(Spokane Street Viaduct construction photo, from presentation at Wednesday meeting)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Get ready for another traffic crunch on the Spokane Street Viaduct section of the West Seattle Bridge. That was one of the toplines from Wednesday’s meeting of the South Portal Working Group, an advisory group convened mostly on behalf of the ongoing Alaskan Way Viaduct/Tunnel work, but typically briefed on other major road projects affecting our side of the city, so we usually cover this group’s quarterly meetings as a place to get MEGA-EARLY heads-up.

First – if you want to cut to the chase, here’s the entire 42-page presentation given to the group, covering the north and central area progress on 99 as well as components of more interest here. Tons of information.

Now, back to that aforementioned crunch: According to SDOT, sometime next month, all Spokane Street Viaduct traffic will have to be shifted onto the new north-side structure, so that work can be done on the old south-side structure for at least six weeks. When that happens, there will be three traffic lanes – one eastbound, and two westbound.

More on that – and other toplines from the meeting, including some discussion of last week’s eastbound bridge-closure backups, ahead:

That temporary constriction is part of the ongoing Spokane Street Viaduct Widening Project. Asked again when it will be done, SDOT said that the deadline for the contractor is end of July, and that they’re pushing right up against it – in other words, not likely to finish early. Regarding the long-awaited 1st Avenue South on/offramp in the westbound direction – which we most recently were told wouldn’t be fully complete till summer – the current expectation is that it will be available as an offramp, perhaps this spring, before it’s usable as an onramp too.

As for the work on 99 – several aspects of potential interest include:

-WSDOT says working on what will be the northbound elevated section in SODO, parallel to the one carrying all the traffic now (which will eventually be the southbound section), will be “very challenging.” Some overnight closures are likely “later this spring.”

-The South Atlantic overcrossing work will start this summer.

-The bike/pedestrian path along the Alaskan Way South detour will go through some changes in the months ahead as work proceeds. Here are “before” and “after” maps from the Wednesday presentation:

Don’t expect anything to “get back to normal” for a VERY long time; WSDOT’s Matt Preedy explained that for the purposes of the 99 project, the detour “will be in place till late 2013/early 2014″ – and by then, the seawall project should be ramped up enough to keep the detour in place.

-Alaskan Way will be widened this spring between Yesler and Spring, taking out the old waterfront-streetcar tracks and paving over that part of the right-of-way.

-Viaduct strengthening work will start next month and continue through August. From the presentation:

March through August, project managers say, “crews will reinforce sections of the viaduct to withstand limited settlement due to tunneling.” They’ll put several hundred “micropiles” – steel pipes – into the ground to do that.

Also discussed:

LAST WEEKEND’S BRIDGE CLOSURE: SDOT offered some “observations” – first, they “competed with ourselves” regarding messaging for the Mercer Street work happening that same weekend. Mercer got citywide media coverage, the West Seattle Bridge did not. They also acknowledged that with the Fauntleroy Expressway Seismic Retrofit Project continuing, “We think we may have confused some people regarding what was closed at night and what was closed all weekend.” One of two West Seattle reps at the meeting, Pete Spalding, told the officials that the signage was “one of the biggest” problems – “There was nothing indicating that the roadway was closed ahead … it gave the time to get to Highway 99, and that was it.” SDOT’s reply: “We agree with that.” (This wasn’t the full official report we’re still expect from SDOT – it just happened to be one of the topics at Wednesday’s meeting.)

MORE ONLINE COORDINATION: This was also a recurring theme in the WSDOT presentation – that they would promise to coordinate project information and online updates between agencies and departments even more than it already is.

HIGHWAY 99 TIMBER BRIDGE REPLACEMENT PROJECT: It’s still on the horizon, but no new details were shared. This is the timber-based elevated section of 99 just south of the West Seattle Bridge, and it is slated for replacement. (Last meeting of this group in October also featured a similar message.)

FUTURE MEETINGS: Viaduct project boss Linnea Laird announced this group will meet May 2nd, August 1st, and November 7th, all at 4 pm at the Sound Transit board room downtown.

Drivers who use Alaskan Way South along Seattle’s waterfront can expect major changes beginning this week as crews make way for the SR 99 tunnel construction zone.

Washington State Department of Transportation crews will reroute Alaskan Way South between South Main and South King streets beginning at 5 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 5. Drivers will travel on a new temporary roadway located underneath the Alaskan Way Viaduct, while crews use the old roadway to relocate utilities and prepare for tunnel work.

The announcement continues:

Drivers using Alaskan Way South between South Main and South Atlantic streets, part of which was closed last year due to construction, will continue to be detoured through at least 2013. To keep traffic moving, WSDOT is building a two-way detour underneath the viaduct. The first section of the detour, between South Main and South King streets, opens Thursday.

“We are committed to maintaining access to businesses in Pioneer Square and along Alaskan Way during construction,” said Matt Preedy, WSDOT Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program deputy administrator. “We are also working with businesses to provide reliable parking options in the areas affected by construction.”

Preparing for Thursday’s detour

Crews will close the roadway underneath the viaduct between South Jackson and South Main streets from 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 4, to 5 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 5, to stripe the detour for two-way traffic. Striping work is weather dependent. Visit downtown Seattle and SODO construction closures for more information.

Seattleites advising the city and state about ways to reduce anticipated State Route 99 tunnel traffic impacts will meet for the first time this week.

The SR 99 Tunnel Project’s Advisory Committee on Tolling and Traffic Management meets from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8, at the Puget Sound Regional Council board room in Seattle (1011 Western Avenue).

The committee was created by the Washington State Department of Transportation and city of Seattle and will assist in exploring ways to reduce traffic diversion due to tolls and meeting the project’s funding goals. It will also investigate non-tolling strategies for reducing or mitigating traffic diversion.

“We need to ensure that the tunnel replacement for the Alaskan Way Viaduct operates in a way that serves both the needs of SR 99 users and the surrounding community,” said Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond. “The expertise on this advisory committee will play a key role in achieving our traffic management and funding objectives.”

WSDOT, Mayor Mike McGinn and the Seattle City Council each appointed five members of the 15-member committee. Members represent a wide variety of those potentially impacted by the project, including freight, residents of adjacent neighborhoods, transit riders, bicyclists and pedestrians.

“This committee and their insight will be critical as we further our tolling analysis for the SR 99 tunnel,” said Seattle Councilmember and Transportation Committee Chair Tom Rasmussen.

“We are giving this committee an important and difficult task – recommending ways to minimize impacts from traffic diversion on city streets while maintaining tolling revenue required to fund the project,” said Mayor McGinn.

The public is welcome to attend committee meetings to view the information presented and submit written comments. Committee materials will be available following each meeting at www.alaskanwayviaduct.org.

The advisory committee will submit its initial recommendations to the Governor, Legislature, State Transportation Commission, Seattle Mayor and Seattle City Council by December 2012. It will finalize its recommendations in December 2015, when the SR 99 tunnel is scheduled to open and tolling begins.

(Viaduct demolition photo taken last week by WSDOT)
WSDOT has more information today about the partial Alaskan Way Viaduct closure we reported here last night – including accompanying ramp closures. The main shutdown is 10 pm Monday (December 5) through 5 am Tuesday, but two main access points will close an hour earlier, and there will be some “rolling” northbound effects – read on for details:

Late night and early morning drivers using southbound State Route 99 to get through downtown Seattle will need to temporarily find a new route on Monday night, Dec. 5.

The Washington State Department of Transportation will close southbound SR 99 between the Battery Street Tunnel and the West Seattle Bridge for one night so contractor crews can use the roadway to remove demolition equipment. During this closure, the SR 99 on-ramps at Columbia Street and Elliott Avenue West will also be closed.

Monday’s closure details:
· Southbound SR 99 between the Battery Street Tunnel and the West Seattle Bridge will close from 10 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5 until 5 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6.
· The southbound SR 99 on-ramps at Columbia Street and Elliott Avenue West will close from 9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5 until 5 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6.
· Northbound SR 99 between the West Seattle Bridge and the Battery Street Tunnel will have a brief rolling slowdown sometime between 10 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5 and 5 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 6.

During the last few weeks, crews have been demolishing the remaining 1,100 feet of the viaduct’s south end. Once this section is removed, crews will begin to prepare the work zone for SR 99 tunnel construction. To learn more about this project, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr99/tunnel.

The Seahawks will play the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday evening, starting at 5:20 p.m. with an estimated attendance of 67,000 fans. Drivers can expect heavy congestion in the areas around the stadium, in the downtown area, and on major routes to the stadium (I-5 and I-90). Seahawks fans are advised to arrive early. Commuters leaving the downtown area may also want to leave early, or wait to leave downtown until after kickoff.

(Photo by Doug Branch)
While demolition continues, three weeks post-”Viadoom,” on the remaining section of no-longer-used south end of the Alaskan Way Viaduct, several West Seattleites have asked if we know the plans for those three columns left standing along the new stretch of 99. We finally got a moment to ask WSDOT, and Greg Phipps replied:

I had the same question that you had after taking some pictures of the columns last week. The answer is the three columns will be used as falsework to support construction of the Atlantic Street overpass. The columns and other falsework structures will hold up the concrete and rebar of the overpass until they can stand on their own. The pipe piles in the middle of the SR 99 construction bypass will be used for the same purpose. Below is our visualization with an arrow added to show roughly where the columns are. Construction on the overpass will begin next summer.

Current construction updates can be found here.

What you see on Highway 99 north of the West Seattle Bridge is what you get … till the tunnel’s done (projected: end of 2015). The first commute is on, after a week in which WSDOT says it demolished 2,825 feet of the Alaskan Way Viaduct, resulting in 6,000 estimated truckloads of concrete rubble (to be reused in the tunnel project) and steel rebar (to be recycled). We’re watching traffic cams, traffic reports, and other sources and if there are any problems, we’ll note them here; your observations about the new route are welcome too!

VIADUCT/HIGHWAY 99: Both directions were open again by 1 pm Saturday. Our subsequent report includes dash-cam video recorded as we tried the trip in both directions. It’s narrower in spots, and the speed limit is lower, so we’ll be publishing commute updates again in the morning with word on how that’s shaking out.

(Melissa Ann on the West Seattle run last Monday morning, which it’ll also handle today)
WEST SEATTLE WATER TAXI: The Rachel Marie, which broke down during the pm rush hour on Friday, is not yet ready to return, so its twin Melissa Ann, which usually handles Vashon, will be on the West Seattle run tomorrow morning (the Spirit of Kingston will fill in for Vashon). Remember that the new winter schedule starts tomorrow, which means commute hours only (here’s the new schedule) – first trip from Seacrest is 6:45. Also, for those who asked, the WT will NOT be running late for the Sounders game on Wednesday, or any other fall/winter sporting event – the staffing doesn’t permit for that, the county says.

METRO: Buses were scheduled to be back on their “Viaduct routing” as of this morning. Metro says it will watch closely to see how the new configuration – including the two-lanes-each-way elevated section – affects their schedule. Their official advisory:

Routes 21 Express, 37 southbound, 54, 54 Express, 55, 56 Express, 113, 120, 121, 122 and 125 have returned to their regular routing using the new viaduct bypass in SODO. The temporary stops at 4 Av S & S Lander Street and 4 Av And Jackson St Island will no longer be served. Expect some delays in service on the bypass due to narrow lanes and lower speed limits and please be aware that bus times may be longer (than) before the viaduct was demolished.

(“Energizer station” last Wednesday; photo courtesy WSDOT)
BICYCLES: Cascade Bicycle Club was planning one more “energizer station” tomorrow morning starting at 6:45 at the west end of the “low bridge” to cheer on riders, particularly those who tried two-wheel commuting for the first time (or returned to it) last week.

ORIGINAL 11:31 AM REPORT: Refresh this page for the latest “live” look at the southbound lanes of Highway 99 – just reopened after almost 8 days. WSDOT announced the early-reopening plan yesterday (WSB coverage here) and says the northbound lanes should be open again by noon.

12:13 PM UPDATE: Northbound still hasn’t reopened as of a few minutes ago but we just drove the southbound lanes. Gary Potter of Potter Construction (WSB sponsor) in West Seattle says he was the second driver across!

I just drove the viaduct southbound at 11:11am. I was the second car behind the truck with yellow lights. Cars were getting on at Columbia as we passed. The first ave exit is a tight two lanes, gonna be slow with buses. The s curve at the bottom is very short then you are going up the new ramp. The northbound side was full of orange jackets, I waved and they all waved back.

Here’s our video (from camera affixed to dashboard):

Remember, the new elevated section in the second half of our 3-minute clip will eventually be southbound only – but till its northbound counterpart is built, it will carry traffic in both directions, two lanes each way. One more note: Metro has said it won’t go back to its “Viaduct routing” till SUNDAY morning. And school bus schedules return to normal (some had been altered) Monday morning.

12:46 PM UPDATE: Northbound just reopened! (added) Here’s our trip in that direction (pull the play button ahead to the 2-minute mark to just cut to the new part):

(Top L, north of 1st Av. S. Bridge; top R, 1st @ Holgate; below L, I-5 on south end of downtown; below R, 12th headed for bridge to Beacon Hill, where there’s alternate WS Bridge access)

Back on commute patrol, one last time. It’s been raining seriously for a few hours now and very sloppy out there – so that will compound matters. The high bridge is backed up EASTBOUND right now, so if you have to leave West Seattle, consider an alternate (we’re checking how the alternates are doing). Updates to come!

4:10 PM UPDATE: The problem on the eastbound high bridge is described as a car fire. (a few minutes later) The fire trucks have now cleared, still a police car in the outside lane. … As for the “low bridge,” ADD says the traffic headed that way is “inching along” slowly.

4:27 PM UPDATE: Our roving crew confirms the low bridge is busy but moving. They have now moved onto 4th Ave. So., which is moving reasonably well right now.

4:54 PM UPDATE: Rain lifting, breeze kicking up. The eastbound bridge is still backed up. If you commute out of West Seattle, either wait or try a southern route like 1st Avenue South Bridge. Busy coming off the low bridge too – here’s a camera from its west end:

5:13 PM UPDATE: One WSB’er on a bus is about 12 minutes behind so far. Remember that Metro does have extra buses it can plug in here and there if a route gets backed up too far. If traffic kept you from making it to the West Seattle High School-Seattle Prep football postseason game at Memorial Stadium, we’re tweeting it live – @wsblive. If you are going to have to go over the “low bridge,” note that it’s opened just after 6 pm every day this week – the commitment was for openings to be avoided 3-6 pm.

5:26 PM: Multiple reports the Water Taxi is stalled. It was en route to Seacrest. Also word from Tracy Taylor at KING 5 that there’s a stall on Northbound I-5 near the West Seattle Bridge exit – not sure how close but it can’t make the slow eastbound WS Bridge any better… (added) Rachel Marie is said to be moving now (WS Water Taxi) but slowly. Checking with King County on what’ll be done about it for commuters.

5:36 PM: We don’t have this officially from the county but at least two people have said Water Taxi service from downtown to West Seattle is canceled till 7:30 pm. Let us know if you are at the dock and hearing anything. … update: Passengers tell us they are hearing this directly from crew. Rachel Marie IS proceeding slowly to the West Seattle side. But if you were going to take WT from downtown, we’d advise a bus home instead – though one West Seattleite says he’s going to try the WT to Vashon, and then WSF from Vashon back across to Fauntleroy…

5:43 PM: King County DOT confirms that there’ll be no West Seattle Water Taxi service till at least 7:15. Melissa Ann, the Vashon boat, will be moved over after that. You’ll recall that Melissa Ann handled the Monday morning commute as “Viadoom” week started, because Rachel Marie broke down sometime Sunday (apparently not with passengers aboard, the news came around midevening). Then Melissa Ann will be on the WS runs for the last weekend of the season (Vashon’s WT doesn’t run on weekends, anyway).

5:55 PM: The RM did make it back to the dock, so its passengers are now on the last leg of their trip home. Conflicting reports now on when service will resume. As for everything else – southbound I-5 is reported to be sludgy; the commute overall is just not going too well, so if you haven’t left yet, have patience, or maybe better yet, have dinner and leave MUCH later. (Added – photo by Katie Meyer for WSB, Rachel Marie after arrival at Seacrest)

6:03 PM: New estimate, 7:45 pm departure from Pier 50 downtown for the next WT. Meantime, some commenters say they ran from Pier 50 to go catch 37 bus home, and it’s half an hour late.

6:19 PM: Everything else is slow out there. Aside from the Water Taxi, no particular problems. … (minutes later) Except for a power outage on Alki. Will start a separate stry on that.

6:45 PM: One place REALLY not to be – southbound I-5. WSDOT says it’s backed up from the West Seattle Bridge to Shoreline.

7:11 PM: That stretch is getting a little faster, WSDOT says, but they just reported via Twitter that there’s a lane-blocking crash on NB I-5 at the West Seattle Bridge ramp.

ADDED FRIDAY EVENING: Our video of WSDOT‘s Matt Preedy briefing the media two hours after the big news that The Viaduct will open early. Among his remarks and replies – news that they’ve noticed some problems with the travel times on the lit-up signboards and will work on those; also, they did the semi-annual Viaduct inspection during this closure, so the next one won’t be till spring. The actual reopening time won’t be known till tomorrow – depends on how much work gets done tonight.

===============
ORIGINAL 12:08 PM REPORT: Just in from WSDOT:

Alaskan Way Viaduct to reopen midday Saturday

Demolition mostly complete; new SODO off-ramp to open Monday morning
 
SEATTLE – Great progress by demolition and construction crews means the Alaskan Way Viaduct is expected to reopen midday Saturday between the West Seattle Bridge and the Battery Street Tunnel, a move expected to help relieve recent regional traffic congestion on Interstates 5 and 405 and local streets.
 
Starting this weekend, drivers will travel on a new, temporary construction bypass that will allow an estimated 110,000 vehicles a day to keep moving while construction on a replacement State Route 99 tunnel continues through the end of 2015.
 
Quick work by demolition crews allowed them to beat the scheduled Monday reopening of the viaduct by nearly two days.
 
“This project is six months ahead of schedule and today we’re again ahead of schedule,” Gov. Chris Gregoire said. “Thank you to the hard workers on this project, and the people of the region who were patient, found alternate routes and adjusted their schedules. Everyone showed a great spirit of cooperation.”
 
“Commuters made the difference by doing their part to find other ways and times to travel, which allowed our crews to close this key route for an intense period of work,” state Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond said. “Our crews worked aggressively to accomplish a massive amount of demolition during the longest closure we’ve ever attempted on a major state highway.”
 
The clock began ticking Oct. 21 when crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation closed the highway and launched their effort to aggressively demolish the southern mile of the seismically vulnerable viaduct. In about eight days, a 2,825-foot-long stretch of double-decked highway was reduced to thousands of tons of concrete rubble and steel rebar.
 
“Through the week, construction crews made rapid progress on demolition and debris removal, and had good weather for things like roadway striping,” said Matt Preedy, WSDOT Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement program deputy administrator. “Thanks to our contractor’s thoughtful planning and approach, we are able to reopen the roadway early and give it back to drivers.”
 
SR 99 reopening details
 
·         Northbound and southbound SR 99 are expected to open midday Saturday from the Battery Street Tunnel to the West Seattle Bridge.
·         The on-ramp to northbound SR 99 from South Royal Brougham Way is expected to close at 6 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 29 and reopen once crews finalize roadway connections.
·         The southbound SR 99 off-ramp to South Atlantic Street will remain closed until 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 31.
·         Drivers can expect a slower, 40 mph speed limit on much of the viaduct between the Battery Street Tunnel and the West Seattle Bridge.
·          Drivers can expect a recommended 25 mph construction zone speed limit through the curving bypass in the SODO area.
·         Metro Transit’s 11 bus routes that travel on SR 99 will begin using the new bypass at the start of service on Sunday morning, Oct. 30.
 
Friday evening commute

Until the viaduct reopens, drivers will face heavy regional congestion that this week was focused on I-5 and I-405 and parts of the downtown Seattle street grid. Commuters are encouraged to plan ahead and consider alternate routes.

ADDED 12:54 PM: Metro says its Viaduct routing will resume Sunday morning. Read on for full details of their plans:

With the Alaskan Way Viaduct planned to re-open this weekend, King County Metro Transit is preparing to move its 11 viaduct bus routes back to State Route 99 at the start of service Sunday morning, Oct. 30.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is completing demolition of the southern mile of the viaduct and will open the new construction bypass midday on Saturday. Metro viaduct service will operate on the reroutes that have been used during the closure for the entire day on Saturday, then move to the new bypass on Sunday morning.

The Metro routes that will use the bypass are: 21 Express, 37 southbound, 54, 54 Express, 55, 56 Express, 113, 120, 121, 122, and 125. Bus riders should note that due to narrower lanes and lower speed limits on the bypass, bus travel times on these routes may be longer than before the viaduct was demolished.

Prior to the viaduct closure, Metro increased bus service on the SR 99 corridor. That service will remain in effect to help with anticipated construction disruptions over the next several years.

(Top L, north of 1st Av. S. Bridge; top R, 1st @ Holgate; below L, I-5 on south end of downtown; below R, 12th headed for bridge to Beacon Hill, where there’s alternate WS Bridge access)

First update: Traffic is slow EASTBOUND on the high bridge right now. More to come – we’ll be hitting the road in a few minutes to get a firsthand look, and please let us know what you are seeing (if you can send info safely, such as, from a bus!).

4:14 PM UPDATE: Travel times show 4th is in better shape than 1st right now.

4:35 PM UPDATE: On the road now. High bridge looks better, peeking up the onramp from Avalon. Busy stream coming off the low bridge – here comes the 54 and the 55, homeward bound. And another 54.

4:40 PM UPDATE: Problem – stalled truck eastbound on the low bridge.
Lineup building behind it.

High bridge is busy eastbound from 99 forward. Westbound looks OK. We’re on 1st Avenue South now – past the Hanford detour, which we’ll check out in a minute – looks busier toward downtown than heading away. … Scratch that. Avoid 1st South. The backup from the detour is significant. A Bainbridge Island school bus is even stuck in it (checking, we think they’re headed for a match in West Seattle).

4:50 PM UPDATE: The stalled semi is still on the westbound low bridge, according to the scanner. Detour to the 1st Avenue South Bridge if you can. Take 4th or 6th to get to Michigan, which connects eastward.

5 PM UPDATE: We’re on southbound 4th now. Looks good through SODO. We’ll see what happens when we get close to 1st South Bridge turnoff. Text from someone on a bus says police have blocked off scene of stalled semi on low bridge.

5:14 PM UPDATE: WSB commenter Travis says the stalled semi is being towed. However, keep in mind, it takes a while to clear backups, even after the reason for the backup is fixed – so 1st is likely to be bad for a while. We took 4th, which was backed up a few blocks from the turn for the 1st Avenue South Bridge; we detoured to 6th per recent advice from a friend, and are now on Michigan heading for the 1st S. Bridge. Just found this “live” view of the low bridge on a camera that usually points elsewhere:

… Now we’ve crossed the 1st Avenue South Bridge. Looks good heading homeward-bound once you’re on it. Even if you’re in north WS, you can get off and head toward Highland Park Way but stay right to keep on West Marginal, which will take you up to Spokane St. under the bridge and on to Avalon, Admiral, Harbor, etc. … Oh well, now that camera is back to the bridge approach (looking east on Spokane), maybe helpful anyway.

5:35 PM UPDATE: Commenter says the 5:15 pm Water Taxi was full. Another one says tempers are short in the 1st Avenue South backup. Firsthand reports helpful – don’t type while driving, though! – our road crew is back at HQ as we have to cover a 6 pm community meeting (though we will still be tracking traffic, too). We hope the Bainbridge Island girls’ volleyball team made it to Chief Sealth for their 5:30 pm match against Holy Names (winner of that one plays Sealth at 7:30) – we noted a sighting of their bus in the 1st S. backup at 4:40! Appears some commuters have detoured to Water Taxi; commenter says 5:15 pm was full, and Bill in the 5:45 line says it looks like a full house will ensue for that sailing too.

6:08 PM UPDATE: The low bridge opened right after 6, as it has been doing pretty much every day this week. Remember, 3-6 pm was the only time period during which it was promised the bridge would stay closed to marine traffic. The Water Taxi has been sold out for the past two runs; if you travel on the 6:15 pm, let us know if it had to leave folks in line too!

6:35 PM UPDATE: We’re at a meeting in White Center where someone coming from the Eastside was supposed to be here half an hour ago – so that says something about the traffic. No real train trouble at Hanford this afternoon/evening, we’re told – unlike what we documented yesterday. (A TV crew was there to do a story, we’re told, so just figures it didn’t replicate.) … Wait, now an update from Michele (at 6:45), “stopped by a train on the second set of tracks.”

6:49 PM UPDATE: From Krista via Facebook: “Our 54 local bus driver is rocking it. Just did a 180 degree turn in an articulated bus to find us a better reroute that isn’t blocked by a train. There were at least 10 buses behind us stuck in the traffic on E Marginal Way. Still a loooong commute home tonight.”

7:24 PM UPDATE: Via Twitter, Gwen says some people are getting out and walking. (A few minutes later, we checked back with her, and she said that after half an hour on 1st S., her bus had finally moved, and was over the low bridge, “everything clear now.”)

(Click to see larger image)
Today’s afternoon/evening traffic update will start in a few minutes – but first, our bird’s-eye view, courtesy of Erick (in a crane!), of how the Alaskan Way Viaduct South End demolition was looking as of late this morning. An official update from WSDOT:

Overnight, crews continued to remove debris from the demolition site and removed steel protective plates from the roadway. Today, crews are concentrating their efforts on demolishing the lower bridge deck near South Atlantic Street, striping the new construction bypass and paving. Later tonight, crews will begin installing approximately 40 truckloads of concrete traffic safety barrier along 3,000 feet of the new bridge and bypass.

We also asked them what’s being done with the rubble, after a WSB’er sent us that question. From Viaduct project spokesperson Travis Phelps:

The concrete is going to Seattle Tunneling Parnters (our tunnel contractor). They’ll grind up the concrete and use it for creating roads in and through their workzone and form a launch pad for the boring machine. The rebar is being recycled.

Again, Highway 99 remains scheduled to reopen Monday morning at 5 am – but obviously it won’t be the same as it was – you’ll be driving a construction bypass till you get to the central portion, which will NOT be demolished till the tunnel is done (four-plus years).

P.S. For a time-lapse look at five days of demolition work – check out the video on this page from the Puget Sound Business Journal.

A WSB’er just e-mailed to note that despite traffic highs and lows for drivers and to some degree bus riders, bicycling is in his view “easy, free, clear, and very consistent. The best no-hassle commute.” Which brings us to the video above – transportation reporter Mike Lindblom from the Seattle Times (WSB partner) used a helmet cam to create a time-lapse video of his commute from West Seattle via bicycle yesterday, including a stop at the Cascade Bicycle Club/WSDOT station by the “low bridge” (we noted a cameo by Alki Bike and Board’s Stu Hennessey). In the second half of the clip, Mike slows it back down to real-time pace for a narrated tour past the Viaduct demolition. P.S. Cascade says it’ll have a station by the bridge on Monday too, 6:45-9 am, just to keep people motivated to keep commuting by bike.