WSDOT Launches New, Mobile-Friendly Website

WASHINGTON — The Washington State Department of Transportation unveiled a brand new website this weekend, marking its first major upgrade in more than 15 years. According to WSDOT, work on the overhaul began more than three years ago, with an eye toward making the website more phone-friendly.

"On average we have 75,000 website visitors a day and more than 60 percent of them access our site from a mobile device," WSDOT wrote. "Ninety percent of website visitors are looking for travel-related information. That obviously needed to be a huge focus of the redesign."

WSDOT said it slimmed down the new website from more than 14,000 separate pages down to about 2,000, streamlining access to the most important information for travelers of all kinds.

Key to the agency's remodel is a brand new Travel Center hub, which groups together real-time resources for drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, ferry riders and transit users.

Here are some of the highlights from WSDOT:

• Real-time travel data: You'll be able to click on this to get any travel alerts for whatever route you're traveling. Going on US 2 between Monroe and Wenatchee? Click on it and you'll be able to find lane closures, cameras, truck restrictions and mountain pass reports all in one place. You can get this information in list form, or on a real-time travel map.
• Commercial vehicles: Truck drivers who deliver our goods will find it a lot easier to map their trips, find any restrictions and get information about permits and weigh station e-screening.
• Ferries: With one click you'll find the ability to buy tickets, make reservations, find schedules, get real-time status updates and more.
• Active Transportation: Looking for information and maps for bicycling, walking, running or rolling across our state? It will all be there, easy to find.
• Riding the rails: Interested in riding Amtrak Cascades? You'll be able to find schedules, buy tickets and plan your trips right on the site.
• And more: The travel center also has tolls info, information about border crossings and park & rides, maps you can print out, holiday weekend travel charts, information about local airports and lots more.

WSDOT also revamped its real-time travel maps, giving them a more modern look and allowing users to easily sort which information and tools they display.

The new website is scheduled to go live Sunday, Nov. 7.