Busy Pierce County Interstate 5 overpass to close Aug. 23-26. Here’s what’s happening

Drivers who use 54th Avenue to cross over Interstate 5 in Fife should prepare to find alternate routes Aug. 16-19.

The Washington State Department of Transportation in Tacoma announced on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the overpass will be closed from 9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 23 to 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 26 as crews repave the overpass and northbound I-5 on- and off-ramps as part of a preservation project.

“The weekend closure allows crews to do a significant amount of work in a short period of time,” the post on X stated.

The schedule for the closure from Aug. 23-26 is as follows:

• The overpass will close to all traffic

• The northbound I-5 exit to 54th Avenue and the 54th Avenue on-ramp to northbound I-5 will close

• The southbound I-5 off-and-on-ramps at 54th Avenue will remain open.

The X post also stated that the final striping of the overpass and off- and on-ramps will be scheduled for late August or in September, depending on the weather.

Rosemary Montalvo

The News Tribune

Rosemary Montalvo was previously a service journalism reporter based in Tacoma, WA. She started as a summer news intern after graduating from California State University, Fullerton in May 2023. She has also worked as the photo editor and reporter for her university’s student-run newspaper. She was born in Inglewood, California.