By Staff
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will permanently close the Alaskan Way Viaduct on Jan. 11, and the new SR 99 tunnel is scheduled to open three weeks later in early February.
This closure, which is the longest highway closure in the history of the Puget Sound region, means that 90,000 vehicles a day, including several thousand trucks and buses, have to use another route. Expect traffic delays and be prepared for full buses during peak travel times.
This is just the beginning. Over the next five years, private and public construction projects will continue to change how goods are moved and delivered. WSDOT calls this the “Seattle Squeeze.”
On March 23, the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel becomes light rail only, bringing seven significant regional bus routes onto city streets. Construction of the new Alaska Way begins in early summer, and will last until 2021.
Visit seattle.gov/traffic for the tools and information you need to get around. Other helpful websites: 99tunnel.com, AlaskanWayViaduct.org, and kingcounty.gov/getready.