Tips on dealing with freeway offramp backups

Q: Traffic on the freeway has increased over the years and now exiting traffic sometimes comes to a stop in the traffic lanes of the freeway. It’s really scary to have to come to a stop and see traffic piling up behind me. I almost feel like staying in the left lane and taking the next exit. What are your suggestions when encountering this situation?

A: One of the drawbacks of living in a place where lots of people want to be is that we end up with lots of people. Longtime Washington residents can remember when rush hour was really only an hour and you almost had to leave the state to find a traffic jam. But we couldn’t keep it to ourselves and now the infrastructure can’t maintain pace with the popularity of Washington.

In the last 10 years, Washington’s population increased by almost one million people. That’s a 13 percent increase. In roughly the same period, the lane miles of roads in Washington decreased by almost 5 percent, according to Federal Highway Administration data.

Side note: building more roads actually won’t fix the problem. Some people avoid driving in heavy traffic because it’s not worth it to them. If you add a lane to fix a traffic jam, the increased road capacity entices those drivers onto the road, and soon you’ve spent millions of dollars to get back where you started.

When a bunch of those people all want the same exit, you end up with a backup onto the freeway. Ideally, you have the option of traveling at a different time or taking an alternative route. Of course, not everyone can adjust their work hours to better fit traffic flow. You might also not even know it’s a problem until you get there, especially if you’re driving in an area you’re less familiar with. If you’re caught off guard, other drivers probably are too. If your next exit isn’t too far, it might be better to stay where you are.

If you’re committed to taking the exit, there are some things you can do to minimize the chances of other drivers piling into you from behind. Get in the exit lane early. Begin slowing down well before you catch up to the drivers in front of you who are also taking the exit. Use your turn signal and apply your brakes early enough to make sure the driver behind you has plenty of time to respond.

Doug Dahl writes a traffic column for this newspaper. He is with the state Traffic Safety Commission.