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The more famous name for SR 527 is the Bothell-Everett Highway, which connected not only the towns of Everett and Bothell but also was at the very core of the entire area’s economic growth in sub-urbanization and daily life commuting. What began as a little rural farmland grew into the bustling suburban corridor which we still use today.
Before the construction of the Bothell-Everett Highway, it was a very rural area, and travel depended on small, local roads. Farmland, forests, and wetlands separated communities like Everett and Bothell, and several others in the area. Options were very limited at the time for transportation. Early roads like this were often dirt or gravel paths only used for local commutes.
With the dawn of the early 20th century, automobiles became the new means of travel and transportation. Due to the growing number of automobiles, Washington state started developing and building a better highway system, and by the 1920s and 1930s the state realized that its roads needed to be better in order to connect the further growing cities and rural areas.
By 1937, State Route 527 was officially established as a part of the Washington State highway system. It ran from Everett in the north to Bothell in the south, providing the critical link between these rapidly growing suburban communities. During this period, the road was an almost rural, two-lane highway through the predominantly agricultural area of the times. It connected smaller towns and rural areas to the bigger city of Everett and gave access to economic opportunities in the Puget Sound region.
However, as Seattle’s suburban growth accelerated after World War II, SR 527 became a vital commuter route, linking rapidly expanding suburban areas like Mill Creek, Everett, Bothell, and Lynnwood to the city of Seattle. The city of Seattle was greatly industrializing, and its major companies like Boeing and others attracted workers from these surrounding regions. This urbanization reached communities such as Everett and Bothell, which started seeing more population and commercial developments due to the increasing number of workers. The Bothell-Everett Highway became crucial for these new suburban commuters, being the regional connector between residential areas and the job centers in Seattle. As traffic volume increased, it to bear increasing loads. The highway started showing its limitations with narrow lanes, few intersections, and safety concerns that made it difficult to handle the increasing demand.
Thus, in the 1950s and 1960s, the highway underwent several rounds of upgrades, such as widening the highway, with key intersections improved to allow for better traffic flow. The highway would continue to be further expanded and upgraded following the years of 1970 to 1990, as suburban growth continued in Mill Creek, Lynnwood, and Bothell.
The highway stands strong today, serving a dense and diverse population. Today, it is still the critical transportation corridor for thousands of daily commuters who travel between Everett and Lynnwood, Mill Creek and Bothell, and the other communities. The highway remains an essential link in the northern suburbs of Seattle to major transportation routes like Interstate 5.
