Which Parts of Puyallup Are Best for Your Commute?

Two homes with a Puyallup address can be twenty-five minutes apart before either driver reaches a freeway. That is the single most useful fact for anyone house hunting here with a job somewhere else.

The area has good highway access and one very good train. It also has a hill, a river, a few bottleneck roads, and a great deal of housing built a long way from any on-ramp. Picking the right part of town for your job is worth more than almost any feature inside the house.

The map in words

Picture the area as four pieces.

• The valley. The original town on the flat floor of the Puyallup River valley. Downtown, the train station, the fairgrounds, and the junction of State Route 512 and State Route 167 are all here.
• South Hill. The plateau to the south. Meridian, which is State Route 161, runs up the hill and down the middle of it. The north end of the plateau is near State Route 512. The south end is not near anything fast.
• The west side. Fruitland, Summit, and the western edge of South Hill along Canyon Road, toward Tacoma and Parkland.
• The east side. Shaw Road, the east valley, and the edge toward Sumner, Bonney Lake, and Orting.

And five ways out.

Match your job to your side of town

Area by area

Downtown and the central valley

Best for: Sounder riders, Tacoma, Kent and Auburn, and anyone who wants options.

This is the most connected part of the area. The train station is here. State Route 512 and State Route 167 meet at the north end of town. River Road runs to Tacoma. If two adults commute in different directions, the valley is usually the fair compromise.

Trade-offs: older homes, smaller lots, train horns near the tracks, fair traffic in September, and the valley's mapped flood and lahar zones.

The northwest valley

Best for: Tacoma, the port, Fife, and Interstate 5 north.

The neighborhoods toward Clarks Creek and the river have quick access to River Road and to the freeway junction. Tacoma is a short drive.

Trade-offs: some parcels are in mapped floodplain. Check each address.

Lower South Hill, the north end of the plateau

Best for: Tacoma, Lakewood, JBLM, and a workable drive to State Route 167.

The area around South Hill Mall and Bradley Lake sits just up the hill from the State Route 512 interchange. You get the hill's newer housing with a short hop to the freeway. For many buyers this is the sweet spot.

Trade-offs: you live with mall traffic, and the interchange itself backs up at peak hours.

Middle South Hill

Best for: people who work on the hill, hybrid schedules, and commutes to Lakewood or Tacoma that are not time-critical.

Roughly from 128th Street to 160th Street. There is a lot of housing here across several decades. Getting to State Route 512 means ten to fifteen minutes on Meridian or one of its parallels.

Trade-offs: Meridian is slow at peak, and every errand is a drive.

The south end of South Hill

Best for: JBLM by the back way, local jobs in Frederickson, remote workers, and people who value a newer home over a short drive.

South of about 160th Street, including Sunrise, Gem Heights, and the neighborhoods along 176th Street. Much of the newest housing in the area is here.

Trade-offs: the longest trip to every freeway. Fifteen to twenty-five minutes to State Route 512 at peak is normal. For a Seattle or Bellevue commute, this is the hardest location in the area.

The west side: Fruitland, Summit, Canyon Road

Best for: JBLM, Lakewood, Tacoma, and Parkland.

State Route 512 has an interchange at Canyon Road on the west side, and Canyon Road is usually a faster north and south route than Meridian. Lots tend to be larger and some homes sit on small acreage.

Trade-offs: much of it is unincorporated, some homes are on septic, and it is the wrong side of town for State Route 167.

The east side: Shaw Road and the east valley

Best for: Sumner, Auburn, Kent, Bonney Lake, and Orting.

Shaw Road runs up the east side of the hill and connects to the valley near State Route 410 and State Route 167. From here, the north and east job centers are close, and Sumner Station is an alternative to Puyallup Station.

Trade-offs: Shaw Road is one of only a few hill routes and it backs up. It is the long side of town for JBLM.

The hill is the bottleneck

Only a handful of roads connect South Hill to the valley: Meridian, Shaw Road, Fruitland Avenue, 9th Street Southwest to 94th Avenue East, and a few smaller streets. Every one of them slows at rush hour, and when one has a crash, the others fill within minutes.

Two consequences follow.

If you work in the valley and live on the hill, or the reverse, you will cross that bottleneck twice a day. It is a short commute in miles and an irritating one in minutes.

If you work outside the area, the hill decides how long it takes to reach a freeway. People on the plateau who commute north pay this toll daily.

Snow makes it worse. On the few days a year when the hill routes ice over, people who live in the valley get to work and people on the plateau sometimes do not.

Two-commute households

Most households have two jobs to plan around. Some combinations work better than others.

When in doubt, favor the longer or less flexible commute. The person with the 6 a.m. report time or the 70-minute trip should get the advantage.

School, daycare, and the first two miles

The commute does not start at the freeway. For many households it starts with a stop.

If you drop a child at school or childcare on the way, map that stop first. A daycare in the opposite direction from the on-ramp can add twenty minutes each way. When you look at a home, drive the whole chain: house, drop-off, on-ramp. Buyers get this part wrong more often than they get the freeway part wrong.

Hybrid and remote schedules

If you commute two days a week, the calculation shifts. A long drive twice a week costs four to six hours. The same drive five days a week costs twelve to fifteen.

Hybrid workers often choose the south end of the hill or the rural edges for a newer or larger home and accept the drive. That is a reasonable trade as long as you go in knowing two things. Employers change policies. And a home that is hard to commute from appeals to fewer buyers when you sell.

The drives that are not your commute

Work is only part of the week. Before you settle on a location, think about the trips you will make most often outside of it.

• Groceries and errands. Nearly all of the large stores are on Meridian. If you live on the far east or west side, every errand means crossing to the middle.
• Kids' activities. Practices and games are spread across fields and gyms on both the hill and the valley floor. Parents on the plateau with children in valley programs make the hill crossing several times a week.
• Medical appointments. The hospital and many clinics are in the valley near downtown. More clinics line Meridian on the hill.
• The airport. Sea-Tac is reached by way of State Route 167 or Interstate 5, so the north end of the area has the head start.
• Weekends away. The mountains are east and south. The Sound and the ocean are west.

A home that is five minutes better for work and fifteen minutes worse for everything else is not a win.

Commute and resale

A location's commute affects its value over time. Homes with easy access to a freeway or the train appeal to more buyers, in more kinds of markets, than homes that are a long drive from both. When fuel prices rise or employers call people back to the office, that gap tends to widen.

This does not mean you should avoid the far end of the plateau. It means the price should reflect the drive, and you should buy there for the house and the setting, with a clear view of the trade.

What is changing

State Route 167 completion. The state is extending State Route 167 from Puyallup to Interstate 5 in Fife and the Port of Tacoma as a tolled expressway, built in stages. When it opens, the north valley gains a direct freeway link to Interstate 5. That favors the valley and the north end of the area. See the WSDOT project page.

Transit. Sound Transit has adjusted Sounder schedules over time and has long-range plans for more service. Light rail has been extending south toward Tacoma. Neither is a reason to buy on its own, but both lean in favor of living near the stations.

Growth on the plateau. Housing continues to be built on and beyond the south end of South Hill. Road projects follow slowly. Expect traffic there to remain the area's main complaint.

How to test a location

1. List your real destinations. Work, school, childcare, the gym, the grocery store.
2. Drive the morning chain at the real time, on a weekday, from the home you are considering.
3. Drive home at the real time.
4. Do it again on a rainy day, and on a Friday.
5. Check the map app at 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. for a week from wherever you are. Save the screenshots.

If you are out of the area, send me the addresses and I will drive it and report back.

Frequently asked questions

What part of Puyallup is best for commuting to Seattle?

Downtown and the valley, close to Puyallup Station for the Sounder train, or the north valley near State Route 167 if you drive.

What part of Puyallup is best for commuting to JBLM?

The west side, including Summit, Fruitland, and the western part of South Hill near Canyon Road, which reach State Route 512 or 176th Street quickly.

Is South Hill a bad place to commute from?

It depends on where on the hill. The north end is close to State Route 512. The south end is 15 to 25 minutes from a freeway at peak hours, which makes long commutes harder.

Where should we live if we commute in two different directions?

The valley is usually the best compromise, because it sits at the junction of State Route 512, State Route 167, River Road, and the Sounder line.

How do I check a commute before buying?

Drive it at your real departure and return times on a weekday, including any school or childcare stops, and repeat on a rainy day.

Related reading

• Can You Live in Puyallup and Commute to Seattle?
• Puyallup to Tacoma Commute: What Rush Hour Looks Like
• Commuting From Puyallup to Joint Base Lewis-McChord
• How Bad Is Traffic on South Hill?

Equal Housing Opportunity. Austin Robertson, License # 21036843, Austin Robertson and Allena Robertson Real Estate Brokers, regulated by the Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL). This article is general information only. It is not legal, tax, insurance, lending, or construction advice, and it is not an appraisal of any property. Robertson & Co. supports fair housing and does not describe or recommend neighborhoods based on who lives there. Costs, rates, and rules change. Confirm the details with the sources linked above before you act.