DOT: Viaduct closure could have region-wide traffic impact
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SEATTLE - Hours before the biggest freeway shutdown in Seattle history, state Department of Transportation officials issued some last-minute warnings just before the closed signs go up on the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
The viaduct, which carries more than 100,000 vehicles every day through the heart of downtown Seattle, will shut down at 7:30 p.m. Friday. It's all part of the preparations for the eventual replacement of the aging viaduct with a tunnel.
The southern mile of the viaduct is closing for good and will never reopen. The remainder of the viaduct will reopen nine days later.
That means a total shutdown of Highway 99 from the West Seattle Bridge to the Battery Street Tunnel - and all those thousands of vehicles will have to find another way through.
Many are expected to jump onto Interstate 5. Others will use surface streets like First Avenue South and Fourth Street.
But the DOT warns this morning there is no single route around this closure that can handle all the traffic. So they're warning motorists to plan on much longer commute times.
And even if your not in Seattle, it doesn't mean you're off the hook.
"This may have a region-wide impact because as I-5 gridlocks, it impacts the floating bridge, and maybe later I-405," said Travis Phelps of the state DOT. "If you're in Issaquah, Bellevue, Kirkland, I'd be paying attention to the viaduct closure."
DOT officials are planning on a nine-day closure, which means that Seattle will be without its key commute lifeline until early Halloween morning. That's nine days of a scary commute.
In the meantime, the DOT is suggesting that commuters ask their bosses if they can shift their schedules - or even telecommute - during the closure.
The viaduct, which carries more than 100,000 vehicles every day through the heart of downtown Seattle, will shut down at 7:30 p.m. Friday. It's all part of the preparations for the eventual replacement of the aging viaduct with a tunnel.
The southern mile of the viaduct is closing for good and will never reopen. The remainder of the viaduct will reopen nine days later.
That means a total shutdown of Highway 99 from the West Seattle Bridge to the Battery Street Tunnel - and all those thousands of vehicles will have to find another way through.
Many are expected to jump onto Interstate 5. Others will use surface streets like First Avenue South and Fourth Street.
But the DOT warns this morning there is no single route around this closure that can handle all the traffic. So they're warning motorists to plan on much longer commute times.
And even if your not in Seattle, it doesn't mean you're off the hook.
"This may have a region-wide impact because as I-5 gridlocks, it impacts the floating bridge, and maybe later I-405," said Travis Phelps of the state DOT. "If you're in Issaquah, Bellevue, Kirkland, I'd be paying attention to the viaduct closure."
DOT officials are planning on a nine-day closure, which means that Seattle will be without its key commute lifeline until early Halloween morning. That's nine days of a scary commute.
In the meantime, the DOT is suggesting that commuters ask their bosses if they can shift their schedules - or even telecommute - during the closure.
