Double whammy of closures will slow traffic near Lake Washington
Dec 3, 2015, 1:59 PM | Updated: Dec 4, 2015, 9:51 am
Though it didn't originally plan to, the Washington State Department of Transportation will close portions of the 520 Bridge to finish work it started last weekend. (WSDOT)
(WSDOT)
It’s a double whammy for drivers this weekend.
Both bridges over Lake Washington are going to be out of commission over the next three days.
In addition to the directional closure of I-90 this weekend, the Washington State Department of Transportation is closing the eastbound lanes of the 520 bridge on Sunday.
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Westbound I-90 will be closed from Friday night until Monday morning. All drivers will be squeezed-into the Express Lanes.
Eastbound 520 will close at 6 a.m. Sunday and remain closed until 10 p.m. That closure is from Montlake to 92nd. Drivers will still be able to access I-5 or Montlake from 520 during the closure.
What is so pressing that the state has to close both bridges on the same weekend?
Originally there were no plans to close the 520 bridge this weekend, after the closure two weeks ago. WSDOT was going to remove parts of the 24th Avenue bridge as it works on a new off-ramp from westbound 520 to Lake Washington Boulevard.
WSDOT’s Steve Peer says workers ran into a lot more rebar in the concrete than they expected and couldn’t get all the work done.
So this Sunday, demolition will be over the eastbound lanes of the 520 bridge. Next Sunday, demolition will be over the westbound lanes.
Peer says they have to get this work done as soon as possible to keep the project on schedule. That means WSDOT will need to close off more roadways next weekend as well. Eastbound I-90 will be closed all weekend and westbound 520 will close on Sunday.
