Not out of the woods yet

Travelers wary of making the trip across Snoqualmie Pass this Thanksgiving may have been anxious over nothing.

Predictions of hours-long delays and backups for 30 miles along Interstate 90 near Snoqualmie Pass never materialized.

According to the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Web site, drivers willing to stay home this holiday allowed for mostly free-flowing traffic all day Wednesday and Thursday.

But possible snow this weekend could make the drive for those who did brave it a little uncomfortable heading home Sunday.

“There is a risk of snow over much of the area this weekend, and travelers can expect wintertime conditions, especially in the mountains,” said Matt Fugazzi, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Spokane.

“It doesn’t look like there’s a big storm coming, but it could produce an inch or two and make the roads nice and slick.”

Traffic is reduced to one lane in both directions of the interstate near the West Summit of the pass while crews work to stabilize a rock slope that slid into the roadway on Nov. 6.

The rockslide had been predicted to cause major delays for drivers heading east or west over the holiday, prompting state officials to urge travelers to stay home or find another way.

As it turned out, the drive was mostly free of holdups.

“At their worst, backups on Snoqualmie Pass (Wednesday) stretched five miles and drivers spent 45 minutes in traffic,” the site said.

And by 5 p.m. Thursday, “Light evening traffic, combined with bare and dry road conditions, is allowing drivers to get through the rockslide work zone with no delays.”

Compared with the Wednesday before Thanksgiving last year, traffic on I-90 dropped 34 percent, from 44,664 vehicles in 2004 to 29,270 this year.

Though traffic tripled on both White and Stevens passes this holiday, travelers using those alternate routes also had no problems, the DOT said.

But the weekend isn’t over yet.

Eastern Washington residents from Spokane southward can expect about one to two inches of snow beginning today and into Saturday, Fugazzi said.

“It will mostly be to the south of us,” with rain falling in the Lewiston and Clarkston areas, Fugazzi said.

In the mountains on the West Side, snow will fall heaviest Saturday and into Sunday, when traffic will be at its heaviest.

Late into the night Thursday, the DOT was reporting light snowfall and freezing rain at the summit of Snoqualmie, and issued a traction warning for all vehicles.

According to the DOT, travelers leaving Sunday and Monday are once again warned that delays could reach up to 16 hours.