On Friday, January 11 at 10 p.m., the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the elevated roadway along the Seattle waterfront, will close permanently. The new tunnel that replaces this section of State Route 99 will not open for several more weeks and traffic will be rerouted in the meantime. The highway will be closed from South Spokane St. to the south end of the Battery Street Tunnel for approximately three weeks to allow workers to realign the highway into the tunnel. This will cause traffic impacts for everyone traveling to and around downtown Seattle via most any route.

There will be a number of options to getting around and through downtown Seattle. Here are some resources and helpful links so you can be prepared and plan your commute ahead of time.

SR 99 Closure

For the first few weeks, the Alaskan Way Viaduct section of SR 99, and approaches to it, will be closed with no access to the new tunnel. There will also be additional ramp closures, which could mean up to six weeks of acute traffic disruption, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.

See the timeline of the Realign99 closure here

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Stadium Ramps Close

When: Friday, Jan. 4 at 10 p.m.

Closure: Northbound SR99 on-ramp at South Royal Brougham Way (near stadiums, connection to I-90 and I-5) Southbound SR99 off-ramp at South Atlantic Street (near stadiums, connection to I-90 and I-5) 

SR 99 Tunnel Opens

The new SR 99 tunnel will provide a direct route on SR 99 between the stadiums and the Space Needle. The tunnel will be two miles long and there will be two lanes in each direction, plus an eight-foot safety shoulder lane.

Learn more about the new SR 99 tunnel  

Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel Closure

In March, bus services will no longer use the transit tunnel and will operate on surface streets. Bus routes that will be affected are 41, 74, 101,150, 255 and Sound Transit Express Route 550.

Click here for a map of the surface street stops

Alternative ways to changing your commute

For the first three weeks of the SR 99 closure, there will be significant impacts to those commuting to downtown Seattle. The Washington State Department of Transportation has identified alternatives and resources to alter your commute during the closure.

ADJUST YOUR TRAVEL TIMES
Avoiding peak travel times (6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7p.m.) or check current travel times before your commute.

TRANSIT OPTIONS

• Plan your Metro bus trips outside peak commute hours to avoid traveling when buses are likely to be more crowded.  You can check the King County Metro’s and Sound Transit’s website for service updates and reroutes for buses that use the viaduct.
• Adjust your travel time to avoid peak hours (typically 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.)
• Bike or walk to your destination
• Use alternative transit options such as the Water Taxi or light rail
• Lyft and Uber are offering discounted rides to various transit hubs during the viaduct closure. Both companies will discount $2.75 from the cost of all shared rides from the following transit centers.

Lyft:

• Burien Transit Center
• Northgate Transit Center Park & Ride
• Olson Place & Myers Way Park & Ride
• Columbia City Station
• Baker Station
• Othello Station
• Rainier Beach Station
• Tukwila International Boulevard Station
• University of Washington Station
• West Seattle Water Taxi

Uber:

• Northgate Transit Center
• University of Washington Station
• West Seattle water taxi at Seacrest Dock
• Beacon Hill Station
• Mount Baker Station
• Columbia City Station
• Othello Station
• Rainier Beach Station
• Tukwila International Boulevard Station
• SeaTac Airport Station
• Angle Lake Station
• Burien Transit Center

For more resources and tools: https://www.seattletraffic.org/tools/