KING COUNTY, JUNE 4: If your Snohomish County travel plans this weekend send you south of Seattle on I-5, be warned for your northbound return.
I-5 northbound in Seattle from the I-90 interchange to Northeast 45th Street will close completely for the weekend of June 5-8, leaving the northbound I-5 Express Lanes as the only roadway over the Ship Canal Bridge in that northbound direction.
All part of the “Revive I-5” project, the Washington State Dept. of Transportation will remove existing construction barriers that currently have northbound I-5 down to two lanes over the Ship Canal Bridge. The full weekend closure in the northbound direction is needed to allow all lanes to be opened over the Ship Canal Bridge in anticipation of the FIFA World Cup games slated for Seattle, starting June 15 (Belgium vs. Egypt, Group G, noon kick-off).
Beginning at 9 p.m., Friday, June 5, on- and off-ramps from I-90 to NE 45th Street, northbound on I-5, are scheduled to begin closing, with mainline northbound I-5 scheduled to be fully closed at 11:59 p.m. All northbound lanes and ramps will reopen by 5 a.m. Monday, June 8.
The express lanes will remain northbound-only through the weekend. On Monday morning, June 8, the express lanes will revert to their regular schedule of southbound in the mornings and northbound in the afternoons/evenings.
Currently, the Revive I-5 Ship Canal Bridge work zone has the two left northbound lanes closed for construction with traffic using only the two right lanes for travel. All lanes of mainline I-5 will be open June 8 through July 10 for FIFA matches in Seattle. WSDOT crews will then return for another weekend-long full closure of northbound I-5 from Friday, July 10, to Monday, July 13, to set up a new work zone in the northbound two right lanes of the Ship Canal Bridge. When the highway reopens July 13, the express lanes will again be northbound-only.
In addition to the northbound I-5 Ship Canal Bridge closure this weekend, WSDOT work will require a State Route 18 closure at the I-90 interchange near the city of Snoqualmie, east of Preston, Wash.
From 9 p.m. Thursday, June 4, to 5 a.m. Monday, June 8, SR 18 will fully close at the I-90 interchange for paving with all right-turning ramps remaining open. Drivers traveling in the area should follow signed detours and expect significant congestion near the I-90/SR 18