Seattle weekend traffic: Happy New Year!

Another weekend, another whole list of things that could disrupt getting around. Some of these events might be things you’re doing, too—it’s almost New Year’s Eve, after all, and it’s a long weekend for many. (But hey, All Metro buses are free on NYE this year!)

We’ve combed through the alerts and advisories from both the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and the Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to deliver transit-friendly solutions for your weekend outings.

Some of this weekend’s advisories—and transit-oriented alternate routes to events—are listed below.

Sports: Football and even basketball

The Harlem Globetrotters are in town on Friday night at Key Arena with shows at 1 p.m and 6 p.m. Get to Key Arena directly using King County Metro routes 1, 2, 8, 32, or RapidRide D.

The Seahawks play the Arizona Cardinals at 1:25 on Sunday afternoon—that’s New Year’s Eve, for those keeping track—at Centurylink Field.

Link Light Rail goes to Centurylink (take your pick of the International District or Stadium stations), as does the First Hill Streetcar and a ton of bus routes from Metro, Community Transit, and Sound Transit.

If you live along the Sound Transit Sounder line, that’ll be making special trips back and forth from Sunday’s game, too, starting just after 10 a.m. from Everett and just before 10 a.m. from Lakewood.

Other events: NYE and more

Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Nutcracker is still for one more night, with a showtime on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The 2, 3, 4, 13, and 19 will all get you close to McCaw Hall.

Also Friday night, a New Year’s music festival, Resolution Seattle, is at Wamu Theater. That’s right next to Centurylink, so transit directions are the same as hitting the Seahawks game.

The big Space Needle fireworks show starts at midnight on Sunday night (or Monday morning). The whole area will be swamped with people; driving there is not a great idea.

Depending on your entry point to Seattle Center, there are several routes you could take. The King County Metro route 8 hits both the south and west sides of the Seattle Center. The 1, 2, 13, 32, and RapidRide D also run along the west side of the Center by the Key. The 3 or the 4, which come from upper Queen Anne on one side and from downtown and the Central District on the other, hit the east side.

Road closures, bus reroutes, and more

King County Metro will be running on Sunday schedules on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Years Day—New Years Eve, too, since it’s also a Sunday.

Since the University of Washington is on winter break, Metro is also reducing weekday schedules for routes 31, 32, 73, 75, 167, 197, 271, 277, 331, 372, and 373 through New Years Day.

The Sounder train will not be running on New Year’s Day.

In 2016, the Friday before New Year’s Eve was the busiest day in December for the Washington State Ferries, so plan ahead if you need to cross the water. That’s especially true for the Port Townsend to Coupeville ferry, which is down to two sailings on Friday.

Not a whole lot is happening this weekend construction-wise, but watch out: Starting January 2, Denny will be reduced to one lane again, First Avenue will be torn up to resume streetcar-related work, and Seventh Avenue will be experiencing lane closures as crews start work on mobility improvements.

• Events Traffic Advisory [SDOT]
• Weekly travel planner [WSDOT]
• Seattle Area Construction Lookahead [SDOT]