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‘Months of Hell’ return to I-5 around Seattle

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‘Months of Hell’ return to I-5 around Seattle


We survived it last year, barely, but now we’re in for several “months of Hell” as closures of northbound I-5 across the Ship Canal Bridge return.

You deserve a pat on the back if you survived the “month of Hell” between July and August last summer.

You might need therapy to survive what’s about to happen.

Four ‘months of hell’ inbound

Four “months of Hell” will start this weekend with a full closure of northbound I-5 from downtown Seattle to University District. The Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) needs the weekend to set up a work zone across the Ship Canal Bridge.

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Come next Monday, the two left lanes of the northbound Ship Canal Bridge will be closed 24/7, and this is going to last for four months.

I spoke with Tom Pearce, a communications specialist for WSDOT, about the upcoming work last year.

“We will work for about four months, and then we will pause and pick everything up when the World Cup comes to town,” Pearce said. “When the World Cup ends, we will have another weekend-long closure, reset the work zone, and then we’ll start to work on the right lanes of the northbound Ship Canal Bridge.”

And that will come with a second four-month chunk of lane closures.

I’m not sure if you remember just how bad these similar closures were for that one month last summer, but it was absolutely brutal.

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To help with the traffic flow, WSDOT kept the I-5 express lanes open in the northbound direction the entire time. The rationale is that it is the direction of travel of the closures.

What that created was a daily one-hour delay, or more, for southbound I-5 drivers. Tens of thousands of southbound drivers use those express lanes every morning, and with that option gone, they had to stay in the main line, creating a daily five-mile backup to the Edmonds exit down to Northgate.

“We know that it was difficult for travelers, particularly for southbound in the morning on I-5,” Pearce said. “People did well at adapting and using other transportation methods and adjusting their schedules. It went relatively well.”

WSDOT is using all the data it collected during that month of closures and is using to help with congestion this time around.

Here’s the setup going forward

Northbound I-5 will be closed through the downtown corridor all weekend. When it reopens on Monday, only the right two lanes will be open until June 5. That weekend, the entire northbound freeway will be closed to remove the work zone.

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The work will take a break during the World Cup until July 10. Then, northbound I-5 will be reduced to just two left lanes until the end of the year. The end date hasn’t been released. It was originally scheduled to wrap up in November.

This is going to cause significant delays around Seattle. My best advice is to alter your schedule and get on the road at least an hour earlier than normal.

And if you think you’ll just jump on the light rail out of Lynnwood to avoid the backup, you’re going to need a plan. That parking lot is full by 7 a.m. most mornings. It will likely be filled earlier than that going forward.

Chris Sullivan is a traffic reporter for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here. Follow KIRO Newsradio traffic on X.

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Who are your all-time favorite late-round Seattle Seahawks draft picks?

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Who are your all-time favorite late-round Seattle Seahawks draft picks?


We’re continuing our theme of Seattle Seahawks NFL Draft discussion today with a trip down memory lane.

The Seahawks have a deep history of finding some gems in the later rounds of the draft. Three Legion of Boom members were taken in the fourth, fifth, fifth, and sixth rounds, while Seattle’s first Super Bowl MVP was seventh-round linebacker Malcolm Smith. The only offensive touchdown scored in Seattle’s second Super Bowl win was by fourth-round tight end A.J. Barner, who might be on the cusp of stardom beyond the Seattle sports bubble.

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We want to know your favorite Seahawks late-round draft picks of all time, but there is a clear restriction to eliminate some obvious candidates. A “late-round draft pick” is defined as no earlier than Round 4, which means Russell Wilson and Tyler Lockett are ineligible as third-rounders. Once upon a time, the NFL Draft was longer than seven rounds—the Seahawks’ inaugural season had a 17-round draft—so if you want to really choose players from before the change-over in 1994 then go right ahead! Undrafted players like Doug Baldwin do not count because, well, they were literally not drafted.

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You don’t have to reason that they were legendary, all-time great Seahawks. Chris Carson is not one of the top three running backs in Seahawks history but I’ll be damned if it wasn’t a joy to watch a seventh-round pick become a quality starter whose career was cruelly cut short due to injury.

And yes, Michael Dickson (fifth-round pick) counts because punters are indeed people.

Refer to Pro Football Reference for the Seahawks’ draft history in case your memory needs jogging.

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Seattle area Iranian-Americans, activists react to ceasefire deal

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Seattle area Iranian-Americans, activists react to ceasefire deal


People from Seattle to Redmond are speaking out about the ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran after President Trump’s threat of massive attacks.

President Trump on Tuesday announced he would suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for two weeks as part of a temporary ceasefire brokered by the Pakistani government.

The suspension of attacks is contingent on Iran agreeing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

ALSO SEE | Oil prices drop and stock futures jump as US and Iran agree to a 2-week ceasefire

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Iran responded by claiming victory, saying ships will be allowed to pass through the strait, but only under the management of the Iranian military.

Shayan Arya is an Iranian-American with cousins and friends in Iran, who have detailed by phone their experiences being near recent warfare.

“In the middle of our conversations, the bombing started,” Arya explained. “And so she said, ‘Can you hear the bombs dropping?’”

He said he was concerned about power plants being bombed in Iran, and is grateful they won’t be targeted, for now.

Meanwhile, on the steps of Seattle City Hall, a group rallied against the Trump Administration’s foreign policy and actions.

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On the steps of Seattle City Hall, a group rallied against the Trump Administration’s foreign policy and actions. (KOMO){ }

“Perhaps we should stop bombing the cradle of civilization and calling it freedom. We should be investing in people, the communities,” one woman chanted through a megaphone.

Counter-protesters showed up, leading to heated confrontations for a short time.

Arya said he feels relief, for now, amid the ceasefire, but that there’s ongoing concern about Iran’s future under its current regime.

“It’s just a matter of time [until the regime collapses], and at what price?” he asked.

CNN reports the White House is preparing for in-person negotiations with Iran to help broker a long-term peace deal.

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The developments come just hours after the president posted a message online, threatening, “A whole civilization could die tonight… Never to be brought back again.”



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1-inch RapidRide G Line error costs Seattle $650,000 to fix – MyNorthwest.com

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1-inch RapidRide G Line error costs Seattle 0,000 to fix – MyNorthwest.com


The City of Seattle is paying $650,000 to fix a bus line error along the RapidRide G Line.

Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) crews removed three orange steel plates that had lifted buses by approximately one inch and repaved the short sections of the roadway along Madison Street where the plates were initially placed.

Those orange plates were a stopgap solution to properly serve riders who use wheelchairs and walkers, as the original construction for the three center-road bus stops along King County Metro’s RapidRide G Line were roughly an inch too high when it first opened in 2024.

The $650,000 construction fix is expected to come from a $144.3 million construction project, which paid for nine new buses, built 8 miles of sidewalks, repaved the road, and replaced or upgraded more than 40 traffic signals, according to The Seattle Times.

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The affected stops were Stops 104, 105, and 124. Stop 104 is on Madison Street between Terry and Boren Avenues, while Stop 105 is on Madison Street between Summit and Boylston Avenues, and Stop 124 is on Madison Street at E. Union Street and 12th Avenue E.

An SDOT spokesperson told The Seattle Times the specific bus platforms were “slightly too high for bus ramps to extend properly.” If the platform height is even slightly off, riders using wheelchairs, walkers, or experiencing other mobility issues can’t get on or off the bus.

The RapidRide G Line, which opened in 2024, connects Madison Valley, Capitol Hill, First Hill, and Downtown Seattle.

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