Spokane Street Viaduct Widening Project
Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How are commuters being notified?
A: Mailers with information about the project will be sent out to households and businesses in West Seattle and in the vicinity surrounding the construction area.

Q: How many businesses will be displaced with this construction?
A: None.

Bicyclists:

Q: Are bike paths included on the project?
A: The new sidewalk on the north side of Spokane Street will be 12-16' wide so there will be plenty of room for safe use by both pedestrians and bicyclists. This connects with the planned bicycle path that will go from Spokane Street along 5th Avenue South (also known as the E-3 Busway) connecting the West Seattle bicycle traffic to the heart of downtown Seattle. For questions regarding bike paths in the city, please contact

Q: What will be done to accommodate bicycle traffic during construction?
A: Bicycle traffic will be re-routed along the vehicle detour path. As an alternative to the detour route, the sidewalks on the South side of Spokane Street will be available for bicycle traffic during construction.

Detour:

Q: Will the lights be synchronized for the detour traffic?
A: They will be synchronized to provide for efficient movement of traffic in the general area.

Q: Will there be variable message signs on I-5 and on the street level?
A: WSDOT only uses the variable messaging signage on I-5 for emergencies and safety issues (such as alerts about flammable liquids). There are no plans for street level variable messaging signs; however, the detour will be signed.

Q: Have statistics been gathered on the traffic volumes traveling in the construction zone of westbound Spokane Street between 6th Avenue South and East Marginal Way South?
A: Yes. We have a good indication of the additional traffic that will be on the detour route and improvements are being made to accommodate this increase.

Q: How much additional traffic and subsequent congestion can be expected on the upper, viaduct, level?
A: We do not anticipate any appreciable traffic congestion due to this construction project.

Q: With the possible increased detour traffic taking the upper Spokane St Viaduct level, has increased Water Taxi service been considered to possibly reduce this additional traffic?
A: Not at this time as we don't anticipate that increased water taxi service would make a noticeable difference in congestion along S Spokane St.

Q: As an alternate arterial for traffic in the SODO corridor, will S Forest St be improved from its current state of disrepair?
A: The S Forest St ramp has been improved. No further improvements are planned as part of this project.

Q: Since there is already a bottleneck on Lander Street at the railroad tracks that can only worsen with the added detour traffic, why isn't the City building the grade separation (over/under crossing) before this project?
A: At this time funding is not yet available for the grade separation project. However, the City recognizes the importance of this project to the overall movement of traffic in this area and is actively pursuing a funding package to build it. In addition, the City has assigned a project manager to work on a type size and location study for the grade separation project.

1st Avenue Ramp:

Q: How long will there be access from the street level to the upper level?
A: The 1st Avenue South on-ramp will likely remain open to traffic until the second quarter of 2009.

Q: While the new 1st Avenue South ramp is being constructed, how will traffic get up to the upper level?
A: 1st Ave South traffic will not be able to directly access the upper level and will have to use the low-level bridge to get to West Seattle, or access the upper level via I-5 or 99.

Q: Why can't the 4th Ave S ramp be maintained when the 1st Ave S ramp is closed and being built?
A: The 4th Ave S ramp is not going to be reopened to traffic for safety reasons.


Traffic merges to and from I-5 and SR99:

Q: Will there be any impact on the westbound merge off of I-5 SB to the Spokane St Viaduct and also the merge coming in from Columbia Street?
A: Yes, the widening will provide more merge area and an additional shoulder lane so traffic should flow more smoothly westbound.

Q: How will the widening of the Spokane Street Viaduct affect the eastbound rush hour congestion between the West Seattle Freeway up to the north-bound I-5 ramps?
A: Since the source of the eastbound congestion during peak commute hours is the back-up from the merge onto I-5 (because I-5 is already operating at its maximum vehicle capacity), the widening of the Spokane St Viaduct itself is not expected to significantly affect the back-up.

Q: Will this project create any additional connections to SR99?
A: No, this project will not alter connections to SR99. This is a City project that enhances the Spokane St Viaduct, a city-owned structure. As SR99 is a WSDOT-owned structure, modifications would be initiated by the WSDOT.


Truck Traffic:

Q: How will the detour accommodate the larger truck rigs?
A: The City will improve the left turn movement at 6th Avenue South and South Lander and at 1st Avenue South and South Lander. The corner at 1st Avenue South and South Hanford will also be widened

Q: Why can't trucks have a separate detour route from that of the passenger car traffic?
A: There is not a sufficient number of streets on which to provide two separate detour routes.

More information to come:

As the project progresses, more details will be made available. For questions or comments you may call Stuart Goldsmith, Project Manager, at 206-615-0860, or by e-mail.