I used to commute to and from Redmond to South King County. It didn’t take me long to realize that, despite the fact that I had to go an extra ten miles out of my way, my commute was faster if I took surface streets to I-90 and went the long way to SR-18 than if I took I-405. I actually ended up saving 10 to 15 minutes each way. An interesting article in the Seattle Times talks about the problem…

Looking for the worst commute in the entire Puget Sound region? Then get a job in downtown Bellevue and buy a house in Tukwila, Seattle or Everett.

A new state study released this week says trips to and from downtown Bellevue now are generally worse than commutes to and from downtown Seattle.

In fact, the state Department of Transportation’s report says, the two worst afternoon freeway commutes in the region both originate in Bellevue: the voyage south down Interstate 405 to Tukwila, and the haul west across Highway 520 to Seattle.

…

“Wherever you are, you’ve got a problem,” said state Transportation Secretary Doug MacDonald. “It is not happy news.”