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Washington road crews are smoothing things out on roads with chip sealing, but the strain on travel times may be putting a chip on drivers’ shoulders.

Chip sealing projects in Skagit, Whatcom, Snohomish and Island counties have been slowing drivers down this summer, mainly because the timing of the work. This is the first time the state has used chip sealing as Washington state looks to stretch limited resources while maintaining smooth roads.

Small Washington cities using cheaper solutions to pave their roads

A lot of the highways (State Routes 9, 20, 530, 542, 547 and 548) that crews are working on haven’t been repaved in more than 20 years.

While the chip sealing work is cheaper, it has to be done a certain way. It can only be completed during the day in the summer months when it’s warm enough for the seal to cure.

Drivers have been frustrated when they encounter the projects, but the state says it is trying to time the work at each location around non-peak travel times.

Some of the heaviest hit areas have been along SR 20 on Whidbey Island in the Morris Road area, and on SR 9 near SR 530 in Arlington. Washington State Department of Transportation reports it has taken drivers 30 minutes to an hour to get through some of these areas.

The good news, when it鈥檚 done, you won鈥檛 have to sit in traffic while crews are smoothing out the road. At least for another six to eight years, when the work will have to be done again. Chip sealing may be quite cheaper, but it also doesn’t last as long as the more expensive paving job. State crews will likely have to return to the roads to smooth them out once again in just a few years.

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