Tunnel opening delayed 'til 2017

Seattle Tunnel Partners, the firm that's drilling our (snakebit?) waterfront tunnel, estimates that getting Bertha up and running again will probably delay the tunnel opening until, oh, say, August 2017. This according to The Seattle Times. If that very tentative prediction holds, the tunnel would open 15 months later than originally scheduled; meaning 15 more months of travel headaches, especially for West Seattle commuters. Meantime, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) officials continue to measure soil settlement and the condition of buildings in historic Pioneer Square. After concerns about sinking (of the Viaduct and the neighborhood at large), WSDOT attempted to allay fears on Monday, reporting that Pioneer Square has sunk less than 1.4 inches and that none of the 50 buildings it inspected had suffered any structural damage. (Crosscut and its fellow Pioneer Square residents are keeping our fingers crossed.)In our new "Elephant in the Room" podcast, host Steve Scher talked with Crosscut's Knute Berger and Matt Fikse-Verkerk about whether the waterfront tunnel will ever open. WSDOT's Matt Preedy sounded confident when he told The Seattle Times, “The state fully intends to stay the course and complete this job.” Let's hope the money and the political will — and the soil — hold out.