Seattle’s newly-opened SR 99 tunnel is still without buses
Mar 19, 2019, 6:10 AM
Freshly painted lane stripes on the northbound (lower) deck of the SR 99 tunnel (WSDOT)
(WSDOT)
It’s been a month and a half since Seattle’s new tunnel opened, and buses that once used Highway 99 have been diverted onto other streets.
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A total of 12 Metro bus routes, carrying about 30,000 daily passengers, once used the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Those buses were diverted to surface streets when the viaduct closed.
They have not been using the new tunnel since its opening, however, and have stayed on the detour routes. Metro’s Bill Bryant said those detours continue to work with minimal delays or problems.
“Mainly having to do with bus stop locations and slight routing changes,” Bryant said.
Overall, he said, it hasn’t been too bad.
“We’ve been pleasantly surprised with the success of the operation,” Bryant said. “The routes seem to be taking the amount of time that we expected to get to, and through, downtown.”
But Bryant expects that to change later this year when the tolls go into effect, because no one is really sure how the public will react to that. The traffic patterns will likely take months to settle out.
There are no plans to add buses to the tunnel right now, but Bryant said Metro will continue to monitor the traffic flow and make changes when necessary.
This is also a good time to remind everyone, again, that the bus tunnel closes to buses on Saturday. That will throw 830 daily bus trips onto downtown Seattle streets, and while that will make it tougher on cars, bikes and pedestrians, the biggest impact will likely be on riders, who might have new stops or streets to learn.
Be sure to check your schedule to to find out how your route will be impacted.
Drivers need to pay close attention to the new bus-only lane on 6th Avenue, active from 3-7 p.m. each weekday. If your plan is to use northbound 6th to access the northbound I-5 on-ramp at University, you will need to get over a little earlier.
If you are getting off at Seneca from northbound I-5 during the afternoon, you need to get all the way over to the left if you plan on using northbound 6th.
