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During the tunnel closure, bus traffic will be increased the most on the highlighted streets |
North Downtown
9th Avenue Reverse - Flow Lane:
A reverse flow lane will be added so express buses from
I-5 can get in and out of Downtown quickly.
Before
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- Two southbound lanes with parking on both sides between Stewart
and Howell streets.
- Ninth Avenue provides southbound transit access
to Convention Place Station, the most northerly station in the
Downtown tunnel.
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After
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- Two southbound lanes with no parking on either side of the street.
- A new northbound transit-only lane between Olive Way and Stewart
Street, which provides transit access to and from Convention Place
Station.
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Virginia Street:
As more service is revised to operate on Virginia Street
during the tunnel closure, there will be more buses using Virginia to
access the Convention Place bus staging area and the I-5 express lanes
via 9th Avenue.
Pike Street:
Bus service on Pike Street today is primarily trolley routes
serving Capitol Hill. During the temporary closure of the Downtown tunnel,
several routes will be added to Pike Street to provide direct access to
the Pike/Pine ramps to I-5.
Olive Way PM Rush Hour Transit Lane:
Olive Way provides the main eastbound connection to I-5
from both Third and Fourth avenues. During the temporary closure of the
Downtown tunnel, bus volumes will remain about the same as today, but
an evening rush hour transit lane will be added between Fifth and Boren
avenues to help transit movement.
Before
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- Olive Way between Fourth and Terry avenues has three
eastbound lanes with parking on the north side of the street.
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After
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- Parking will be restricted on the north side of
Olive Way in the evening rush hour to allow for an eastbound transit-only
lane during that time.
- A transit-only lane will be provided on the south
side of the street using one of the existing lanes.
- Three eastbound lanes will be maintained at all times for general traffic.
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Central Downtown
Third Avenue Transit Priority During the Morning and Evening Rush Hours:
For better circulation through Downtown, buses being moved
from the Downtown tunnel during its temporary closure will primarily shift
to Third Avenue. As buses move north on Third Avenue, they will be split
between Pike Street, Olive Way and Virginia Street for better access to
I-5.
Before
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- Two way traffic. Two lanes in each direction between Yesler Way and Stewart Street.
- Left turn restrictions 3-6 p.m.
- Pullouts for loading on various blocks.
- Bus routes serve all stops.
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After
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- Traffic restricted to transit and emergency vehicles
only from 6-9 a.m. and 3-7 p.m. between Yesler Way and Stewart
Street.
- General purpose vehicles are allowed to make a right turn onto Third Avenue from east/west
streets and then must turn right at next block.
- Some pullouts will be filled in or relocated to maximize passenger and bus queuing capacity.
- Buses will stop at every other stop.
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Second and Fourth Avenues:
Besides improvements to bus stops there will be no physical
changes on Second and Fourth avenues. On average, overall bus volumes
would be slightly higher than what they are today.
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South Downtown
To handle the bus volumes from I-90 and Fifth Avenue South
(E-3) Busway, buses will be split between Fourth and Fifth avenues.
Prefontaine Place South Transit Priority:
Before
 |
- Two one-way northbound traffic lanes with a bus stop on the east side of the street.
- Limited parking on the east side of the street and angled back-in parking on the west side of the street.
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After
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- Transit-only use in the morning and evening rush
hours.
- Northbound bus stop on the east side of the street.
- No parking on the west side of the street during morning and evening rush hours. No parking on the
east side of street at anytime.
|
Fifth Avenue South Transit Service Additions:
To provide access to and from I-90 and the E-3 busway (Fifth
Avenue South), transit service will be added to the E-3 busway (Fifth
Avenue South) operating in each direction during the morning and evening
rush hours.
Before
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- North of Jackson Street three southbound lanes. South of Jackson Street one lane in each direction with evening rush
hour parking restrictions.
- The northbound traffic lane ends at Jackson Street.
- Fifth Avenue South is used by buses for access to/from the bus bases with no passenger service provided.
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After
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- One lane in each direction south of Jackson Street.
Evening rush hour parking restrictions will remain in place.
- A new northbound lane will be added between South Jackson and South Washington streets.
- Northbound bus stops will be added in the vicinity of Jackson Street.
- Transit service will be added to Fifth Avenue South
between Airport Way South and South Washington Street.
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Would you like to receive Downtown Seattle Transit
Tunnel's project updates? E-mail Kim
Mercier, Sound Transit Project Assistant.
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