Sound Transit announcement.
Construction and testing are occurring throughout the Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension project area. This work includes crews continuing the roadway restoration and station finishes, adjusting utilities, paint striping on the street, systems testing, installing crosswalks and cutting decorative sidewalks in various locations.
During the holidays, the contractor will focus outside the business districts. They’ll return in the new year to complete restoration in those areas. The construction and work schedule are dependent on weather. Please allow for extra travel time to get to your destination and follow detour signage. For details of the traffic control effects, please scroll down to the “Where” section.
Access is open to hospitals, medical centers, and the emergency department during construction.
Please support your local businesses during construction. Let’s stay Loyal to the Local!
What
Continued construction and traffic restrictions along Stadium Way, N. 2nd Street, Division Avenue, Martin Luther King Jr. Way and the Dome District.
When
Dec. 23 Update. Work will occur during the day and nighttime hours.
Where
Entire project area:
- Light rail train and track testing along the Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension project is scheduled nightly as early as Dec. 27, 28, 29, and 30. This testing includes a “deadcar tow” along the entire corridor (MLK/Divison, N 1st and Stadium) and a “livewire” test. A “deadcar tow” is a truck pulling a light rail vehicle to test the tracks. Traffic control will be implemented and will follow alongside the activity. This work is scheduled to occur between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
- Daytime and nighttime track and light rail vehicle testing, electrical testing, traffic signal modifications, decorative sidewalk cutting, channeling revisions, completing station finishes and overhead wiring work for the future light rail system will be occurring in various locations along the alignment during the week (Commerce Street, Stadium Way, N. 1st Street, Division Avenue and MLK Jr. Way). These activities require work at night and weekends. The contractor has obtained a nighttime/weekend noise variance. They will need to temporarily remove parking and shift traffic to maintain a safe working area. Work will occur at night during the week and start at 8 a.m. on the weekends. The noise variance will be in place until the end of January.
- The contractor will be located at the Old City Hall Station, NE 4th Station, Stadium District Station and Tacoma General Station to finish installation of handrails at the stations. This work is expected to be completed, at all stations, as early as Jan. 20. The work will have a noise impact of 77 decibels, a moderate noise level close to that of a garbage disposal. This work will occur from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the weekends with 8 a.m. starts for Saturday/Sunday. The stations at 6th Avenue, Hilltop District, and St. Joseph will be completed in January.
- Directional street closures will occur between MLK, N. 1st, Stadium and Division at certain station locations for gutter and downspout installation. Parking will need to be removed in the area during these closures. The work will have a noise impact of 60 decibels, which is about the level of a conversation in restaurant or office.
- There will be revisions to the channelization, or the use of secondary roads to separate certain flows of traffic from the main traffic lanes, which will occur at Division and Yakima intersection, Division and I Street and N. 1st at Thriftway. This work will be completed at night. The work will have a noise impact of 73 decibels, a similar level to music being played in a living room.
- The overhead wires are now fully energized. Although we want the public to treat the wires like they have live since the installation, the wires are now officially live. Please be aware and coordinate any work that needs to happen near the trackway wires with our project team and operations moving forward.
- The T Line is now back in service! The T Line will temporarily end at 7th and Commerce, until we start testing later this year. Please make sure to stay within the parking lanes to not impede T Link vehicle access.
- Due to the fall/winter weather, final road and parking lane striping in various areas will occur at a future date. Crews will schedule when the weather allows.
Dome District:
- E. 25th Street will be down to a single lane for utility work on Dec. 23 and then returning to full access Dec. 27-28.
Commerce/Stadium Way:
- Pacific Ave. at S. 7th Street will have a full southbound street closure as early as Jan. 3, 2023. This work will close the Pacific and 7th Ave. intersection for roadway restoration and slope stabilization. Vehicles headed southbound on Schuster Way to downtown will be detoured from S. 4th St. to Dock St. to access downtown. Southbound vehicles will still have access to the 705 on-ramp during this closure. This work will support water line repair and patching the trench. There will also be equipment on the slope with trucks removing material and general clean up. Parking will be impacted near the construction area.
- The outbound Stadium Way Curve (northbound) will be closed as early as Dec. 27 for the North 1st Street driveway replacement and punchlist corrections. Parking may be impacted adjacent to the work area. This work is expected to be completed as early as Dec. 30. The driveway will be closed during this activity.
- See Entire Project area information for nighttime and weekend work.
- Future street closures:
- Stadium and 4th Street, 7th and Commerce Avenue outbound, and North 1st Street and G Street, Division and I Street will all have closures for survey monument raising as early as Jan. 16 through Jan. 17.
- 7th and Commerce to I-705 inbound will be closed as early as Jan. 23 for punchlist corrections.
Stadium District (N. E St., N. 1st St., Division Ave.):
- Broadway will have directional closures between Division and S 4th Street. The crews will be working on Broadway just north of the S. 4th Street intersection. Local access will remain on Broadway to maintain parking. A U-turn will be available during the southbound closure of Broadway S. This work is for road restoration and sidewalk repairs. Crews will continue this work until December 30th then plan to return in late January to complete
- Future street closures:
- Westbound North 1st Street will fully close from G Street to Division Avenue for vaulted sidewalk repair and concrete pours as early as Jan. 3, 2023.
- Tacoma Avenue and North 1st Street will close for roadway restoration as early as Jan. 12.
- Northbound I Street, at the west side of 2nd Street, will fully close for roadway restoration as early as Jan. 23, and on the east side of 2nd Street as early as Feb. 6, 2023.
- Tacoma Ave and North 1st Street will have a corner closure for the removal of a diesel storage tank with the date to be determined.
- The Yakima intersection at 2nd Street will fully close for roadway restoration in late February 2023.
- Eastbound/Westbound Division and I Street to Yakima with Eastbound North 1st Street will close as early as Jan. 3 for decorative sawcutting.
Hilltop/MLK Jr. Way:
- The city and Sound Transit walked the project area and have found a “punchlist” of work that will require directional closures of MLK to make the repairs. The contractor has scheduled the work in sections from 6th Street to 9th Street, 9th Street to 12th Street and 15th Street to 19th Street, in each direction. Each section will take about four days to complete. Signage will be posted to show the areas of closures with dates. Work will include track slab repair, sidewalk repair and other types of concrete repair. The contractor will keep traffic open where space allows.
- The contractor will have directional closures on MLK, between 15th Street and 19th Street, starting as early as Dec. 5. Their plan is to close southbound MLK first for about four to five days, then close northbound MLK for the same amount. Parking will need to be removed in the area during this work.
- Future street closures:
- Crews will be working on MLK Jr. Way and East Earnest S. Brazill Street, installing drainage along the future light rail trackway. Work will require a full closure of the intersection. This will take about six days of work, to begin in late January.
- Decorative sawcutting will occur at the Baker Center crosswalk January 12th. This will be a one-day closure.
- MLK and 13th Street will close as early as January 3rd for track repair, including demolition of some track, clean, up and potential replacement of rail. This work will take 2 weeks to complete.
