DES MOINES, Wash. — Drivers in South King County will face weeknight lane closures on Interstate 5 next week in the SeaTac/Des Moines area.
Starting Monday, crews will begin building two new bridges just north of the State Route 516 interchange.
The Washington State Department of Transportation said contractors will begin to lift, position and secure 30 girders for the South 216th Street bridge across I-5 and the northbound I-5 flyover ramp that will eventually connect to the State Route 509 Expressway, which is currently under construction. The work is part of WSDOT’s SR 509 Completion Project.
The massive sections of concrete range from 65 feet to nearly 200 feet long and weigh between 191,400 and 252,100 pounds. Two huge cranes will coordinate to put them into place.
When the girders are being lifted into place, one direction of I-5 will be reduced to a single lane overnight and routed to the opposite side of the freeway using a cross-over lane, according to WSDOT.
“We need drivers to be prepared for this cross-over lane because we don’t use it often on I-5,” said Project Engineer Ward Anderson. “But it means we can keep I-5 open and drivers safe while we set the girders.”
The weeknight lane closures begin on June 26 and will last for about a month:
- Northbound lanes begin closing as early as 7 p.m.
- Southbound lanes begin closing as early as 8 p.m.
- From 11:59 p.m. to 4 a.m.: One direction of I-5 will be reduced to a single lane using the cross-over lane.
No work or closures will happen on weekends or during the day.
Read more about the lane closures, new bridges, and the crossover lane at this link.
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