Heads Up, Commuters: WSDOT Announces Overnight Lane Closures for SR 99 in Seattle, Plus Daytime Work in Fife
If your daily drive includes a trip along State Route 99, it’s time to start planning a little extra time for your commute. The Washington State Department of Transportation, or WSDOT, has announced a series of upcoming lane and full tunnel closures designed to keep the vital corridor safe and operating smoothly. This isn’t just about Seattle’s iconic tunnel; there’s also significant work happening down south in the Fife area.
The biggest news for many drivers is the activity in the SR 99 tunnel itself, the two-mile-long subterranean passage that replaced the Alaskan Way Viaduct back in 2019. Starting Monday, December 1, crews will begin a series of overnight repairs that will narrow the northbound path. From Monday night through Thursday morning, December 4, you can expect the right northbound lane of the tunnel to be closed each night from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
But wait, there’s more. That same week, a more significant closure is on the calendar for annual maintenance. Both the northbound and southbound directions of the SR 99 tunnel will completely shut down for an eight-hour stretch. This full closure is scheduled from 10 p.m. on Friday, December 5, until 6 a.m. on Saturday, December 6. The work zone spans from South Hanford Street all the way up to an area just south of the Aurora Bridge. This essential maintenance is critical for a structure that has to handle heavy traffic flow and complex operational systems, an issue brought into sharp focus by a power outage that caused an unexpected shutdown in November 2025.
WSDOT is urging drivers to prepare for the inevitable delays and use caution near all work zones. After all, the crews out there are the ones keeping the city moving, often while we’re fast asleep.
A Split Focus: Work Continues in Pierce County
The maintenance doesn’t stop at the Seattle city limits. Down in Pierce County, another set of SR 99 closures is underway in Fife, but these will impact daytime commuters and are part of a much larger, long-term endeavor.
From Monday, December 1, through Friday, December 5, a single lane of SR 99 will be closed in both directions through a crowded section of Fife. Southbound drivers will lose a lane between approximately 7 a.m. and 3 p.m., while northbound traffic will be affected from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The closures are positioned around the roundabout at Wapato Way East and 70th Avenue East.
The purpose here isn’t just basic roadwork; it’s a key part of the massive State Route 167 Completion Project. Crews are working on sidewalk improvements, which ties into the larger Puget Sound Gateway program—a major, roughly $3 billion investment aimed at finishing critical missing pieces in the state’s highway and freight network.
Whether you’re dodging cones in the dark Seattle tunnel or navigating a daytime squeeze in Fife, the message is clear: check those travel apps, consider an alternate route, and give the people working on the infrastructure plenty of space. It’s a small inconvenience now for a smoother drive later.