Vancouver region State Route 500 - Severe congestion
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Measures of severe congestion on SR 500 in the Vancouver region
Severe congestion
Severe congestion occurs when highway travel speeds are slower than 60% of the posted speed (about 36 mph for a 60 mph speed limit) leading to reduced highway efficiency. Refer to WSDOT's how to calculate severe congestion (PDF 5.9MB).
Sources: WSDOT Transportation Safety and Systems Analysis Division and WSDOT TRACFLOW (https://tracflow.wsdot.wa.gov/)
Performance highlights
In 2023, commuters heading eastbound on SR 500 experienced a slight increase in severe congestion during the morning commute compared to 2022. For example:
- At 8:00 a.m., travelers experience severe congestion on 1.3% of weekdays in 2023.
In 2022, travelers experienced slight increase in severe congestion during the evening commute in the westbound direction compared to 2021.
In 2021, travelers experienced slight severe congestion during the morning to afternoon commute in the westbound direction exprienced less congested compared to 2020. For example, at 8:50 a.m. speeds on SR 500 from I-205 to the I-5 Interchange were below 36 mph on less than 0.8% of weekdays in 2020—up from 0.4% of weekdays in 2020. For the eastbound SR 500, I-5 to I-205 interchange, exprienced less Severe congestion throughout a day in this direction compared to 2020.
In 2020, travelers experienced less severe congestion during the morning to afternoon commute in the westbound direction exprienced compared to 2019. For example, at 7:55 a.m. speeds on SR 500 from I-205 to the I-5 Interchange were below 36 mph on less than 0.4% of weekdays in 2020—down from 2.1% of weekdays in 2019. For the eastbound SR 500, I-5 to I-205 interchange, exprienced more Severe congestion throughout a day in this direction compared to 2019.
In 2019, travelers experienced severe congestion during the morning commute in the westbound direction. For example, at 8:00 a.m. speeds on SR 500 from I-205 to the I-5 Interchange were below 36 mph on 2.1% of weekdays in 2019 and westbound evening commute exprneiced some congestion.