Interstate 5 was a parking lot southbound through Vancouver before 7 a.m. on Monday morning. The backup approaching the bridge continued through most of the morning and into the afternoon.
Traffic backed up to north of 39th street and onto state Highway 500, causing headaches for commuters on the first weekday after a week of closures for the I-5 bridge repair. While the backup on I-5 eased in the mid morning before picking up again, Highway 500 has been slowed to a crawl approaching the merger consistently throughout the day.
The left lane of I-5 south through downtown Vancouver remains closed for ongoing bridge work.
The northbound span of the bridge was closed Sept. 19 through Saturday to replace the aging bridge’s trunnion.
Interstate 205 is clear both directions through Vancouver.
