Latest news with #ReviveI-5
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
‘Backups of epic proportions': Your comprehensive guide to Revive I-5 closures and traffic delays
This story was originally posted on Despite earlier claims from the Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT), Revive I-5 is happening this summer, closing down significant stretches of the highway for four weeks, much to the chagrin of Seattle drivers and commuters. The Revive I-5 campaign, Washington's effort to rehabilitate Interstate 5 (I-5), is set to improve the most vital sections of the major highway, section by section, between King and Snohomish counties. The prioritization of the sections is based on traffic volume and the present conditions of the roadway, with safety being the number one concern. With heavy backups during rush hour traffic already too common, Seattleites are about to see backups of epic proportions once two of the four lanes close for a month on northbound I-5, beginning in late July. The project had an original start date of March 2025, but in January, WSDOT announced that Revive I-5 was going to be postponed until next year due to an abrupt revelation that there weren't enough funds to start it. While the massive highway overhaul is 'very' critical to the state's infrastructure, according to KIRO Newsradio traffic reporter Chris Sullivan, drivers felt a subtle sigh of relief, believing they had a little more time before significant lane closures and extensive backups. Unfortunately, that sinking feeling of looming traffic resurfaced this week when WSDOT announced they were going to start this project this summer after all. How did WSDOT rebudget to continue Revive I-5? 'We had a budget set for the project, and when we established the budget, we thought the funding was sufficient,' WSDOT spokesperson Tom Pearce said. 'However, as we got into the project and worked with the contractor, they saw what the work was going to entail and they determined that we would need more money this year.' 'The Legislature will not set our budget until, of course, late in their session, but we needed to start the work before the session was finished if we were going to do the work in 2025,' Pearce added. 'In March 2025, it would have required starting before the necessary funds were fully committed from the Legislature.' That explains why this project was initially delayed. So what changed? 'We reduced the scope of this project to focus on the Ship Canal Bridge,' Pearce explained. 'We changed the plans to align our construction spending with the available funding.' Here's where Revive I-5 will start This summer, with Revive I-5 back in action, WSDOT will begin working between Interstate 90 (I-90) and Ne45th Street across the Ship Canal Bridge—a vital connection between north and downtown Seattle, with 200,000 estimated daily commuters. Recently, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) finished the I-5 Duwamish River to S. Lucile Street section along Boeing Field into Tukwila. The next phase moves north, fixing concrete, potholes, and drainage systems along the Ship Canal Bridge. What can drivers expect to see this summer? 'We will close northbound I-5 at I-90 from July 25-28,' Pearce told KIRO Newsradio. 'We're closed the entire weekend to allow our contractors to get out and set up a work zone that will keep the people working on I-5 safe, as we'll repave about 900 feet of the two left lanes of the Ship Canal Bridge.' When the northbound freeway opens on July 28, the right two lanes will be open for travel, but the left two lanes will remain closed. 'We're going to have the express lanes open northbound 24/7 while we have the two left lanes closed off the main line,' Pearce stated. 'Once we finish our work on Aug. 22, we will have another full closure from Friday night, Aug. 22, to early Monday, Aug. 25, so that our contractor can go in, pick up the safety barrier that they've put up, restripe the freeway, and have all four lanes open on Monday morning.' Lots of traffic congestion to go around According to WSDOT, this will be a four-week preview of what people can expect for approximately nine months out of the year in 2026 and 2027. The traffic backups will be shared in both directions of I-5. Southbound drivers will also be without their morning express lanes, adding to an already tough commute into Seattle. Over the course of this summer's one-month closure, Atkinson Construction will repair and resurface about 20% of the northbound Ship Canal Bridge, partially repair five expansion joints, and replace drainage. Restarting this summer will keep the overall project on track and allow crews to gather critical data on the bridge's condition to better prepare for next year's phase. What is WSDOT's plan for 2026? Next year brings the World Cup to Seattle, adding further complications to the three-year highway revitalization. 'In 2026, we will close the two left lanes early in the year so that we can finish repaving and make any repairs we need,' Pearce said in anticipation of the World Cup. 'When we get to early June, when the World Cup is getting ready to fire up, we will pick up everything.' King County officials claimed the World Cup would generate at least $929 million in revenue for the county, and create nearly 21,000 jobs. Organizers estimate that 750,000 people will visit Seattle during the three-week event. 'Once the World Cup is complete, our contractor will come back out in mid-July, and then they're going to close down the freeway again,' Pearce said. 'They will close the two right lanes of the northbound bridge so that they can work on those for several months. And then, come fall 2026, they will pick it up, and we will have everything open as we get into the winter.' What's Revive I-5′s outlook in 2027? In 2027, with the focus pivoting to southbound I-5, two lanes will be closed, and the other two lanes will remain open for several months. Once that work is done, WSDOT crews will flip their construction zone again, working on the previous two open lanes while opening up the recently completed lanes. 'We understand there's no good time to do this work. People are always going places. There are always events in the city,' Pearce said. 'We did the best we could to schedule this around things like the holidays, like Independence Day and Labor Day. Each of those (Ichiro) Hall of Fame weekends, we understand it is going to draw huge crowds to T-Mobile every night.'
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Heads up, drivers! I-5 closures through Seattle are coming
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) says a series of lane reductions and ramp closures will impact drivers on Interstate 5 this week through Seattle. WSDOT says people traveling near downtown on the nights of March 12 and 13 (Wednesday and Thursday) should be aware of the following changes: I-5 leaving downtown Seattle will be reduced to two lanes from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. between Harvard Avenue East and Northeast 45th Street. The on-ramp from Harvard Avenue East to northbound I-5 will close. Signed detours will guide travelers around the ramp closure. These closures allow contractor crews to conduct critical maintenance work as they prepare for the construction of the I-5/Yesler Way to Northgate Vicinity project, which is the next phase of Revive I-5. Just south of the Lake Washington Ship Canal Bridge, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., the right lane of southbound I-5 will close. The Boylston Avenue East off-ramp will also close during the same hours. WSDOT contractor crews will continue work on a noise wall in the area. The northbound I-5 off-ramp to Mercer Street and the eastbound Mercer on-ramp to southbound I-5 will close from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. for tunnel maintenance. The closures will allow crews to complete drainage inspections.
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SR 522 planned construction draws concerns, lawsuit threat from Lake Forest Park residents
A group of people living in Lake Forest Park are threatening legal action against Sound Transit for, what they say, is failing to consider the impacts of other projects in the area. Sound Transit's project page says construction will begin in 2025 for 'Stride 3″ a bus rapid transit project that will add BRT along SR 522, as well as 145th in Shoreline, to connect Bothell, Kenmore and other communities to I-5 and the Link 1 light rail line. The total project runs around 8 miles from I-405 to I-5. The group, under the acronym 'CORE' says they're concerned about a 12-block stretch from 153rd to 165th where there is no dedicated bus line for north/eastbound riders. They fear adding one is unnecessary, questioning the benefits for the cost of the project. 'We've mentioned this multiple times to them, and that is there is no need to build this roadway to build a dedicated lane, [It's] the most difficult terrain on all of Stride 3 and produces very little benefit to the bus rider,' said Jeff Snedden, a Lake Forest Park resident opposed to the construction. During a press conference Saturday, Snedden says he supports transit options for the community, but questions the benefit. He believes the 2.6 minutes Sound Transit says is saved for bus riders through the 3,300-foot stretch of SR 522 is exaggerated, based on traffic data he and the group have sifted through. The group claims that there is a disproportionate share of the cost and property acquisition for all of Stride 3 that occurs in the 12-block stretch, though KIRO 7 was not immediately able to verify those claims. 'It's difficult with sound transit because almost every project they touch is delayed,' Snedden said, 'It's so difficult from a terrain perspective and it costs so much. Then there are other projects that have the potential to start at the same time that the group worries could create SR 522 and 145th to become impassable. On the east end, a culvert replacement at 61st Ave Northeast to the west side where a new roundabout will be constructed at I-5 and 145th. The chief concern comes from the Revive I-5 project, a series of improvement projects along the Interstate stretching as far south as Renton, with the bulk of the projects between Boeing Field north to Shoreline. Snedden points to a Seattle Times article that said 84,000 drivers will seek alternate routes from the I-5 to avoid the lane closures. While not all of those drivers will end up on SR 522—because the scope of the I-5 project is far outside just that corridor—he worries to combination of BRT construction and more volume will create a 'traffic Armageddon.' 'We began to worry about the impact on this road which is a major state thoroughfare,' Snedden said. Snedden and his group have the backing of a law firm, claiming Sound Transit did not study the 'cumulative impact' of the construction projects occurring all at once. That is the basis of the threatened lawsuit. Complicating the matter is the Revive I-5 timeline, which was originally slated to begin this year but has been pushed to 2026. 'We have been engaged in ongoing conversations with communities along all three Stride routes, including Lake Forest Park, since the program was approved by voters as part of ST3 in 2016,' said John Gallagher, a spokesperson for Sound Transit. 'We have not yet broken ground on the project. Since the timing of Revive I-5 is at present unclear, its impact on Stride 3 is speculation,' Gallagher continued. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2028, according to Sound Transit's project page. Snedden says, if their suit prevails, Sound Transit would likely have to redo it's environmental review, essentially relenting the project back to square one. KIRO 7 asked if that would be an unnecessary waste of taxpayer money. 'We don't want to have a lawsuit, we don't want to settle this in court, we think there is an elegant solution,' Snedden said. 'We believe that not doing anything here is the kind of mitigation we need.'
Yahoo
27-01-2025
- Yahoo
WSDOT: I-5 Ship Canal Bridge work delayed to 2026, World Cup cited
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced a significant shift in the timeline for the Revive I-5 project, specifically the work planned for the Ship Canal Bridge. According to a WSDOT release, major preservation work on the bridge, originally slated to begin in March 2025, will now be pushed to 2026 due to budget constraints and the need to minimize traffic impacts during the FIFA World Cup. The change comes as WSDOT works to align its construction spending with available funding. The agency cites a significant gap driven by changes in the financial environment. The department said focusing on the bridge deck's preservation is the highest priority. According to officials, the shift in schedule also allows WSDOT more time to collaborate with community and business partners. While the long-term lane closures are postponed, travelers can still expect some traffic disruptions this year. WSDOT said it will conduct overnight work, weekend closures, and possible lane reductions in 2025. Contractors will also complete work that doesn't require extended closures, in preparation for the major rehabilitation in 2026. 'We are actively working with our contractor to refine the project to align construction spending with available funding and balance long-term preservation needs while minimizing the impacts to the public,' WSDOT said in the release. Considering Seattle's role as a 2026 World Cup host city, all lanes of I-5 will reopen for several weeks starting in early June 2026. Construction will resume in mid-July 2026 once the Seattle-area World Cup matches have finished. WSDOT acknowledged that delaying the project could increase the risk of emergency repairs on the bridge, noting there have been nearly 200 emergency repairs since 2019. Despite the delay, the agency emphasized that the bridge's structure is not compromised; the project will focus on rehabilitating the roadway surface. 'This pivot is the best path forward, and it's what's needed right now,' WSDOT said. 'The work on the Ship Canal Bridge remains our primary focus, and it's an important step in a much larger effort to Revive I-5.' The agency said they are committed to working with the public and regional partners to complete the project properly.
