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Make a plan, then be flexible, for I-5 closures

The upcoming closure of multiple lanes of northbound Interstate 5 near downtown Seattle is going to require a big dose of patience and a lot of flexibility from travelers across the region. King County Metro Transit is joining its transportation partners in urging local residents to make plans ahead of time for dealing with the expected traffic congestion.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will close several lanes of northbound I-5 at 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 10 for up to 19 days to make critical repairs to the roadway and its supporting structure. Traffic congestion resulting from the closure is expected to be considerable. As drivers try to find alternate ways north, other highways and surface streets will likely also become crowded.

Metro offers many ways to deal with the I-5 lane closures this August.

“While we believe transit will be a preferred option for many commuters, we anticipate bus service and schedules will be disrupted during the I-5 project,” said Harold Taniguchi, director of the King County Department of Transportation. “We also expect standing-room-only on many buses headed north during the morning commute. We are encouraging our passengers to be patient, flexible and have a back-up plan for their daily trips.”

WSDOT, Metro, Sound Transit, Pierce Transit and the city of Seattle are urging people to avoid driving alone through the construction zone and detour routes. Anything that can be done to take cars off the road during this time will be a big help. Here are some options:

Bus

Approximately 30 Metro and Sound Transit bus routes that normally travel northbound into downtown Seattle or University District from south King County and Pierce County will be rerouted off I-5 near Boeing Field. Many will be using a temporary northbound HOV lane on Airport Way South that is open to transit (including vanpools) and trucks.

Buses may be delayed by overall traffic congestion, but Metro hopes the HOV lane on Airport Way will add some predictability for about a third of northbound bus trips through the construction zone.

There is currently quite a bit of space available during at several of the major park-and-ride lots in South King County, including: the Federal Way Transit Center, Federal Way at South 320th Street, Twin Lakes, Redondo Heights, Auburn on 15th Street, the parking garage at Kent Station/Transit Center, and in Kent at James Street. WSDOT is also opening a temporary park-and-ride at the General Services Administration complex on East Marginal Way.

Train

Sound Transit is taking steps to accommodate more people on its Sounder commuter train service from southend destinations. In anticipation of more people riding the trains, WSDOT has acquired additional parking near the Tacoma Dome and Sumner train stations.

Ridesharing

The more cars that can be taken off I-5 will benefit everyone. If taking the bus or train is not a workable option, commuters can consider joining a vanpool or carpool – or use VanShare, which connects a group of people with a similar destination from a bus stop, park-and-ride, train station or ferry dock to complete their trip to work.

During the month of August, commuters who travel the I-5 corridor into or through the Seattle area can form a new Metro vanpool for only $45 per participant, about half the regular cost to vanpool. This is a limited promotional offer and the deadline has been extended to Friday, Aug. 3.

Elliott Bay Water Taxi

Backups eastbound on the West Seattle Bridge are likely to be significant for West Seattle residents and those commuting via the Fauntleroy ferry. The Elliott Bay Water Taxi could be a good option for many people traveling from West Seattle.

There will be an additional boat trip leaving Seacrest Dock in West Seattle at 6:10 a.m., for a total of five trips from Seacrest between 6-9 a.m. Monday through Friday. This extra trip will run through Aug. 29.

Two shuttle vans instead of one will run on each of the Route 773 land shuttle trips between 6-9 a.m. and 3:30-6:30 p.m. on weekdays. The extra vans will operate through Aug. 29 or until the I-5 work is complete.

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Updated: August 02, 2007

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