SEATTLE — A huge pothole is causing trouble for those who use the West Seattle Bridge to take State Route 99 into Seattle, and it probably won’t be over any time soon.
The onramp to northbound SR 99 from the eastbound West Seattle Bridge is closed, forcing drivers heading into downtown Seattle to take a different route.
Cars were damaged before the hole was discovered Tuesday night. It is 5 feet by 4 feet wide, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.
The ramp was expected to reopen Tuesday night, but late Wednesday morning, WSDOT said an early estimate for how long the closure would last is around 10 days.
Bridge crews are at the scene evaluating the extent of the damage.
If your tire was blown out by the hole, you can file a tort claim with the State Department of Enterprise Services at this link.
This isn’t the first pothole that’s caused problems for drivers on the northbound Highway 99 onramp from the West Seattle Bridge.
The West Seattle Bridge reopened in September last year, but that ramp was still accessible through Spokane Street during the closure.
Last spring, WSDOT had to close the onramp for two weeks because a hole opened up and threatened the ramp’s structural integrity.
That hole was about 100 feet away from the new one.