EVERETT — State transportation crews plan to completely close northbound I-5 at Everett Mall Way tonight to realign a lane that currently ends and make it an exit onto Highway 526.
Crews are scheduled to begin closing lanes at 10 p.m., with all lanes to be closed by 11:30 p.m. All lanes are expected to reopen by 7 a.m. Sunday.
The work could be delayed if the pavement is not dry, said Connie Lewis, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Transportation.
“If it’s raining, they can’t really do it,” Lewis said.
Another closure of three lanes is planned for northbound I-5 from 128th Street SE to Everett Mall Way tonight and Monday night for work on the park-and-ride project at 112th Street SE.
With the complete northbound closure of I-5, drivers will be detoured to the exit to Highway 527, briefly onto the highway and onto the onramp back to northbound I-5. The exit to Highway 526, the Boeing Freeway, will remain open.
Realigning the lane to become an exit onto the Boeing Freeway will involve restriping and paving work, Lewis said.
The change is being done to make room on the left side of I-5 for a carpool lane expected to be installed by next June at the latest, Lewis said. The move is also expected to improve safety by eliminating the merge and will improve access to Highway 526.
“This restriping gets us toward how it’s going to look permanently,” she said.
The partial closure will funnel all traffic into the right lane from 128th Street SE to Everett Mall Way between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
Reporter Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439 or sheets@heraldnet.com.
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