How the crab spill impacts the upcoming Alaskan Way Viaduct closure
Apr 5, 2016, 9:54 PM | Updated: May 6, 2016, 9:56 pm
The toppled crab truck that snarled traffic for more than seven hours Monday did more than demonstrate how the city has changed its priorities on coordinated crash responses, but also highlighted the need to prepare when the Alaskan Way Viaduct closes.
At a press conference Tuesday, Seattle Transportation Director Scott Kubly said the spill caused city officials to look at how best to prep for the upcoming two-week viaduct closure.
“Certainly what it highlights is that removing a major route through the center city is going to have an impact on traffic, but the two-week viaduct closure is planned,” he said.
Related: Bertha maintenance crews are working under pressure to get the job done
The Alaskan Way Viaduct will be closed for approximately two weeks to allow Bertha, the SR 99 tunneling machine, to bore beneath the structure. During that closure, Kubly says crews will be ready in case there is an accident that could make an already bad situation worse.
“We will have incident response teams positioned on the north side and south side of downtown so that if there is an incident in the center city, we can respond to it very rapidly, and WSDOT will have incident response teams ready for I-5,” Kubly said.
The viaduct closure date will depend on the amount of work that Seattle Tunnel Partners must complete while the machine is in the maintenance stop near Yesler Way. KIRO Radio’s Sara Lerner reports that Kubly said he doesn’t yet know when the viaduct will close, but hopes to give commuters a two-week notice in order to plan ahead.
