In 1991 , a smaller renumbering of state highways occurred . The renumbering produced some new highways and either realigned or removed highways from the system . In 1996 , Sound Transit was formed and in the same year , the Washington State Transportation Commission adopted its first 20-year transportation plan . Throughout the 1990s , WSDOT focused more and more on rail systems and partnered with Amtrak to make a train route that went from Canada to Oregon , which would later become the Amtrak Cascades . The 2001 Nisqually earthquake damaged most state highways around the Seattle metropolitan area and most of the budget was turned over to the Puget Sound region to help rebuild and repair roads and bridges
2001 Nisqually earthquake
2001 Nisqually earthquake
Washington State Department of Transportation