Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
BURYING THE ALASKAN WAY VIADUCT
'Nice bay, shame about the flyover' is a comment you'll sometimes hear yelled
above the din of traffic on Seattle's cacophonous waterfront. The flyover in ques-
tion is the Alaskan Way Viaduct, an ugly elevated section of state Rte 99 built
between 1949 and 1953 that carries over 100,000 vehicles a day through down-
town Seattle. In the pioneering era of the motor car, the viaduct served its pur-
pose, redirecting traffic away from Seattle's downtown grid and keeping the
peace in Pike Place Market; but by the 1970s many Seattleites had started to
view it as a noisy eyesore that was doing untold damage to the city's potentially
idyllic waterfront. D Day came in February 2001, when the viaduct was signific-
antly damaged by the 6.8-magnitude Nisqually earthquake. Although emergency
repairs were quickly carried out, the structure was no longer considered safe in
such an earthquake-prone city. What would happen if a really big one hit?
Long debates ensued about possible transport alternatives along Seattle's wa-
terfront (the city even held a popular ballot on the issue) until it was finally agreed
in 2009 that the viaduct should be dismantled and a 2-mile-long tunnel built in its
place (the world's largest bored tunnel by diameter). After years of planning, a
specially designed boring machine, made in Japan and nicknamed 'Bertha' after
Seattle's first female mayor, began digging in the summer of 2013. The
$3.1-billion tunnel is expected to be finished by 2015, whereupon the Alaskan
Way Viaduct will be dismantled and consigned to the history books.
The Washington State Department of Transportation has set up a clever, inter-
active information center in Pioneer Square pertaining to the tunnel project
called Milepost 31 (
Click here
)
.
Pike Place Market & Waterfront
MARKET THEATER
THEATER
( 206-781-9273;
www.unexpectedproductions.org
; 1428 Post Alley; Westlake)
The Market
Theater hosts improvisational comedy, called Theatersports, on Friday and Saturday
nights at 10:30pm. Weekday shows are varied and usually start around 8:30pm. Buy
tickets at
www.brownpapertickets.com
or call 800-838-3006.
