MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Seattle drivers prepare for full I-5 closure Wednesday night

Mar 20, 2024, 2:32 PM | Updated: Mar 27, 2024, 3:50 pm

Photo: I-5 near Seneca Street in Seattle....

I-5 near Seneca Street in Seattle. (Photo: Chris Sullivan, KIRO Newsradio)

(Photo: Chris Sullivan, KIRO Newsradio)

Northbound I-5 Closure

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will have crews working near Olive Way, installing a sign bridge and an electronic sign overnight. This is part of the Improve Mobility Project designed to improve traffic flow by adding a lane near Seneca Street and adding ramp meters at the Dearborn/Interstate 90 (I-90) and Cherry Street on-ramps.

More from Nate Connors: A bevy of traffic situations you need to be aware of this weekend

For the safety of contractors and drivers, all northbound lanes of Interstate 5 (I-5) will close at midnight and reopen by 4 a.m. Thursday. The closure is between I-90 and Olive Way, with lane reductions starting at 9 p.m. The northbound collector-distributor lanes will also be closed during these hours.

Drivers needing to access downtown Seattle should exit at Edgar Martinez Drive or take the exit to I-90 East and exit at Rainier Avenue.

The express lanes will remain open to allow drivers to continue north of downtown Seattle. WSDOT has plans to repeat this closure on Monday, March 25.

SR 520 East Ramp Closure

Drivers who use State Route (SR) 520 to access Redmond won’t be able to take the 148th Street Northeast ramp Wednesday evening. WSDOT will be upgrading drainage in Overlake and will need to close access to northbound 148th Street Northeast.

The closure begins at 9 p.m. through 5 a.m. Thursday. A detour will be in place.

More traffic: Lane sweeping is all too common and needs to stop

Later this spring, intermittent closures are planned at the interchange for landscaping.

You can read more of Nate Connors’ stories here. Follow Nate on X, formerly known as Twitter, here and the KIRO Newsradio traffic team here for more traffic updates.

MyNorthwest News

Photo: Prosecutors announced last week charges against two teens for the murder of Mingyuan Huang i...

James Lynch

2 Tukwila teens charged with Costco parking lot murder

Prosecutors announced last week charges against two teens for the murder of Mingyuan Huang in a Tukwila parking lot back in January.

10 hours ago

Photo: Seattle Public Library...

Heather Bosch, KIRO Newsradio and Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest

Hackers target Seattle Public Library system

As the Seattle Public Library was preparing to go offline for maintenance, it became aware of what it stated was a "ransomware event."

13 hours ago

Photo: SPD responds to a shooting amid staffing shortages....

Matt Markovich

Seattle Police Department faces staffing shortages causing slower response times

Despite a very public push to recruit new officers, staffing challenges and response times have changed very little within SPD.

13 hours ago

woman missing lake washington...

Frank Sumrall

SFD: Woman missing after swimming in Lake Washington, now a recovery effort

The Seattle Fire Department (SFD) fears a missing woman has drowned in Lake Washington near Pritchard Island Beach.

18 hours ago

delivery drivers seattle...

Frank Sumrall

Will the minimum wage for delivery drivers in Seattle be lowered?

The Seattle City Council is expected to vote on a new ordinance that would repeal the recently-instituted mandatory minimum wage for delivery drivers.

20 hours ago

seattle flight fire...

Chrissy Amaya, CBS Chicago and KIRO 7 News Staff

United Airlines flight bound for Seattle catches fire before takeoff in Chicago

A flight from Chicago to Seattle was aborted Monday after an engine fire.

21 hours ago

Seattle drivers prepare for full I-5 closure Wednesday night