Streaming soon under US 101: Season 3 of major fish passage construction on the Olympic Peninsula

By Angela Cochrane

It may not be the show you’ve been waiting for for the past several years (looking at you, Stranger Things!), but it’s sure to be the talk of the town for summer travelers on the Olympic Peninsula.

With eight new episodes – uh, we mean work zones – it’s lights, camera, action – ok, well it’s just lights. Red, yellow and green ones. Traffic lights, to be specific. But don’t worry! They are all temporary.

You’ll see a lot of these guys if you’re traveling US 101 along the coast this summer.

If your summer plans include taking the “loop” (US 101 on the Olympic Peninsula), you’ll want to include some extra travel time. But we’ll keep you moving through the work zones.

This is the third season of our “Coastal 29” project. The work removes barriers to fish at 29 locations under US 101 and State Route 109.

All of the fish passage locations that are part of the Coastal 29 project.

We reached the halfway point for the project last fall after completing work at five locations under SR 109 near Ocean Shores and four locations under US 101 south of Forks. This summer, we’re getting US 101 ready for its closeup.

Bonus episode

In addition to the fish passage sites, we have a ninth location where US 101 is reduced to one lane of alternating traffic. This is due to erosion along the highway near Kalaloch. In the next several weeks, our contractor will work to repair the hillside and reopen both lanes.

Plot summary

The temporary changes will remain in place at the eight fish passage work zones through the end of the year. The changes include a temporary bypass road. Most of the locations already have traffic on bypass roads. These locations all have one-way alternating traffic around the clock. The bypass roads will open at the remaining locations within the next couple of weeks.

Aerial image of a bypass road with a temporary bridge. 

Once traffic is shifted onto the bypass road at each location, crews will start digging up the highway and relocating aquatic life in the stream. Before stream work begins, we temporarily divert the stream. This happens during a time when fish are less active in the stream. We call this the “fish window”. This window varies by location. For these streams, it starts in July.

Up next

After the Independence Day holiday, we will block off the project area with fencing and move fish and other species up or down stream of the project. We also document the number and types of species found in the stream during this time. A pipe is then used to divert the stream around the project area, which gives crews the room they need to rebuild the stream bed. Once that work is complete, tree trunks and native plants are added for shelter and nutrients. In addition to the stream work, we build the new structure.

Fish passage work includes relocating aquatic life before working in the stream.

Main character arc

One of the projects just hit a big milestone. We placed girders, or large support beams, on the new bridge over May Creek. This project is located at the Jefferson/Clallam county line south of Forks. Girders act as the backbone of a bridge. They are placed on top of the piers and support the driving surface. The new May Creek bridge has five girders that are each 175 feet long – the size of the Seattle Ferris Wheel!

Now that the girders are in place, we are working on the bridge deck. The contractor expects to finish most of the bridge work and open it by the end of this year. If this happens, they will pause work for winter and perform stream work when the fish window opens in summer 2026. We expect to complete the whole project in fall 2026.

Next season on Coastal 29

All bingeworthy series come to an end. By the end of this year, we will have removed barriers to fish at 22 locations under US 101 and SR 109. It’s been blockbuster work since 2023.

That means our construction series finale will be a little shorter. We’ll only have seven culverts left to replace along the coast in 2026 and 2027. Crews will finish work at the two sites under US 101 near Forks next summer. We will also replace culverts under SR 109 at five locations to complete this massive endeavor.

As always, you can tune in for live traffic information on our app and statewide travel map.

It’s rewarding work removing barriers to fish. You could call it a rerun (but, you know, with fish).

Two local roads in SeaTac close to make way for the new SR 509 Expressway

South 194th Street connection to Des Moines Memorial Drive South will close permanently on July 7. South 192nd Street is scheduled to close for nine months also on July 7

The long-awaited State Route 509 Expressway in south King County is taking shape. Before travelers can move without stopping between South 188th Street and I-5, our construction crews have a lot of work ahead of them at South 192nd and South 194th streets near Des Moines Memorial Drive in SeaTac.

South 194th Street is closing for good

First up: On July 7 crews will permanently close the South 194th Street connection to Des Moines Memorial Drive South. This is because the new expressway is going to be built right where the current intersection is located.

Building the new South 192nd Street bridge

Shortly after South 194th Street is closed, crews will shut down a portion of South 192nd Street for nine months while they build one of five new bridges for the expressway. It’ll be closed just west of Des Moines Memorial Drive.

Right now, South 192nd Street is just a road, but it will become a bridge. The new SR 509 Expressway will go under South 192nd Street. To build the expressway, crews need to dig out the road and transform it into a bridge. South 192nd Street, between Des Moines Memorial Drive South and Eighth Avenue South, will be closed for about nine months starting July 7.

The new South 192nd Street bridge will better serve the needs of the community with wide, ADA-accessible sidewalks.

The new South 192nd Street bridge will better serve the needs of the community with wide, ADA-accessible sidewalks.

Originally, crews planned to build the new bridge before permanently closing the South 194th Street connection to Des Moines Memorial Drive. But closing both at the same time results in:

• Safer detour routes with fewer tricky left turns.
• Keeping Des Moines Memorial Drive South open more often.
• Less dust and dirt from construction vehicles.
• Trucks having the ability to travel during the day instead of at night.

Getting around during construction

While South 192nd Street is closed:

• Cars will be detoured to South 188th Street or South 200th Street using Eighth Avenue South and Des Moines Memorial Drive South.
• Large trucks should use First Avenue South to avoid tight turns at Eighth Avenue South.

If you live or work nearby:

• Driveway access on South 192nd Street will be maintained.
• Expect noise, dust, and vibration during regular work hours (weekdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.)
• Some night work may be necessary (weekdays, 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.).

If you commute through the area:

• Use extra caution through the work area and detour route and expect delays.

If you use the Lake to Sound Trail:

• Expect closures and detours during bridge. construction. Visit our project webpage for updates.

The new South 192nd Street bridge over the future SR 509 Expressway is scheduled to open in early 2026.

Project background

The SR 509 Completion Project in King County is part of the Puget Sound Gateway Program, which also includes the SR 167 Completion Project in Pierce County. Together, these projects complete two of the Puget Sound region’s most critical freight corridors and improve access to I-5, the ports of Tacoma and Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The SR 509 Completion Project builds a new four-lane expressway between I-5 and SR 509's current end near Sea-Tac Airport, builds new I-5 ramps, improves I-5 interchanges in south King County, and constructs new bridges. When complete, the project will create an important north-south alternative to the congested I-5 corridor between Seattle and south King County.

Keep in touch

The best way to stay up to date on the SR 509 completion project is to sign up for our listserv. Questions? Send us an email at sr509construction@wsdot.wa.gov or give our 24/7 construction hotline a call at 206-225-0674.