A press release from Washington State Department of Transportation.
TACOMA – With dry weather in the forecast, construction crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation will shift all lanes of southbound Interstate 5 near Portland Avenue into a new, temporary location.
To put this traffic shift in place, crews will close multiple southbound I-5 lanes and ramps overnight Thursday, Sept. 23:
Ramp closures:
- Southbound State Route 167 on-ramp to southbound I-5 will close from 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23 to 5:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 24.
- Portland Avenue/27th Street on-ramp to southbound I-5 will close from 9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23 to 5 a.m. Friday, Sept. 24.
- Southbound I-5 exit 134 to I-705 and SR 7 will close from 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. Friday, Sept. 24.
During the ramp closures, signed detours will be in place.
Lane closures
- Southbound I-5 from Port of Tacoma Road to East McKinley Way will have two lanes closed starting at 10 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23 until 6 a.m. Friday, Sept. 24.
- Rolling slowdowns on southbound I-5 may occur from Port of Tacoma Road to East McKinley Way during the early morning hours of Friday, Sept. 24.
When southbound I-5 lanes reopen Friday morning, drivers near Portland Avenue will see lanes shifted towards the right shoulder of the highway. This work was initially scheduled for Friday, Sept. 17 but was rescheduled because of rain.
Project details
Moving the southbound travel lanes to a new location opens a new work zone. Crews will build the new East L Street bridge and finish the center median barrier on I-5. This work is among the final stages of the project that builds a new southbound I-5 Puyallup River Bridge in Tacoma.
More information about the upcoming traffic switch and the overall project is available on a recent WSDOT blog post.
Before heading out the door, travelers can find the latest information on the WSDOT app and by following the WSDOT regional Twitter feed.
