It didn't take long for Seattle commuters to notice traffic impacts now that Amazon workers have returned to the office full-time.

State transit officials are urging drivers to prepare for gridlock as an estimated 50,000 Amazon corporate workers heed CEO Andy Jassy’s directive.

Amazon has demanded that all of its employees return to the office full-time, five days a week. Now, as those workers head back to the office, officials in the company’s home base of Seattle are warning that the policy may clog up local traffic routes.

More than 50,000 Amazon employees will return to work in Seattle for the first required in-person Monday shift in years, marking a major adjustment for the region’s commuters.

Tens of thousands of Amazon employees will return to work in Seattle for their first required in-person Monday shift in years. Now the traffic in Seattle is expected to seriously ramp up, especially in the South Lake Union neighborhood.

Beginning Thursday, Amazon employees will be required to work in the office five days a week. CEO Andy Jassy sent out a message to employees about the change Sept. 16. Like many other companies, Amazon’s corporate employees worked remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The return to office policy that starts Thursday for Amazon employees impacts far more people than just those workers being told they must be in the office.

There are pros and cons to Amazon’s return-to-work rule that takes affect this week, both for those working at the Seattle-based company and for for others in regions where offices are

It’s day 2 for Amazon workers going back to the office 5 days a week and one of the areas already seeing the impacts of all the foot traffic is Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood.