3 major road closures will slow Seattle weekend traffic
Mar 24, 2017, 3:15 PM
Seattle traffic. (AP)
(AP)
Soccer, construction and homeless encampment cleanup will slow traffic through Seattle this weekend.
The takeaway: leave early and avoid westbound I-90.
• Westbound I-90 will be reduced to one lane near Bellevue Way (on the east side of Lake Washington) and then routed into the Express Lanes over the floating bridge from 11 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday. This is part of the ongoing HOV and Sound Transit Light Rail project.
• The I-5 southbound express lanes through Seattle will be closed Saturday and Sunday morning, but northbound will open at 1:30 p.m. Lanes will be closed for homeless encampment cleanup along I-5, fixing potholes and other maintenance.
• Eastbound SR 520 will be closed in Seattle between Montlake Boulevard and the Lake Washington Boulevard East on-ramp starting at 11:59 p.m. Saturday until 6 a.m. Sunday; and again from 11 p.m. Sunday to 5 a.m. Monday. Say goodbye to the old ramps to nowhere!
What does this mean for you? Seattle traffic could be a mess.
Preparing for weekend traffic
Sounders fans headed to the game at CenturyLink Field on Saturday will add to that spike in traffic on I-90 a few hours before kickoff. The game starts at 7 p.m.
“We know this closure will have a major effect on many other Seattle-area highways, even if your plans don’t include traveling on I-90, drivers can help by carpooling, taking transit and checking their route before they leave the house,” said Mike Swires, a traffic engineer with the Washington State Department of Transportation.
On I-5, Harmony Weinberg with WSDOT said that crews are doing important work in the express lanes this weekend.
“We are working with the city very closely for that project,” she said. “We will be cleaning up trash, fixing potholes, removing graffiti and fixing lighting.”
During the closures, I-5 southbound backups could extend as far north as Snohomish County depending on accidents and weather — fingers crossed. With multiple interruptions, SR 99 and I-405 will also experience delays as they absorb drivers avoiding the closures.
