Roadway Striping - Things to Know 

This information comes without any guarantee or admission of responsibility by Thurston County. Each year, Thurston County Traffic Operations spends the dry summer months re-striping the roadways throughout the county. The fresh coats of reflective paint that the crews apply during this time make it easier for drivers to see the road at night and in the rain. 

Drivers can protect their cars from damage by keeping an eye out for striping crews and avoiding lane changes on freshly painted lines. 
    - Watch for “Wet Paint” warning signs and warning trucks. 
    - Check the Traffic Operations website at: www.co.thurston.wa.us/publicworks for updates on where the striping operations will be that day. 
    - Make a habit of driving between the lines and avoid cutting corners across traffic control lines as required by the Washington State “Rules of the Road” (Chapter 46.61 RCW)  

The time it takes for striping paint to dry can vary with the outside temperature. Under normal weather conditions, the “no track” time for paint is approximately 2 minutes. The warmer it is, the faster it reaches the “no track” state. Drivers should also be aware that even on warm days, shaded areas remain cooler and may still have wet paint when the rest has already dried.  

When drivers drive over wet lane stripes, their tires splatter paint onto their vehicles and remove thousands of tiny glass reflector beads designed to be clearly visible when illuminated by headlights. The reflective lane stripe helps drivers see the road at night and in the rain, so driving through the wet paint lines could create an unsafe driving condition.   

The paint used on county roadways is engineered to last, which means it’s difficult to remove if it dries on your vehicle. 

Manufacturer's Procedure for Removing Traffic Paint from Vehicles

The following information is provided by the paint manufacturer, Ennis-Flint, without any guarantee or admission of responsibility by Thurston County.

1. In the unfortunate event that waterborne traffic paint comes in contact with traveling public’s vehicles, it is important to get to a pressure car wash as soon as possible.  This will loosen and remove most of the paint unless it has dried for more than a day. If the car wash does not remove the paint, allow the water to dry off the vehicle, and then spray the paint residue with WD-40, and allow it to remain for 1-2 hours and rewash the vehicle. The WD-40 will soften the traffic paint without harming the vehicle's finish.  If there is a heavy concentration of paint, repeat the WD-40 procedure.
2. For heavy accumulations or paint that has dried for several days, apply a liberal coating of Vaseline to the dried traffic paint and allow it to remain overnight. The next day, take the vehicle to a pressure car wash to remove the paint.  If this does not remove all of the paint, repeat this procedure.
3. DO NOT scrub the finish with a solvent or scouring cleanser!  This WILL damage the finish.
4. After cleaning the traffic paint off of the vehicle, apply a quality car wax to the finish.  Wax should remove any lasting signs of the paint from the finish. 
5. Wheel wells are very difficult to remove traffic paint from, since they are not normally a smooth surface.  Apply a liberal coating of Vaseline to the area and leave on for several days. Pressure washing should remove the paint from the area.  Applying an alcohol such as Solox or rubbing alcohol to the area in the wheel well will help to soften any residue left from the Vaseline.  Once again, DO NOT scrub the surface, apply with a wetted rag or sponge.