Bellevue sits between Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish, with a high-rise downtown at its center and wooded neighborhoods spreading across the hills around it. I-405 runs north and south through the middle of the city, connecting it with Kirkland, Bothell and Renton. I-90 crosses the south end on its way west over the floating bridge to Mercer Island and Seattle and east toward Issaquah and the mountains, and SR 520 runs along the north end across its own floating bridge to Seattle and east to Redmond. Bellevue Way, Bel-Red Road and Factoria Boulevard are among the busiest surface streets.
For a mobile mechanic, I-405 is the main obstacle. It backs up most weekdays through downtown Bellevue, and the interchanges with I-90 and SR 520 are daily choke points. Downtown's office and apartment towers mean underground garages with height limits and security rules, so planning access matters. Many office buildings downtown ask vendors to check in at a security desk and use a loading area, so share those details ahead of time. Out in the neighborhoods, though, most homes have driveways or garages, and the streets in Lake Hills, Crossroads and Eastgate give plenty of room to work beside a car.
Sea-Tac Airport is a drive south via I-405. Sound Transit's light rail now links downtown Bellevue, the Spring District and Redmond, and King County Metro buses, including a rapid line between Bellevue and Redmond, fill in the rest. Bellevue College in Eastgate, the hospital campus near downtown and the large tech offices downtown and in Redmond bring heavy daily traffic.