick in the GP lanes on US 395 during the peak evening commute took an average of 15 minutes—five minutes more than the 10 minutes it would have taken to travel the same route at the posted speed limit, and five minutes below the reliable travel time of 20 minutes.