Signal Work Related to MLK, Jr. Blvd Underpass Project Will Impact Traffic

Traffic in the area of North 1st Street and A Street will be affected for most of the day on Tuesday, December 11th as work to reconfigure traffic signals continues in preparation for construction of the MLK, Jr. Blvd. underpass.

City of Yakima technicians will be making adjustments to the signals in the North 1st Street and A Street intersection beginning at about 7:30 am, and should be done by about 5:00 pm. Reconfiguring the signals is one of the steps that will be taken over the next few weeks to redirect traffic from MLK, Jr. Blvd. to Yakima Avenue in anticipation of the closure of MLK, Jr. Blvd. in January.

Construction of the underpass is expected to begin sometime next month. Throughout the underpass project, which will likely take about a year and a half to complete, MLK, Jr. Blvd. Between 1st Street and 1st Avenue will be closed to all traffic. North Front Street will also be closed between A Street and the Lincoln Avenue underpass bridge.

It is likely that traffic at the North 1st Street and A Street intersection will experience intermittent interruptions while the signal reconfiguration is underway on Tuesday. Traffic will be controlled by the use of stop signs during certain periods of the day when the intersection signals are turned off.

Drivers are encouraged to use alternate routes until the traffic signal reconfiguration work is completed.

As always, the schedule for street and traffic projects is subject to change daily, dependent on weather, equipment failure, and emergencies.