Our RapidRide J Line project will make it easier and more convenient for you to get around the University District, Eastlake, South Lake Union, and Belltown. Whether you’re commuting to work, heading to class at the University of Washington, visiting the doctor, or shopping at local businesses, these upgrades will help you travel faster and more reliably.

As part of the project, we’ll upgrade streets, sidewalks, pedestrian ramps, streetlights, and traffic signals. We’ll also add protected bike lanes and replace the water main on Eastlake Ave E. These upgrades will support our local businesses, make it easier for you to get to housing, and help create safer, more connected neighborhoods for everyone.

Crews relocate load zones on Eastlake Ave E.

RapidRide J Line

Construction on northbound I-5

WSDOT is continuing work on northbound I-5. We recommend planning ahead and allowing extra travel time, especially around Eastlake Ave E, where congestion might occur. Visit their project webpage for more information.  

Fred Hutch Obliteride

Riders participate in the Fred Hutch Obliteride. Photo courtesy of Fred Hutch Cancer Center.

We look forward to the Fred Hutch Obliteride this weekend. Riders will depart from the University of Washington between 6:30 and 9 AM on Saturday, August 9. This is a friendly reminder for drivers to watch for participants going along University Bridge and the east side of Fuhrman Ave E. Please stay clear of the construction areas and watch for all traffic signs and directions. For more information on the event route, visit the Fred Hutch Obliteride webpage. Have a great ride! 

Load Zone Closures in the University District and Eastlake

We are closing and relocating load zones in the University District and Eastlake. Some of these load zones will be permanently closed during and after construction. Please visit the RapidRide J Line project website for more information on these areas.

University District Construction

We are working on several activities in the area, including:

• Paving and roadway restoration on NE 43rd St between 11th and 12th Ave NE will continue over the next few weeks. Paving in front of the alley entrances is no longer planned for this weekend. It is being rescheduled for a later date.
• Roadway reconstruction at NE 43rd St and Roosevelt Way NE is expected to begin next week. The work will require a lane closure and traffic shift, so people biking will need to use the sidewalks when the work begins.
• We’re continuing to build pole foundations on 11th Ave NE from NE 42nd St to NE 43rd St. This work requires us to remove parking along 11th Ave NE.

The activities in the University District involve heavy machinery and demolition, so expect loud noise, vibrations, and dust.

Eastlake Construction

Project Milestone: Paving on Eastlake Ave E between Fuhrman Ave E and Harvard Ave E is nearly complete!

We have finished most of the paving on Eastlake Ave E between Fuhrman Ave E and Harvard Ave E. The new concrete covers a new water main, electrical lines, and other utility upgrades. It also provides a solid base for buses and future protected bike lanes.

New sidewalks are drying on Eastlake Ave E.

We will begin paving the intersection of Eastlake Ave E and Harvard Ave E as early as next week. There will be lane closures and traffic shifts on Harvard Ave E at the intersection of Eastlake Ave E during this time. Once the I-5 northbound closures are complete, we will return to the east side of the Fuhrman Ave E and Eastlake Ave E intersection to finish paving in that area.

While paving is almost finished, there is still more work to complete in the area, including new sidewalks, traffic signals, lighting, applying final street markings, landscaping, and bus shelters. 

Crews have started building accessible pedestrian ramps on the west side of the intersection of Fuhrman Ave E and Eastlake Ave E, and the northwest corner of Harvard Ave E and Eastlake Ave E. Fuhrman Ave E west of Eastlake Ave E will stay closed for another month to finish this work.

Upcoming Harvard Ave E closure 

As soon as Monday, August 18, we will close northbound and southbound Harvard Ave E between Eastlake Ave E and E Allison St for approximately two weeks. We are returning to pave the road after installing the new water main several months ago. We can only close one area at a time, so we are waiting to close Harvard Ave E until we open E Allison St and WSDOT opens northbound I-5.

Local access to driveways and residential buildings will remain available during the closure. Eastlake Ave E will also remain open to traffic in both directions.  

For more information on bus stop relocations during this closure, please visit King County Metro’s website.  

Water main construction on Eastlake Ave E

Crews are making progress on water main construction toward the center of Eastlake Ave E. Trenching has now started under Eastlake Ave E between E Howe St and E Boston St. Additionally, installation of a temporary water main from E Hamlin St to E Edgar St is expected to begin as early as next week.

Replacing the water main and paving each block will take several months. After the water main replacement is finished, our team will proceed with paving on the east and west sides of the road.

During this work, you should expect noise, dust, vibrations, lane closures, and water outages. We will notify residents and nearby businesses about impacts to driveway access and upcoming water outages. 

Water outages and night work on Eastlake Ave E between E Boston St and E Blaine St

We will be working at night on Eastlake Ave E between E Boston St and E Blaine St over the next two weeks to prepare to connect the new water main. We’ll need to dig across traffic lanes in several places, requiring us to close one lane. We will need to alternate northbound and southbound traffic on Eastlake Ave E using the one remaining lane. We’re doing this work at night to minimize traffic disruptions from this work.

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) crews will connect the new water main to the existing system on the nights of August 6, 7, and 8. They will need to shut off water to properties in the area:

• Wednesday, August 6 (10 PM – 6 AM): Properties marked in yellow on the first map below will experience a full water outage for most of the night.
• Thursday, August 7 (7 PM – 4 AM): Properties marked in orange on the first map below will experience a brief water outage (up to 1 hour)

August 6 and 7 Water Outages

The properties highlighted in yellow will experience water outages on the night of August 6, and the properties highlighted in orange will experience water outages on the night of August 7.

August 8 Water Outage

The properties highlighted in yellow will experience water outages on the night of August 8.

• Friday, August 8 (10 PM – 6 AM): Properties marked in yellow on the second map above will experience a full water outage during the night as we complete the connections.

Crews will be working at night during all water outages. You may experience louder nighttime construction noise as we cut pipes to make connections.

Water outages on Fairview Ave E between Fuhrman Ave E: August 12 and 13

SPU crews will shut off the water supply for properties on Fairview Ave E between Fuhrman Ave E and E Allison St two times in the next few weeks.

The first water outage will occur on August 12 between 7:30 PM and 4 AM. Our team will connect the new water main to the existing one during this time. Services will be turned off for the full length of the outage. The affected properties are marked in yellow on the map below.

Properties marked in orange on the map below will experience a one-to-two-hour water outage on August 13 between 6 PM and 3 AM. We will be transferring water services for each property to the new water main during this time.

The properties highlighted in yellow will experience water outages on the night of August 12. Properties highlighted in orange will experience water outages on the night of August 13.

E Allison St between Eastlake Ave E and Harvard Ave E will remain closed during this work. Local access to driveways and alleyways on E Allison St will be available from Harvard Ave E. However, some areas may be temporarily blocked. Affected properties will be notified of any closures.  

Please be aware that planned water outages may be changed or canceled. You can view SPU's Water Outages map for more information on affected properties and the outage status. If you have any questions or concerns, contact us by calling our project hotline at (206) 257-2202 or emailing RapidRide@seattle.gov. We are committed to working with businesses to coordinate planned water outages. Our project website also has answers to frequently asked questions about water outages.

Paving on Eastlake Ave E between E Galer St/Fairview Ave E and E Garfield St

We will continue paving the east side of Eastlake Ave E between E Galer St/Fairview Ave E and E Garfield St for the next several weeks. During this process, traffic will stay on the west side of Eastlake Ave E. We will coordinate with businesses and residents ahead of any driveway impacts. Paving involves heavy machinery and demolition to break up the existing road, so please expect loud noise during this work.

Over the next two weeks, we will be pouring some concrete in the early morning hours as early as 4 AM. We’re pouring concrete early so it has enough time to cure and avoid the heat impacts during the day.

All our nighttime activities will follow the City of Seattle’s noise variance requirements. For more information about the City’s noise code, please visit their website.  

Frontage road closure near Fairview Ave N and Aloha St

The frontage road is closed between Aloha St and Yale Ave N during daytime working hours.

We are installing an underground utilities system beneath the road parallel to Fairview Ave N, between Valley St and Yale Ave N. This parallel road (or frontage road) will be closed between Aloha St and Yale Ave N for the next week as we complete work there. The west-side entrance to the frontage road from Ward St will also be closed during this time. These closures will occur during daytime work hours only – the frontage road will reopen at the end of each workday. Aloha St and Yale Ave N will remain open throughout this period.

Construction in this area is expected to last up to three months and will occur in multiple phases. We will continue to share information on upcoming phases of work in our email updates.

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