Pacific Avenue overpass reopens next week

A key downtown Tacoma thoroughfare will partially reopen week. On Monday, Aug. 15, Pacific Avenue over Interstate 5 will reopen to a single lane of traffic in each direction, along with bicycle and pedestrian access. The specific reopening time has not been announced, so commuters should still use McKinley Way for their morning commute.

Closed since spring 2015, contractor crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation demolished and rebuilt the Pacific Avenue overpass to make way for additional lanes on I-5.

“We truly appreciate the patience people showed while detouring around this closure,” said WSDOT Project Engineer Brenden Clarke. “We’re pleased to open at least some of the overpass, and are eager to open it in its entirety.”

Over the next two months, WSDOT’s contractor, Max J. Kuney Company, will complete work on the overpass and open the road to its final, four-lane configuration, with a 6-foot-wide sidewalk and a 14-foot-wide shared use path.

Crews will close East McKinley Way (D Street) at I-5 ton Thursday, Aug. 18, o demolish and rebuild the overpass. The closure will be in place around the clock and is expected to last up to 18 months. During that time, motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians will detour to Pacific Avenue.

 – Washington State DOT