Beginning the week of Oct. 3, work on State Route 18 will affect drivers in both directions of the highway.
Contractor crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation will be felling trees near the Interstate 90 interchange and drilling for soil samples west of the Tiger Mountain summit.
Starting Monday, Oct. 3, crews will clear trees weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. along the shoulder of westbound SR 18 from just west of the interchange to Deep Creek.
The trees are being felled in preparation for widening SR 18 between I-90 and Deep Creek as part of the I-90 and SR 18 interchange improvements project. After removing them, WSDOT will work with area tribes to place the trees in nearby creeks to improve fish habitat.
SR 18 lane closure
Drilling work for the SR 18 Issaquah/Hobart Road to Deep Creek widening project will require daily closures of the right lane of eastbound SR 18 through the end of October.
Beginning Monday, Oct. 3, the lane will be closed daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Initially; the lane closure will begin at the Issaquah/Hobart Road interchange and extend two miles to Holder Creek at milepost 22.5. The closure area will move farther east each week as drilling work is completed up to the Tiger Mountain summit.
The drilling work will gather information about the soil under the highway in preparation for future widening.
Two projects will improve SR 18 corridor and the I-90 interchange
The $665 million SR 18 project will widen the highway to two lanes in each direction between Issaquah-Hobart Road and Deep Creek, where it will connect to the wider lanes built as part of the $188 million I-90 interchange improvements project.
The SR 18 widening project could start construction as early as 2025 after the new I-90/SR 18 interchange is complete. The projects are designed to work together to provide travelers with a better travel experience over SR 18 and through the I-90 interchange.
[Information provided by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)]
