If yesterday was a particularly hectic day, you may have missed the totally adorable tale of the Washington State Patrol officers with hearts of gold, who helped some sweet geese make it to safety. more ›

This roadkill blog mentioned on TechFlash yesterday is a total let-down. We are weirdos, and the thought of being able to instantly pull up a trove of information about the carrion of the I-90 corridor all in the name of wildlife conservation sounded freaky awesome. Pfft, yeah right. more ›

Damon Agnos at the Weekly reports on the the coalition suing to prevent I-90 light rail from happening, a weird last-ditch attempt to keep Seattle from driving its train deep into the Eastside, again and oh god again, via tunnel. The suit--claiming light rail can't use I-90 because that would besmirch its use by upstanding automobile drivers--is ridiculous, as are most of Kemper Freeman's suits. Personally, we can't wait to pull on our flip-flops and stained wife-beater, hit the light rail, and terrorize the hell out of Bell Square while drinking our Volvic out of a brown paper bag. more ›

The Blue Angels, Navy's elite flying aerobatic team is back in town for the annual Seafair celebration. The bright blue Boeing F/A-18 Hornets are expected to cruise (at mach speed, we hope?) through Seattle's air space around 10 a.m. today, causing all sorts of fun traffic congestion today through Sunday, August 2. As always, WSDOT will be closing all lanes, in both directions of the I-90 between I-5 and Island Crest Way. The I-90 bridge closure times: Thursday (9:45 a.m.-noon, 1:15- 2:30 p.m), Friday (12:45-2:45 p.m.), and Saturday and Sunday (12:45-2:40 p.m.). For pedestrians and bicyclists, the bridge will be closed to you 30 minutes prior to the cars. more ›

All apologies to anyone involved in this accident on the floating bridge, but the headline "Loose bucket blamed for multi-car crash on I-90" only makes us think of this: more ›

Hey-oh! So westbound I-90 closure began yesterday on the floating bridge and it'll remain two lanes until July 20, which WSDOT is quick to point out is a whole week ahead of schedule. Drivers are being funneled into the express lanes for the duration of the project, which is to replace the expansion joints. more ›

Think twice about your weekend road-tripping plan of attack, especially if your map requires you to take either SR 520 or I-90 bridges. The 520 floating bridge will be undergoing its annual bridge inspection this weekend so tonight, WSDOT crews will close down 520 from Montlake Boulevard E. to 92nd Avenue NE at 11 p.m. It is set to re-open on Monday, June 22 at 5 a.m. Now here's the clincher: come Sunday morning, the I-90 express lanes will also be closed from 6:30-9:30 a.m. (Oh, noes!) for the cyclists riding in the LIVESTRONG Challenge. Good luck with any rerouting so you can see dear ol' Dad. And if that's not enough, expect traffic congestion from Mariners games, the All Nations Cup Parade, and the Fremont Summer Solstice Parade Festival and Street Fair. more ›

Logging operators with a sense for PR understand you want to hide the ugliness and destruction that is a clear cut from the most accessible view points. You'd think this applies to Mt. Si, the most visible and the first mountain you see heading east from the city on I-90. more ›

• Seattle Transit Blog is mad as hell about the legislature backing out on I-90 light rail funding and they don't think you should take it anymore. East side! West side! Let's make a light rail rumble!
• Will fancy eats joint Sitka & Spruce really move from Eastlake to Capitol Hill? CHS polls readers, fans flames of rumor.
• Publicola's Morning Fizz abandoned links and announced that a "dynamic woman" had joined the Mayoral race. April Fools!

By a 2-to-1 ratio, area residents have expressed support for using tolls to help fund the 520 Bridge replacement. This according to survey results provided in an e-mail release today by the state-created 520 Tolling Implementation Committee. more ›

We wish the firefighter had caught on tape the moment he realized the green and grey paper on the side of I-90 was not just your average litter, but more than $15,000. "That's money," we picture him saying with giddy bewilderment, turning to his passengers, who probably thought at first he was just emphatically agreeing with and expressing the value of whatever John In The Morning had just said on KEXP. "Yeah, man, that's money!" "No! Money!" Sadly, the cash turned out to be fake, and the honorable firefighter turned in all $15,470 to the State Patrol yesterday. Giant scam foiled or performance art gone awry? We may never know. more ›

Starting today and continuing until the first "significant" snowfall in Snoqualmie Pass, drivers should expect up to 20-minute delays just east of the pass. The Department of Transportation says there will be rolling slow-downs and halted traffic on I-90 between mile posts 57 and 59 near Keechelus Lake. The WSDOT is doing some drilling up on the pass to begin a new project, creating a six-lane highway between Hyak and Easton. Because of the rugged terrain (it is the mountains, folks) equipment is brought to the scene in helicopters. According to FAA rules, a clear space must be provided for emergency landing purposes when a helicopter carries equipment over the Interstate. That's all fine and good with us. Lord knows we don't want to meet our end like an action movie enemy, with a gigantic industral drill crashing down on our car from a helicopter. more ›

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The state is trying to figure out just how much you'd be willing to pay to cross the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge without being deterred by the cost to change your route. According to a study released yesterday, most drivers would continue to use the bridge, even in the face of fees up to $6.85 per roundtrip. Apparently, the state believes if you have a job on the Eastside, adding nearly $40 to your weekly commute—plus the ever-increasing cost of gas—is no big deal financially. The proposed tolls would vary throughout the day based on traffic volume—from $2.15 during lighter times to a $3.80 one-way fee during peak hours. Tolls on 520 could begin as early as 2010. Similar tolls are also being discussed for I-90, Seattle's other floating bridge. The tolls would go to funding a new six-lane replacement bridge for 520. more ›

If you have to head east this weekend, your only options to get across Lake Washington are to take I-90 or the long drive north around the lake. (Technically you could also boat, paddle, or swim across we suppose.) State Route 520/The Evergreen Point Floating Bridge will be closed for the entirety of the weekend--from 11 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday--for its annual inspection. The closure affects the span of SR520 from Montlake Boulevard to 92nd Avenue N.E. more ›

There’s no point suffering through all the rain out here if you can’t enjoy the scenery when the weather doesn’t suck. One of the best places to witness one of the Cascade range’s nearest and most beautiful namesakes is just a short drive east on I-90. It's ideal for this time of year when the mountains are purging themselves of the winter snow, yet the weather is agreeable enough to be out in the woods. more ›

In case you got slowed down on I-90 this morning, and were cursing to yourself in the car, we thought we'd help calm you down with a little on-the-scene info. This just in from Seattlest Tera, who was stuck on the scene for an hour:

"I have a hilarious bus story. Our bus broke down on I-90 and we are all stuck on Mercer Island. Our 'rescue' bus missed the exit. Good job, Metro. Here is a pic."

So much for feeling all wonderful and relaxed after getting out of the city and off the computer for the three-day weekend. This is what greeted Seattlest at the 93 mile marker when we left The Gorge early "to miss concert traffic:" more ›

In January, Governor Gregoire announced her support to toll the 520 bridge. Today, Gregoire announced lawmakers have approved the aggressive strategy to toll the 520 bridge to help finance the cost of building a new floating bridge across Lake Washington. The toll amounts have not been finalized. The new bridge will cost $4 billion, and commuters will pay for half. According to the Seattle Times, the toll could be as much as $7 each way during rush hour. The idea is good—we need a new bridge. more ›

Photo by Mike Siegel from the Seattle Times more ›

Chain 'em if you got 'em people:

WSDOT is projecting an 11 a.m. opening of one lane each direction on I-90 Snoqualmie Pass. If traffic is flowing successfully then two lanes will be opened in each direction. Chains are required on all vehicles except all wheel drive From milepost 45 eastbount and milepost 71 westbound. WSP will slow traffic and inspect for chains eastbound at milepost 47 (Tinkham Road), and westbound at Easton at milepost 71.

A day wasted, spent refreshing the same web page over and over. At least we weren't sitting in a big rig stuck up there waiting for the pass to re-open. That must be miserable. And they're still there. In fact, they might be spending the night:

Update I-90 Snoqualmie Pass remains closed until avalanche control work is complete. WSDOT crews continue working through heavy snow to make I-90 safe for travel. Best case scenario: If the snow lets up considerably, we will be able to clear all of the main avalanche areas and have I-90 open late tonight. Worst case scenario: If the snow falls as forecasters predict (20 inches in the next 24 hours), avalanche control efforts will delay the opening until sometime Wednesday morning.