Traffic alert: Drivers hit 7-mile backup on state Route 16 during emergency repairs
Update: WSDOT posted about 7:45 p.m. on X: “All lanes are open on the WB SR 16 Tacoma Narrows Bridge. Thank you for your patience folks. Backups should clear shortly.”
Initial post: Drivers traveling on state Route 16 toward Gig Harbor should expect to be late to evening plans.
Washington State Department of Transportation crews have two lanes closed on the Narrows Bridge as they do “emergent repairs,” WSDOT posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“There was a hole in the bridge deck that needed to be filled,” April Leigh, a spokesperson for WSDOT told the Gateway. “The hole was located near a bridge expansion joint. Before filling it, workers had to make spot welds where the deck connects to the bridge joint.”
When asked when they learned the repairs were needed, Leigh said: “The decision was made to make the repair earlier today, after an inspection this morning.”
Traffic is backed up about seven miles, the WSDOT travel map shows as of 5 p.m. Wednesday. Traffic doesn’t appear to open back up until after the Interstate 5, SR 16 interchange.
“The HOV lane is open to all traffic while we’re working,” the post said.
Work should be finished by 7 p.m., according to closure details on the WSDOT travel map. Leigh said it could be sooner than that, but it depends on “the cure time for the quick-drying cement.”
A rollover wreck that happened about 5:30 p.m. near South 38th Street is causing additional backups on I-5 in Tacoma, she said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
This story was originally published January 31, 2024 at 5:23 PM.
