Freeway, on-ramp closures on tap for I-5 in Tacoma

There will be some big doings on the Interstate 5 construction projects through Tacoma this week, including a shutdown of the freeway early Thursday and Friday and a weeks-long closure of the on-ramp from Pacific Avenue to southbound I-5.

Here’s a rundown:

▪ Lane closures will be in place on northbound I-5 between the Puyallup River bridge and 54th Avenue in Fife overnight Tuesday and Wednesday.

Crews will begin closing lanes about 9 p.m. each night. All lanes should be reopened by 5 a.m. the next morning.

▪  The interstate will be shut down 1 a.m. to 3:30 a.m. Thursday and Friday so crews can set girders for the new Pacific Avenue overpass.

Northbound traffic will be detoured via state Route 7. Southbound traffic will be detoured via Interstate 705 and state Route 7.

Workers placed the first set of girders on the northern end of the overpass late Monday.

Twenty-five girders will placed. The longest will be 133 feet and weigh about 185,000 pounds. The girders were fabricated at Concrete Technology Corp. on the Tacoma Tideflats.

▪ The Pacific Avenue on-ramp to southbound I-5 will be closed 7 a.m. Thursday.

The ramp will be closed until mid-April, with the reopening date uncertain because some work depends on the weather.

The work is part of a four-year project to widen I-5 between M Street and Fife for eventual inclusion of carpool lanes.

The work, which is actually two projects, is about halfway finished.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 8:40 AM with the headline "Freeway, on-ramp closures on tap for I-5 in Tacoma."