Traffic Payout

WSDOT’s 2009 construction season is in full swing. We began three-week expansion joint replacement work on I-90 on Monday. The I-5 panel replacement and grinding through Seattle continues for another three months. In fact, construction work will close both the I-90 and I-5 express lanes around the clock this weekend. The Hood Canal Bridge closure is in place for another five weeks.

2009 is our single biggest construction season ever. The 2003 and 2005 gas tax funding is reaching its peak and, yes, there is federal stimulus money too. It’s no illusion, you are seeing orange barrels everywhere and that’s a good thing because it means jobs, infrastructure repair and congestion relief.

A lot of folks are asking, what’s next?
If you are reading this, the answer is only a mouse click away.

We have some great Web pages. You can drill down to find information that matters to you. This is a great place to start www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/2009. Here you can find out what’s happening now, what’s next and the big picture.

What’s happening right now clearly spells out the major closures in the Seattle-Bellevue area today. It’s updated numerous times each day especially when a major construction project is on the roads. No jargon, just the facts, what’s closed and when – thank you very much. Go here before you leave the house: www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/2009/today.

What’s happening this week delivers a road-by-road list of every single lane closure planned for the next seven days. The list is long and meticulously organized. If you are detail oriented and like to plan ahead down to the lane, this is your site: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Northwest/construction

Month by month construction schedule is my favorite. It’s for the super uber-planners like me who like the big 30-day picture with colorful maps and information that can cause congestion, like a Sounders game or the Northwest Folklife festival. Oh and if you want to know more about what we’re doing and why we’re doing it, there are links for that too: www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/2009/calendar.

Twitter
Last weekend (May 2 and 3) more people came to our site via twitter than any other Web media. We think that’s cool. We’re trying hard to keep our twittering current and useful. Two accounts to watch: www.twitter.com/wsdot and www.twitter.com/wsdot_traffic.


If you are a City of Seattle driver, SDOT just launched a very cool construction site. Check it out: www.seattle.gov/transportation/constructionmap. This page will help you check traffic conditions on city streets if you’re looking to avoid a section of highway.

Take a tour and let me know what you think. We’re always open to suggestions.

Here is a video we did in April letting you know the details of what is happening on the I-90 bridge over Lake Washington:


Post written by Jamie Holter.