Project overview
Crews working for WSDOT textured the existing concrete pavement of the north and southbound State Route 99 tunnel. The technique of shot-blasting the roadway provided added friction for vehicles’ tires and improved traction.
What to expect
No more work is scheduled.
This project will texturized the pavement in both directions of the SR 99 tunnel in downtown Seattle.
The SR 99 tunnel, also known as the Alaska Way Viaduct replacement tunnel, opened in February 2019. The 2-mile, double-decker tunnel carried more than 47,000 vehicles daily in 2023.
The surface of the roadway had become worn by traffic and provides less tire grip than when the tunnel first opened five years ago. The shot-blasting technique rehabilitated the road using particulate grains propelled under high velocity. This process is highly effective for changing the coarseness of the roadway.
Trucks towed the machines that blast the grains into the roadway. The trucks also vacuumed any dust created from the process so as not to clog the air filtration systems or storm drains in the tunnel.
