Information from Seattle Department of Transportation

 The Spokane St Swing Bridge (commonly known as the “low bridge”) will be closed from 7 a.m. Friday, October 25 to 10 p.m. Sunday, October 27. Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will be re-installing a hydraulic turn cylinder which was removed in April 2024 for repairs. More details and photos are available on this SDOT Blog post. 

The bridge will be closed to people driving, biking, and walking. The West Seattle High-Rise Bridge will remain open while the low bridge is closed and is the primary option for people getting to and from West Seattle by car or bus.

This is one of several aging cylinders which SDOT is repairing over time to prevent issues like the 3-week bridge closure in January 2023. There are several types of cylinders which work together to lift and rotate the bridge. 

Additional phases of this bridge rehabilitation project are expected to continue through 2025. Additional short-term closures will be needed as part of our ongoing preventative maintenance work on this bridge.

Replacing the cylinders is part of a longer series of projects to repair, maintain, and upgrade the low bridge, including:  

• Bridge strengthening (complete) – SDOT completed bridge strengthened work in 2022. These efforts included injecting epoxy resin into cracks in the low bridge and adding carbon-fiber wrapping in several locations on interior and exterior surfaces.  

• Earthquake safety (complete) – This past summer SDOT finished removing silt that had built up around the western bridge foundations and replaced rusted steel collars around the support piers. This will allow the bridge to move as intended during an earthquake reducing force and stress on the foundations. This was one of 16 bridge seismic retrofit projects SDOT is completing citywide thanks to the Levy to Move Seattle.  

• Control system upgrades (complete) – Earlier this year, SDOT finished upgrading the bridge’s control and communications system that opens and closes the bridge. The previous system was over 30 years old.   

• Component upgrades (ongoing) – Over the past few years SDOT has been continually working to replace the bridge’s various cylinders, hydraulic pump systems, and electrical components which all work together to move the bridge. 

How to get around during the closure: 

• The West Seattle High-Rise Bridge will be open. This is the main detour route for people driving or taking the bus. 
• King County Metro bus service and West Seattle Water Taxi service will not be affected and run 7 days a week.
• People will not be able to bike or walk over the low bridge during this closure. Taking the bus or water taxi is a reliable option for people without a car. People may also use this bike map find other bike route options, and SDOT recently added permanent safety barriers to the protected bike lane on West Marginal Way SW. 
• Harbor Island can still be accessed from the east via SW Spokane St. These detour maps show how to get between Terminal 5 using the West Seattle High Rise Bridge: Going to Terminal 5  / Leaving Terminal 5.