I-5 Detour Info for People on Bicycles

Bike travel information for getting around I-5 detour/closure based on tips from area riders. Send suggestions for bike-friendly routes to Barb Chamberlain (Director of WSDOT Active Transportation Division) and feedback on any of these routes you use.
I-5 shoulders are expected to remain closed for repair for some time.
Bike travel: People on bikes will encounter heavy traffic on alternate routes used by drivers detouring around the I-5 closure. Exercise your usual care in selecting a route that is appropriate and comfortable for you. We recommend you review maps and terrain to familiarize yourself with the route you plan to use and allow extra time.
Options for biking (southbound description):
SR7/SR507/Yelm-Tenino Trail
Use SR 7 to SR 507. In Yelm you can access the Yelm-Tenino Trail, which connects to the Chehalis-Western Trail. See the Thurston County Bicycle Map for details.
Mounts Road/Old Pacific Highway SE/SR 510
From I5 exit into DuPont. Travel west from Center Drive on McNeil St. (multiuse sidepath/sidewalk available). Turn left on Hoffman Hill Blvd. (sidewalk available) and be prepared for a climb. Continue on Hoffman Hill Blvd. past the “No Outlet” sign, which applies only to drivers; cross Swan Loop Road, continue onto the multi-use path and pass through the pedestrian gate to Mounts Rd. SW. Go left and follow Mounts Road (narrow road, no shoulder for a stretch). After it crosses I-5 and becomes Nisqually Rd SW (Old Pacific Hwy SE) the road has a shoulder. Stay on Nisqually to SR510.
JBLM
From I-5 take exit 118. Cross the overpass over I-5, go through the Center Dr. Gate (where Center Dr dead-ends if you don’t turn to go northbound on I5) onto JBLM, turn right on Perimeter Rd., and then be directed on the I-5 Southbound Detour. Don’t use exit 119 and try to enter JBLM through the DuPont Gate; you will be turned around. Note that this route does not have a shoulder.
Barb Chamberlain
Director – Active Transportation Division
WA State Dept. of Transportation
Seattle: 206-716-1130
Olympia: 360-704-6386