Seattle commuters face week of road changes: New ramp, lane closures, and more

May 11, 2026, 3:24 PM | Updated: 3:24 pm

A section of SR 520. (Photo courtesy of WSDOT)

(Photo courtesy of WSDOT)

KIRO Newsradio Traffic Reporter

Seattle drivers were greeted with a new configuration at the ramp from northbound I-5 to eastbound State Route 520 (SR 520) Monday morning.

The location of the exit hasn’t changed, but the off-ramp has.

New SR 520 off-ramp

The old ramp used to run parallel to the freeway and wind around the hillside, sending drivers onto SR 520 in the right lane. The new off-ramp elevates over the old ramp and sends drivers onto SR 520 in the left lane.

Now, northbound I-5 drivers will need to work their way into the right lane to exit at Montlake Boulevard. In the past, drivers were already in the right lane, and there was no need to switch. This, of course, means southbound I-5 drivers exiting to SR 520 will now be in the right lane and will no longer need to make that quick lane switch to make the Montlake Boulevard exit.

Drivers seemed to handle this fairly well Monday morning, with no significant back-ups or delays.

Northbound I-5 lane reduction in Seattle

Northbound I-5 will be down to a single lane near the SR 520 off-ramp while crews repair a damaged attenuator.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will reduce the freeway by one additional lane as early as 11 p.m. on Monday, May 11, and reopen the lane by 5 a.m. on Tuesday, May 12.

Only one lane will be open through this area overnight, but once work is complete, northbound I-5 will return to two open lanes across the Ship Canal Bridge. Crews need to repair the attenuator as it is a safety feature within the Revive I-5 Ship Canal Bridge Preservation project work zone.

Northbound SR 99 will be reduced to one lane overnight

WSDOT will move scaffolding on the northbound State Route 99 (SR 99) First Avenue South Bridge to prepare for a second consecutive weekend closure across the northbound bridge from Friday night, May 15, to Monday morning, May 18.

Beginning Monday, May 11, up to three lanes of northbound SR 99 will close across the First Avenue South Bridge from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly through Friday morning, May 15. At least one northbound lane will remain open each night.

The following northbound SR 99 ramps also will close at the same times each night:

On-ramp from South Holden Street.
On-ramp from Occidental Avenue South.
Off-ramp to South Michigan Street.

Crews replaced five failing steel grid deck panels during the May 8 to May 11 weekend closure of the northbound SR 99 First Avenue South Bridge.

They will replace five more panels during the weekend closure, May 15 to May 18, to finalize phase 2 emergency bridge repairs.

Nate Connors is a traffic reporter for KIRO Newsradio. Follow him on X. Read more of his stories here. Submit news tips here.

Follow @https://twitter.com/kirotraffic

Chokepoints

Chris Sullivan

Wire theft knocks out more lighting along I-5 in Lakewood

Here we go again. Thieves who ripped wire from Washington State Department of Transportation electrical boxes impacted drivers in Lakewood earlier this week.

10 hours ago