People using southbound Interstate 5 south of I-90 should plan ahead for weekend-long lane reductions beginning Friday night, Aug. 19. The closure will be from 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19 to 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 22 and include the southbound collector/distributor and I-90 ramps to I-5, the Forest Street, Spokane Street and Columbian Way off-ramps closed.

People will still be able to enter the collector/distributor and use the off-ramps to I-90, Dearborn Street, Fourth Avenue South and Airport Way. The on-ramp from James Street will be open, but people using it will need to use one of the collector/distributor exits.

Also, the ramps from eastbound and westbound I-90 to southbound I-5 will open for two hours after stadium events with a projected attendance of more than 15,000.

During the lane reductions, crews will replace the right half of seven expansion joints. They will also repave the southern section of the work area near Spokane Street. Three expansion joints were replaced in that area in May, which created a bump. The paving will eliminate that.

People traveling to events in Seattle or south downtown should plan ahead and allow plenty of time to reach their destination. People also can:

• Use alternatives like light rail, buses or bicycles.
• Carpool or rideshare.
• Use alternatives like I-405 or SR 99. The SR 99 tunnel is a toll road.

People who are traveling can get real-time traffic information on mobile phones with the WSDOT traffic app and by following the WSDOT traffic Twitter feed.