Picture perfect last day of service for the Viaduct

SEATTLE -- It’s like Mother Nature knows the curtain is about to close on the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

“It's very rare that it's sunny this time of year,” Troy Yamamoto said.

It made the viaduct's last hours in service that much more picture perfect.

“I just hopped on the bus for a quick hour away from home to get the last shot,” Kitty McCauley said.

McCauley has decades of memories driving across the double decker highway along Seattle’s waterfront.

“You can see the ferries and mountains it’s stunning,” McCauley said.

And McCauley is right, no matter how many times you see the view while driving on the viaduct, it never gets old.

“I am sorry to see the view go as you're driving along,” Rainee Colacurcio said.

“We actually came down to take one last drive through, I am going to miss the viaduct honestly,” Yamamoto said.

And he isn’t alone. When the viaduct opened in the '50s, the two-mile stretch became a crucial North South route through downtown.

Eventually it became one of the state’s busiest highways. But with everything in life comes change.

“All transitions are hard, it’s a big change for the city,” Shannon Ellis said.

But Ellis and others are welcoming the new era.

“I think it’s a good thing to clear up the waterfront and to make transit safer,” McCauley said.

“I am going to wish it goodbye, let’s get the tunnel going and move,” Yamamoto said.

But not before taking one last picture. Although many on Friday were sentimental about the shut down of the viaduct, they say safety does come first.

The viaduct is structurally vulnerable in earthquakes. It will be replaced by the new tunnel in early February.