Over the past week, we’ve seen progress made on the concrete strike. We’ve been working diligently with our contractor on strategies to get concrete that meets our needs on the bridge as soon as possible.
Our West Seattle Bridge construction contractor, Kraemer North America, has already reached out to all the concrete suppliers available to determine who can supply the special type of concrete needed for the bridge. Kraemer is working every day to reorder their schedule to minimize delays as much as possible.
The West Seattle Bridge program requires specialized concrete, which can hold more than 20 million pounds of force and must sustain its strength for decades to come. This will be used to form structures inside the bridge to hold new steel cables, which strengthen the bridge. Not every concrete supplier can provide this type of concrete, and we are still working to arrange for a delivery with whichever supplier can provide this as soon as possible.
 This week, we continued epoxy crack injection and carbon-fiber wrap work to reinforce the bridge’s concrete. We begin this work by injecting the epoxy compound into cracks at very high pressures.
Once the cracks are filled and the concrete surface is smoothed, we press sheets of carbon-fiber wrap with a similar compound and apply them on the epoxy-filled concrete surface. After the carbon-fiber wrap dries, we paint over it with a protective coating.
We will repeat this process on all three of the bridge’s spans and complete another phase of this work after we install the new post-tensioning cables inside the bridge.
 Pouring a bonding compound into the carbon-fiber press to strengthen the wrap.
 Unravelling a roll of carbon-fiber wrap and applying it to concrete that has been injected with an epoxy compound.
 Painting the carbon-fiber wrap with a protective coating.
We also completed more core drilling this week and built more forms for future post-tensioning components.
Installing cameras at intersections for monitoring traffic flow
 On Saturday, we’re installing traffic monitoring cameras at the 2nd Ave SW and Highland Park Way SW intersection and the West Marginal Way SW and Highland Park Way SW intersection.
We’ll use these cameras to monitor how traffic is flowing on the detour routes so that we can make signal timing changes as needed. We’ll be doing this work from about 6 AM to 1 PM and don’t anticipate a detour or major impacts to people traveling.
Paving on Marine View Dr between SW 104th St and SW 106th St
 On Saturday and Sunday, we’ll be paving Marine View Dr between SW 104th St and SW 106th St. We’ll start this paving around 7:30 AM and expect to be done by 3:30 PM each day.
During this work, we’ll need to reduce the two travel lanes to a single lane. We’ll have someone directing traffic at the work location to keep traffic moving efficiently. Please drive safely in work zones and follow directions from signs and flaggers.
In the next few months, we’re building several Home Zone projects in West Seattle and the Duwamish Valley. Exact timing of these projects depends on our SDOT crew availability and weather conditions. Neighbors living near these projects are being notified of the upcoming work.
Here are a few upcoming projects used to help slow down traffic and make conditions safer for people walking, biking, and rolling:
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9th Ave SW, S Trenton St, S Henderson St, 14th Ave SW, and 6th Ave S: Adding vegetation, installing drainage, and building concrete curbs throughout the South Park Home Zone.
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16th Ave SW and SW Myrtle St: Installing new flashing beacons at one of the existing crosswalks. The crosswalks and parking lines will also be repainted.
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16th Ave SW between SW Cambridge St and SW Roxbury St: Repainting center lines, parking lane lines, and bike lane lines for the whole block. New painted curb bulbs will also be installed on either side of the existing mid-block crosswalk.
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16th Ave SW near South Seattle Community College: Installing radar speed signs for southbound traffic at 16th Ave SW and SW Findlay St and northbound traffic at 16th Ave SW and SW Morgan St. Pavement markings and traffic signage will also be updated along the corridor.
When the West Seattle Bridge closed on March 23, 2020, we also had to restrict access to the Spokane St Swing Bridge (low bridge). Daytime access to the low bridge is restricted to ensure that freight, transit, and emergency response vehicles can travel efficiently to and from West Seattle.
Who can use the low bridge weekdays, 5 AM to 9 PM and weekends, 8 AM to 9 PM.
- Emergency vehicles
- Transit vehicles (King County Metro buses and school buses)
- Freight vehicles (10,001 pounds and higher gross vehicle weight rating; Class 3 vehicle)
- People walking, rolling, using an electric foot scooter, or biking on the low bridge path
In summer 2021, we expanded access to the low bridge on a temporary and limited basis.
The below groups must meet eligibility requirements, submit the access request form, provide their license plate, and be approved by SDOT before using the low bridge. The access request from is now available in these languages: English, Español, 繁體中文, 한국어, Tiếng Việt, ភាសាខ្មែរ, af Soomaali, Oromiffa. There is no cost to apply for access.
- West Seattle residents traveling to and from lifesaving medical treatments (authorization from your medical provider required).
- On-call medical workers (traveling to and from an on-call work shift only)
- All West Seattle restaurants and retail businesses (limited to urgent trips to pick-up equipment or supplies)
- Rideshare vehicles (vans, shuttles or official carpools with a state-issued rideshare license plate; this does NOT include Uber/Lyft)
- International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 19 members for trips when dispatched from the SODO Union Hall to terminals on the west side of the low bridge
- Maritime and industrial businesses proximate to the low bridge (limited to urgent trips to pick-up equipment or supplies or transport key personnel)
- Government vehicles (limited to urgent/unplanned trips and includes City of Seattle, King County, State of Washington, local law enforcement, and other government vehicles)
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Flip Your Trip offers support and free rides to those who live or work in West Seattle. Sign up today at FlipYourTrip.org to receive a special welcome bonus worth $25 in FREE trips you can use on transit, water taxi, and bike/scooter-share (using the Transit GO Ticket app)—as well as the first month free on Metro vanpools, personalized trip planning, informational events, and more.
If you or someone you know wants to talk with us, give feedback, or could benefit from having this information read to them in another language, please call (206) 400-7511.
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