Battery Street Tunnel closes for good Friday night

SEATTLE — The Battery Street Tunnel will permanently close to drivers on Friday starting at 10 p.m.

All southbound SR 99 traffic must exit at Valley Street.  The on-ramp and off-ramp from the tunnel to Western Avenue will also close.

Parking on the southwest corner of Battery and First Avenue will temporarily be removed while fences are installed.

WSDOT says the tunnel, like the Alaskan Way Viaduct, is seismically vulnerable and would be too expensive to renovate.

The tunnel, which was built in the 1950s, will be filled in and sealed. Work will begin in February after the SR 99 Tunnel opens and be completed in late 2020, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Major elements of the work include:

• Decommissioning and removing the tunnel's utility and mechanical systems
• Removing hazardous materials
• Filling the tunnel and sealing its entrances
• Street restoration along Battery Street, including sidewalk improvements, new curb ramps, street lighting and other pedestrian improvements

See diagrams of the fill-in phases and construction impacts at this link.

Cox Media Group