Wondering when the West Seattle Bridge will reopen? Today, we finally have the answer.
The West Seattle Bridge has been closed for two years now, ever since cracks were discovered in March 2020. This has turned West Seattleites into unwilling islanders, since the West Seattle Bridge is the primary connection to the rest of the greater Seattle area and has historically been the city’s most-used bridge. For the past two years, getting to and from West Seattle has involved lengthy detours and traffic snarls. The West Seattle Bridge reopening date has been up in the air this entire time.
Seattle Department of Transportation originally said the bridge would reopen sometime in mid-2022. This led to many hoping for a summer reopening date. Unfortunately, a June announcement from Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) said that it will be a little longer, projecting a reopening date of mid-September. Today, SDOT announced that the West Seattle Bridge is now due to reopen the week of September 18, 2022—two and a half years after its initial closure.
Read on for all the updates on the West Seattle Bridge reopening!
The 38-year-old West Seattle Bridge was closed in March 2020 after the discovery of the cracked span. Since then, a regional concrete strike extended the timeline for repairs. The essential step of pouring concrete to strengthen the bridge was meant to happen at the beginning of the year, but wasn’t started until mid-April due to the strike. Now that the concrete has been poured, some final essential repair work remains.
The announced September reopening date for the bridge does hinge upon the rest of the final repairs going smoothly. The remaining work includes essential final steps such as paving and safety inspections.
After this repair (that comes with an estimated price tag of $175 million), the West Seattle Bridge is expected to have an additional 30 years added to its lifespan. SDOT will be able to monitor the bridge for any cracks or damage going forward, thanks to an intelligent monitoring system that has been installed on the bridge.