More than 19,000 residents sign petition against I-405 tolls

More than 19,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the elimination of toll lanes on Interstate 405.

More than 19,000 people have signed an online petition calling for the elimination of toll lanes on Interstate 405.

The lanes have proven to be unpopular with commuters since they were implemented in late September, but many drivers seem to have had it with what many regard to be an ineffective way for Washington State to reduce congestion along the notoriously tedious stretch of road.

Grievances laid out in the petition include forcing two-person carpool vehicles into the general lanes, which charges three-person vehicles $15 for a FlexPass on top of a residual required balance and infrequent toll lane access points.

A Washington State Department of Transportation blog post from late October said they had seen a decrease in average commute times.

The post claimed there had been a 50 percent reduction in travel times from a 40-minute commute in 2014.

Evening commuters, the post ceded, saw little reduction in congestion, if any.

Along with the moveon.org petitioners concerns was the creation of new congestion points, an issue which the WSDOT blog post also addressed.

In the blog post, I-405 north of State Route 522 and Lynwood increased congestion, creating longer commutes for drivers traveling shorter distances between the two cities.

It also did not significantly reduce congestion between Bellevue and SR 522, with stop-and-go traffic in Kirkland before traffic breaking until it meets the new northern congestion points.

The petition states that as much as 75 percent of toll revenue is being shipped to the out-of-state tolling company, with the remainder staying in-state, and states only an estimated 10 percent of the money collected is reinvested in road maintenance and improvements.

The petition asks lawmakers to eliminate toll lanes and restore carpool lanes, remove double lines on the lanes and to allow drivers to use carpool lanes for free during night hours.

This past week tolls for the I-405 lanes reached an all-time high at $10.