The Washington State Department of Transportation is hoping to help people get ready for the closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct  on Jan 11. They are offering tips and hints on how to plan for it and get around once it has closed. Four new videos produced by the state agency offer some guidance.

Learn more about the project here.

• Shift your travel time to avoid the busiest times on the roadway
• Bike or walk to work or school
• Start or join a carpool, vanpool or vanshare
• Start a telecommute program for employees
• Use transit, particularly light rail and King County Water Taxi
• Stay off the road: work from home, postpone discretionary trips, take time off
• Be prepared for your new route when the closure ends and the new tunnel opens.
• Watch this short video on how to stay in the know during the closure.

Ideas and resources:

• Ideas for changing your commute or travel habits
• How WSDOT and partner agencies will help keep people moving during the closure
• The closure in one overview handout
• See how freight routes change during and after the closure. Learn more about freight operations in Seattle.
• How will the closure affect traffic? These graphs show travel times and traffic volumes on key routes during the SR 99 closure in 2016.

The tunnel itself will open early this year, the exact date is not yet posted. It will be toll free upon opening with the tolls set to be imposed in the near future.