Tag Archives: transportation

North Capitol Hill’s 2026 of transportation challenges continues with restart of ‘Revive I-5,’ long closure of Harvard Ave E onramp

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The “Revive I-5” project is back in motion and has shifted to repair and resurface the right side northbound lanes of the highway across the Ship Canal Bridge. Long-term area closures include the Harvard Ave onramp — a key route for drivers leaving Capitol Hill to the north.

The resumption follows a weekend-long shutdown of northbound Interstate 5 through Seattle to reconfigure construction barriers. Mainline lanes officially reopened early Monday morning, but commuters immediately met a restricted corridor. Northbound I-5 is now reduced to two open left lanes across the Ship Canal Bridge, a chokepoint that will remain in place through the end of 2026 as crews repair and resurface the bridge deck.

For neighborhood commuters in Capitol Hill and Eastlake, the biggest new traffic puzzle is the total closure of the Harvard Ave E on-ramp to northbound I-5. To establish a work zone for contractor crews and heavy equipment, WSDOT has shuttered the neighborhood collector ramp entirely.

The northbound lanes on the east side of Eastlake Ave E are also closed between E Allison and Harvard Ave E for construction staging. Northbound traffic is being detoured east onto E Allison and then directly north up Harvard before routing back to Eastlake Ave near the bridge approach.

State traffic engineers confirmed the Harvard Ave ramp will not reopen to local traffic until mid-October with the rest of the northbound I-5 work hoped to be completed by the end of the year. Continue reading →

With four years to go, Seattle Council’s transportation chair calls for ‘performance audit’ of city’s traffic safety goals

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A popular choice for leaders unsure of which way to turn when it comes to important policies and programs is an audit. Measurement will be the next step as the Seattle City Council’s transportation chair Rob Saka says he wants to take a hard look at the city’s progress on Vision Zero street and safety initiatives.

Saka says his committee will push forward with an audit of Seattle Department of Transportation efforts rather than focus on new legislative safety thrusts to reach the goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries in the city by 2030.

“By initiating this comprehensive review now, the City secures a critical multi-year window to implement data-driven adjustments,” a statement from Saka’s office reads, saying the West Seattle representative’s “proactive approach ensures Seattle is best positioned to meet its safety milestones and enhance road safety for all residents well before the 2030 deadline.” Continue reading →

Seattle Department of Transportation 2026 levy projects include E John bus improvements, a First Hill Streetcar safety project, E Union bike lane upgrades, and planning for a transit-only lane on 24th Ave

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E Union’s protect bike lane is getting a levy upgrade in 2026

SDOT’s 2026 levy projects

In 2024, Seattle voters approved the city’s latest transportation levy, a $1.55 billion plan focused on streets, transit, sidewalk, and bike lanes for the next eight years.

This week, officials are unveiling their plan for how the transportation levy funding will be spent in 2026 with sidewalk and repaving work, improved protected bike lanes, new “High-Collision Safety Projects,” a First Hill Streetcar safety project, and a new bus-only lane on 24th Ave among the projects slated for the neighborhoods around Capitol Hill and the Central District.

The Seattle Department of Transportation sums up the 2026 Seattle Transportation Levy Delivery Plan as an outline for how it plans to spend this year’s levy dollars, saying the plan “identifies projects for which the department plans to start building, designing, and planning in 2026.”

“Due to the complex nature of capital project delivery and unforeseen risks, adjustments to the workplan may be necessary to account for changes in project timelines,” SDOT notes.

Here is our report on SDOT’s 2025 levy plan.

While it doesn’t capture all the day to day work SDOT crews will be taking on this year, the levy delivery plan outlines the major planned work you can expect to see on Capitol Hill and Central District sidewalks, streets, bike lanes, and bus lanes this year.

TRANSIT
Some of the most significant projects planned for the Capitol Hill and CD area will be transit related. SDOT says it plans to tackle 160 projects citywide “to improve bus reliability, access, equity, and safety with a focus on performance pinch points affecting multiple routes” with some key investments here including planned “spot” construction to improve transit conditions at the busy area near Capitol Hill Station at E John and 10th. Continue reading →

Nope, even the World Cup can’t bring 24-hour light rail service to Seattle

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(Image: Sound Transit)

As Seattle ramps up to host hundreds of thousands of fans for the slate of six games it is hosting in this summer’s men’s World Cup, Sound Transit says it plans to have a test of new late night bus service every 30 minutes between downtown and the airport in place before the tournament.

“This overnight pilot will ensure 24- hour transit access from Seattle to the airport,” Sound Transit CEO Dow Constantine said in the announcement. “While our proposed regional overnight bus network is still in development, adding this pilot now provides expanded flexibility for airport passengers and employees as we prepare to welcome the world during the FIFA World Cup.” Continue reading →

For drivers, bus riders, bicyclists, and walkers around North Capitol Hill, 2026 begins with pains for long-term transportation gains with RapidRide J, I-5, Roanoke Lid and Portage Bay Bridge projects

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Drivers, bus riders, bicyclists, and walkers were steered away from Eastlake Ave at Roanoke Tuesday morning after road construction workers hit a gas line. The street closure was just part of the traffic twists and turns around Capitol Hill’s north end as 2026 begins with major construction projects on the RapidRide J line, the new 520 Roanoke Lid and Portage Bay Bridge, and the “Revive I-5” work on the Ship Canal Bridge coinciding over the coming weeks, months, and, sometimes, years.

Seattle Fire reported no injuries in the overnight Eastlake response though streets in the area remained closed into the morning commute.

Planned work around the ongoing decade of 520 replacement projects will make for the longest running impact on getting around in the area. Continue reading →

Wilson chooses Waterfront leader for change at Seattle Department of Transportation

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Brady (Image: City of Seattle)

Mayor-elect Katie Wilson first made her name as a leader in Seattle as an advocate for public transit and safer streets. Her first major change in city leadership will come in the Seattle Department of Transportation.

Wilson this week announced that she is naming a new SDOT interim director, selecting the city’s leader on the project that created its new Waterfront Park and its relationship with Sound Transit for the role.

Angela Brady will step up from leading Waterfront Civic Projects and the Sound Transit representative role to lead SDOT. Continue reading →

Seattle set to vote on $1.55B transportation levy this fall

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(Image: SDOT)

The Seattle City Council has reached one of its most important milestones of the year, finalizing a $1.55 billion transportation levy for the November ballot.

Mayor Bruce Harrell can now sign off on the proposed property tax levy and put the decision in the hands of Seattle’s voters.

Despite its record size, the city’s electorate seem unlikely to reject the levy and its focus on spending on streets, transit, sidewalk, and bike lanes for the next eight years.

Tuesday’s council approval came with one final element to sweeten the pot as members agreed to earmark $20 million of the levy’s future funding for work to complete the “missing link” of the Burke-Gilman Trail in Councilmember Dan Strauss’s district. Continue reading →

Seattle City Council making final additions, cuts to transportation levy proposal on way to November ballot — UPDATE

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The Seattle City Council is working Tuesday to finalize the transportation levy proposal set to appear on November’s ballot and set the course for spending on streets, transit, sidewalk, and bike lanes for the next eight years.

Tuesday’s session will focus on debate over a roster of amendments with proposed additions and cuts to the package that could raise the price tag from its current $1.55 billion level.

Tammy Morales representing South Seattle’s District 2 is coming to the table with proposed additions that could push the total levy to $1.7 billion including adding $15.5 million more for “neighborhood-initiated safety projects,” $14.5 million more “for the creation of new sidewalks and safe pathways,” and $30 million more for arterial roadway maintenance. Continue reading →

Council holds final public hearing on Seattle’s now $1.55B transportation levy proposal

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The Seattle City Council will hold its final public hearing Tuesday on the 2024 transportation levy renewal as the proposal has grown another $100 million to $1.55 billion with proposed amendments that would “double investments in creating new sidewalks and safe routes to school, as well as triple funding for safety on public transit.”

Council transportation chair Rob Saka is bringing the proposed $100 million boost to the table for committee approval. The additions would bump the anticipated property tax bill from the levy for the Seattle median assessed value home to $499 a year — $30 higher than the initial proposal from Mayor Bruce Harrell.

Saka’s proposed changes include: Continue reading →

Seattle City Council holds first of two public hearings on $1.45B transportation levy proposal

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A Seattle City Council committee will host the first of two planned public hearings Tuesday on the proposed $1.45 billion transportation levy being readied for November’s ballot.

The Select Committee on the 2024 Transportation Levy’s hearing will focus on providing time for the public to speak in person and remotely on the proposed property tax. If approved by voters in the fall, the funding and spending plan will replace the $930 million levy approved in 2015.

The city says that under the current expiring levy, the cost to a typical homeowner is around $24 per month. The new eight-year levy proposal would increase the monthly cost by 70% to $41 per month. Continue reading →