WSDOT lowers speed limit on SR 20 through Deception Pass corridor

A four-mile stretch of State Route 20 through the Deception Pass corridor slowed to 45 mph, a change that will add only about half a minute to the drive but will be felt every day by commuters, park visitors and businesses moving between South Fidalgo Island and Skagit County. The new limit applies in both directions between Sharpes Corner and Pass Lake, from mileposts 43.52 to 47.8.

WSDOT said maintenance crews replaced the signs during the week of Monday, June 8, and the lower limit became enforceable as soon as the new signs went up. At 50 mph, the four-mile segment takes about 4 minutes and 48 seconds to drive. At 45 mph, it takes about 5 minutes and 20 seconds, a difference of roughly 32 seconds.

The agency said the permanent reduction followed a review of speed and collision data and was driven by community safety concerns. WSDOT also said it worked closely with the Samish Indian Nation after the tribe requested the change for the corridor, which carries traffic headed toward Deception Pass State Park and the busy highway connection north of the bridge.

The speed change is tied to a broader safety push along the same corridor. The SR 20 and Campbell Lake Road intersection, part of the route between Sharpes Corner and Pass Lake, is planned for a roundabout later this summer. The Samish Indian Nation said it has pursued a roundabout at that intersection for several years to improve what it described as a precarious crossing and to improve access to Samish trust land near Campbell Lake.

The tribe said traffic at the intersection has increased 20% over the past five years. It said the roundabout project received $760,000 in federal Tribal Transportation Program Safety Fund money on February 17, 2020, and is estimated to cost $3.2 million. The project also includes $657,400 allocated through the Skagit Council of Governments from federal Highway Infrastructure Program and Surface Transportation Program funds.

Skagit County’s 2021-2026 transportation plan lists the SR 20 and Campbell Lake Road roundabout as a coordinated project with the Samish Indian Nation and WSDOT, underscoring that the speed reduction is part of a larger corridor strategy rather than a stand-alone adjustment. WSDOT route materials also note that a roundabout was added at Sharpes Corner effective June 23, 2018, reinforcing the pattern of redesigns aimed at slowing traffic and reducing conflict points along the Deception Pass gateway.