Last week, The Olympian said: “All parties must work together to resolve I-5 congestion.”

“Gridlock is no longer the exception. Backups, starting at 6 a.m., of three, six, nine or more miles long are the rule…

What many people dont know, however, is that more people leave the South Sound community every morning to commute to jobs outside Thurston County…

No wonder that I-5 is increasing clogged with those early-morning commuters.

Add to that the fact that 18,000 soldiers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord have recently returned home, and its painfully clear that the freeway is simply incapable of handling the normal flow of traffic.

And its about to get worse.

Army officials say that South Sound soon will play host to an additional 5,700 active-duty soldiers and 8,600 family members. They say the number of active-duty soldiers at the base will approach 36,000, a number that does not include Air Force or other service members on the newly consolidated base.

Many of those new residents will join the madhouse on I-5…

Longer-term solutions under consideration by state Transportation officials include installation of metered on-ramps (traffic signals that allow one car at a time to enter the freeway), more traffic cameras and real-time traffic information so motorists know if the roadway is clogged. About the only alternative route through Yelm, McKenna and Roy can be equally problematic and crowded for motorists. That is until a cross-base highway is eventually built.

YELM AS AN ALTERNATIVE FOR I-5 TRAFFIC BETWEEN OLYMPIA/LACEY & JBLM?
OH MY – OUR ROADS ARE ABOUT AT CAPACITY NOW, AS WELL.

HOWEVER, THE OLYIMPIAN IS RIGHT –
“ALL PARTIES MUST WORK TOGETHER TO RESOLVE I-5 CONJESTION”