Travel Advisory: Ballard Bridge maintenance weekdays from June 14 – June 21

Routine maintenance on the Ballard Bridge 

Our Roadway Structures Maintenance crews will be conducting ongoing preventative routine maintenance on the Ballard Bridge to inspect and repair concrete underneath the bridge. The work will be performed by an under bridge inspection truck (UBIT), a mobile crane that allows operators to be positioned to perform any type of under-bridge task. The work will be performed on weekdays from Monday, June 14 through Monday, June 21 between the hours of 7 AM and 2:30 PM. 

Here’s what you can expect: 

UBIT being used to perform work on the Yesler Bridge. Photo Credit: SDOT.

The sidewalk will be open most of the time during construction for people walking, biking, and rolling across the bridge. People on bikes will need to dismount and walk their bike through the work area on the east side of the bridge. Bicyclists may also take the Fremont Bridge or Ballard Locks to bypass the construction. 

For your safety and that of others, please keep your eyes on the road while work is taking place, and pay careful attention to site signage and workers on the bridge.  

Another example of our ongoing work to take good care of our bridges 

The Ballard Bridge was built in 1917 and carries more than 57,000 vehicles per day. We perform regular maintenance and frequent inspections on the bridge to ensure it stays operational and safe. In addition to regular maintenance, we are also planning ahead with a Ballard Bridge Planning Study to evaluate eventual rehabilitation and replacement options for the long-term future of the bridge. This study is also considering options to bring the bridge up to current transportation, functional, and structural standards including improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities and keeping buses and freight moving.  

We invest in ongoing maintenance of all the 1,500 bridges and structures we own. Taking care of our aging bridges is important and we’re committed to continuing the comprehensive and proactive bridge asset preservation program that maximizes the life of our critical infrastructure. Here are some examples of ways that we are taking care of our assets: 

• Bridges: We build our bridges to the highest safety standards and make proactive investments to our bridges to make sure that we can count on them to remain in good shape for a long time. We perform continual bridge maintenance, inspections, monitoring, and preservation to keep bridges safe and stable.    

• Other Structures: In addition to caring for 124 bridges, SDOT owns nearly 1,500 structures like retaining walls, stairways, and underground support walls which require ongoing maintenance and investment. SDOT also has safety inspection or reimbursable inspection and maintenance responsibilities for 117 other bridge structures owned by other agencies or private entities that can potentially impact public safety in the right-of-way. 

Questions?

Contact 206-684-ROAD for information on the project.