West Seattle, Washington
02 Monday
(WSB photos, this afternoon)
Thanks to Dawn for the tip: A West Seattle bridge has reopened. Not THE bridge, but close, literally – the walking/rolling bridge at Andover, which passes over the southwest end of the two-years-closed West Seattle Bridge, is now open again, SDOT confirms. This bridge, too, was closed suddenly – last August, SDOT declared it closed in advance of a planned seismic-improvement project, citing various concerns. The actual work on that project didn’t start until months later. It was expected to be done by the end of January, and then came the concrete strike. But a week and a half ago, SDOT said the contractor had obtained some concrete. Now, work is done and the bridge is back in service.
P.S. We’re working on an update about that “other” bridge.
(WSB file photo)
Back when we first reported that the West Seattle Water Taxi‘s summer season would launch April 21st, Metro hadn’t yet finalized the summer shuttle schedule. Now it has, and shuttle service is being restored to all runs as of tomorrow (Monday, March 28th). Metro’s announcement says that “all Water Taxi sailings will be met with shuttle service.” The online schedules for shuttle Routes 773 and 775 don’t yet reflect this, however; we’ll be asking about that tomorrow. Though the Water Taxi has stayed on a seven-days-a-week schedule throughout this bridgeless winter, the shuttle buses did not.
One mini-bulletin from tonight’s HPAC meeting, just wrapping up – SDOT has canceled the plan to reconfigure the 16th/Austin intersection. We reported on it three weeks ago after a reader tip. SDOT’s Sara Zora indicated at tonight’s meeting that they got a lot of feedback, and after their traffic-operations team re-examined the plan, they decided to shelve it. They’ll “continue to monitor” the intersection for collisions or other problems. (Our report on the rest of the HPAC meeting will be published tomorrow.)
7:51 PM MONDAY: A year and a half after installing a public electric-vehicle charging station in The Junction, Seattle City Light is proposing another one in West Seattle – this time, at a former substation site in Morgan Junction.
That’s an outline of the proposal, from the city webpage set up for the project. The site is at 4118 SW Morgan, kittycorner from the east side of West Seattle Thriftway (WSB sponsor). As shown, it could hold up to eight charging stations, which SCL says would be accessed from the north side of the site, off Fauntleroy Way SW. The description adds:
Anyone with an electric vehicle will be able to use the charging station. Drivers will need to pay a fee to charge. The fee is designed to pay for the electricity and the cost of building the station.
Construction could begin as soon as the 4th quarter of 2022. The project will take approximately three months to complete.
This is considered a good location for an EV charging station because it is close to neighborhood retail, services, and major arterial roads. There are currently no public EV fast chargers in the Morgan Junction neighborhood.
The substation was decommissioned 20 years ago and the city says the site is planned for cleanup first, with its existing trees to be removed and replaced. For the next month – until April 22nd – the city is running a survey to see what the community thinks about the plan – you can answer it here.
3:57 PM TUESDAY: We asked SCL spokesperson Jenn Strang about the project’s cost. She responded that “at this juncture it would be premature for us to assign a number to costs. There are many variables yet to be determined before we could form a concrete estimate.”
(SDOT photo)
That’s one of the new signs SDOT has put up as part of a new safety campaign to remind drivers that they need to stop for people crossing the street. As explained here:
… (W)e began unveiling “driver report cards” signs at certain crosswalks to show the percentage of drivers who stop for people waiting to walk or roll across the street. This is the start of a larger $350,000 public-education campaign focused on the benefits of following the speed limit and making sure drivers understand that all intersections are crosswalks – and that state law requires them to stop for pedestrians and people in wheelchairs or other mobility assistive devices who are attempting to cross the street.
Per Washington State law, practically all intersections are legal pedestrian crossings, whether or not there is a painted crosswalk, unless a sign officially says that people are not allowed to cross the street in a certain location. That means drivers are legally required to stop for people crossing the street at nearly every intersection in Seattle and throughout the state.
Two of the first signs, including the one in the top photo, are in High Point, at 34th Ave SW and SW Morgan St (where there’s a painted crosswalk) and at Sylvan Way SW and SW Sylvan Heights Dr (an unpainted crossing). While the former has the 46 percent stop rate – as observed by a high-school-student volunteer, SDOT says – the latter has a 0% rate (out of 25 passing drivers). SDOT plans to use signs like these at 13 intersections around the city, for starters.
ADDED 4:40 PM: We asked SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson for a little more detail on how these signs will be updated: “The data will be collected and updated weekly for a total of six weeks. Typically we would collect data on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and then an SDOT crew member will update the signs on Fridays. The high school students assisting with this have an internship with Delridge Neighborhood Development Association and will receive a stipend for their time. In addition to helping to collect data, they helped us to choose the locations and were involved with other aspects of the exercise in order to make it an enriching experience for them.”
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Are members of the Community Advisory Group for the Fauntleroy ferry dock/terminal replacement plan being rushed along to get buy-in on potential locations without enough information for a true comparison?
That’s what some suggested at last night’s meeting, a followup to the one two weeks ago (WSB coverage here) at which Washington State Ferries presented nine “draft alternatives,” including Lowman Beach and Lincoln Park.
Some CAG members also suggested the process is putting too much emphasis on dock location/size when some of the biggest issues, like traffic, could and should be addressed operationally, and long before the replacement is built (currently expected in 2025-2027).
Here’s how the meeting unfolded:
(WSB photo, late this afternoon)
One small bridge project has resumed, but the West Seattle Bridge work still awaits concrete, despite drivers’ back-to-work announcement earlier this week. First, here’s what SDOT announced today about the Andover overpass over the southwest end of the West Seattle Bridge:
We’ve resumed work on the SW Andover St Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge (Andover Bridge) seismic retrofit project. Our contractor for this project is using independent drivers to pour small amounts of concrete.
Remaining work includes landscaping around the new sidewalk and base of the bridge, installing and painting the handrail, and replacing fencing near the bridge. With work starting on the Andover Bridge again, we expect to complete the seismic retrofit in the next few weeks. We appreciate your patience and look forward to reopening the bridge after the work is done and it’s ready for use again.
After getting that announcement, we asked SDOT if there’s an update on the Teamsters Local 174 drivers’ offer to resume work for three companies in hopes of getting concrete to some projects including the West Seattle Bridge. The reply from spokesperson Ethan Bergerson:
Contractors have autonomy to select concrete suppliers and we were informed last week by the contractor for the Andover St Pedestrian Bridge Seismic Retrofit project that they would be pouring a comparatively small amounts of concrete using independent drivers.
This is not the same kind of concrete as is needed for the West Seattle Bridge. The West Seattle Bridge program requires specialized concrete which is capable of holding more than 20 million pounds of force and must sustain its strength for decades for the bridge to remain standing. This is a different kind of concrete than what is used for most other transportation projects like streets or sidewalks, which does not need to hold up to the same kinds of force.
Kraemer has reached out to all the concrete suppliers to determine who can supply the special type of concrete needed for the West Seattle Bridge and other details about timing and logistics. We are still awaiting more information from the concrete suppliers.
As for the drivers, they have a new statement online tonight, saying drivers for one company – Salmon Bay – are back at work, but alleging another company, Cadman, is dragging its feet on setting a date for drivers’ return.
4:18 PM: When Metro announced the plan for its next twice-yearly “service change” this Saturday (March 19th), the plan was for Saturday service on Route 125 to remain suspended. But Metro has just announced that instead, the 125 will resume Saturday service.
ADDED THURSDAY EVENING: We asked Metro why the last-minute change of heart, and spokesperson Jeff Switzer explained they’re still “fine-tuning” the service-change plan and won’t have final word until tomorrow afternoon.
(WSB Tuesday photo, Water Taxi dock at Seacrest)
Karen emailed to ask if Metro had announced plans for spring/summer-season changes on the West Seattle Water Taxi schedule, so we inquired. You might recall that the pre-pandemic routine was for the WT to go weekdays-only through late fall, winter, and early spring, but this year, after public clamor because of the West Seattle Bridge closure, the service has continued in 7-days-a-week mode, though the shuttle buses are on reduced schedules. Metro spokesperson Al Sanders tells WSB, “The West Seattle Water Taxi will begin its summer schedule on April 21. The only change from the current winter schedule will be the addition of late-night departures on Fridays and Saturdays.” Will the shuttle schedule ramp back up? Sanders says that’s not decided yet, “Summer shuttle schedule is also TBD. Marine (Division) is waiting to hear back from Service Planning on if their contracted service provider will be able to expand the current schedule.”
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
46 days left to comment on what Sound Transit has found out about potential routes and station locations for West Seattle light rail – the findings that comprise the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.
As of the end of February, ST had received 409 comments, the Community Advisory Group for the West Seattle/Duwamish River leg was told at its latest meeting
The centerpiece of the meeting was supposed to be a “deep dive” into parts of the DEIS on which group members had requested more information – including a slide deck with many more renderings that didn’t even get reviewed during the meeting. But if you’re still considering how you’ll comment on the options, you might be more interested in the second part of the meeting, which featured City of Seattle reps talking about how the city’s official comments are taking shape. So that’s where we’ll start.
Last month, we reported on King County Road Services‘ plan to rechannelize 16th SW between 100th and 107th, after a short presentation to the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council. This month, a county rep returned to NHUAC with a more-detailed presentation, including early results of the online survey asking people about two options. Both options would change that stretch of 16th SW to one vehicle-travel lane each way. If you’re interested in the project, we’ve published our coverage of the newest briefing on partner site White Center Now. Also, the survey is still open, so if you haven’t responded, you can go here.
Metro says it’s back up to “about 96% of (its) service” with more than 160 bus routes are operating each day, and some of them will see changes on March 19th, the next “service change” date. Those are detailed systemwide on this Metro webpage. Metro’s highlight list include these changes for routes including West Seattle service; we’ve linked each affected route number to its new timetable:
Added service “as part of Seattle’s Frequent Transit Network” – 21, 60
Routes with “added or adjusted trips to support demand at public school bell times” – 50, 128
Schedule changes – 21, 50, 60, 128
Routes 37 and 116 continue to be indefinitely suspended, as does Saturday service on Route 125. Metro’s next service change will be in September, which is when Route 120 is planned for conversion to the RapidRide H Line.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
The Fauntleroy ferry dock/terminal must and will be replaced. But might it be moved, too?
At this early stage in the planning process, that’s a possibility, the replacement project’s Community Advisory Group was told tonight. During the group’s first meeting in three months, Washington State Ferries rolled out nine “draft alternatives” – including concepts, however improbable-seeming, for possibly moving the dock to Lincoln Park or Lowman Beach.
More on the nine “draft alternatives” in a moment. First, here’s what the meeting was all about. The replacement isn’t expected to go into construction before 2025, so the process is currently in the stage of developing alternatives and finalizing the criteria for screening them.
Screening is a two-level process, and when they get to stage 1, that’s the “fatal flaw” part of the process; stage 2 is “detailed analysis.” Read More
(WSB file photo)
Somewhere between the reopening of the West Seattle Bridge and the groundbreaking for West Seattle light rail, our peninsula will see another major transportation project – the replacement of the circa-1950s Fauntleroy ferry dock/terminal. Construction is expected around 2025, so planning is reaching a key stages, and Washington State Ferries has convened advisory groups. This week, the Community Advisory Group for the project will meet for the first time since early December, 6 pm Wednesday (March 2nd), online. Though there’s no public-comment period, everyone’s welcome to watch/listen – you can register here to get access. This is the first of two meetings scheduled for this group in March; the second is two weeks later, on March 16th. WSF has yet to make key decisions such as the size, configuration, and even location – on th current footprint, or? – of the new terminal/dock.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Don’t lose hope yet about the West Seattle Bridge reopening schedule.
Though the city has issued dire warnings of delays resulting from the ongoing concrete-drivers strike, SDOT’s program director Heather Marx offered a little optimism at tonight’s monthly meeting of the West Seattle Transportation Coalition.
She and City Council Transportation and Public Utilities Committee chair Alex Pedersen were the spotlight guests at the WSTC’s online meeting:
WEST SEATTLE BRIDGE UPDATES: Marx did not have specifics on the status of the strike. (The two sides met with a mediator today; here’s the union’s just-posted recap; added Friday, here’s the companies’ recap.) But she started by recapping the strike’s effects on the bridge project (as originally reported here), and what the city is doing to try to work around concrete’s unavailability as much as it can.
“We’re continuing to prioritize other (parts) of the work (but) there is a point where we can’t go any further without the concrete,” she stressed. They’re changed the way they’re staging the forms that are awaiting concrete so that once it’s ready, they’ll be ready. She reiterated that the project needs 245 yards of a specialized concrete mix, “more flowable and self-compacting.”
(WSB photos)
With baseball season almost here, the Mariner Moose joined Metro reps this afternoon to show off a new set of stadium-convenient bus stops downtown, serving mostly West Seattle routes. They’re on Alaskan Way, with the northbound stop just north of Jackson, the southbound stop just south of it:
The new stops open tomorrow, though they won’t have their full RapidRide shelters and equipment for a few months, acording to Metro’s Elaine Porterfield. They’ll serve Routes 55, 56, 57, 113, 120, 121, 125, and the C Line.
Along with stadium proximity, the new stops are also closer to Link light rail, the Amtrak and Sounder station, and the Seattle Streetcar.
As more workers return to offices, downtown traffic will continue increasing, so the city will start turning on its new enforcement cameras. Here’s the SDOT map of their locations:
Today’s announcement says activation will start in March – first, the five cameras that will monitor bus lanes; then the four that will watch busy intersections where drivers tend to “block the box.” The locations were originally announced last November, and signs about them were installed, SDOT says. When they start ticketing, it’ll be a $75 fine, as with the cameras on the West Seattle low bridge. These, like those, were authorized by the State Legislature. More information on the plan, and what the revenue goes toward, is on the city website.
ORIGINAL THURSDAY NIGHT REPORT: The full report on tonight’s West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force meeting is yet to come – late tonight or tomorrow – but one note was worth breaking out, lest it get lost amid the bridge updates: Sara Zora from the Reconnect West Seattle program said the Fire Department has signed off on some speed bumps that were on hold because of emergency-response concerns. So they’ll go ahead with the installation at spots on 106th, 18th, 45th, Cloverdale, and Marine View Drive. Specific locations weren’t recapped; we’ll be following up on that tomorrow.
ADDED FRIDAY AFTERNOON: SDOT’s response to our followup inquiry:
Speed cushions are anticipated to be installed in March in the following five locations:
– (1) SW 106th St between 35th and 41st Ave SW
– (1) 18th Ave SW between SW Myrtle and Graham St
– (3) 45th Ave SW between SW Trenton St and SW Director St
– (1) SW Cloverdale St between 11th Ave SW and 12th Ave SW
– (2) Marine View Dr between 44th Ave SW and SW 106th St
This is eight speed cushions in total.
During Monday’s weekly City Council briefing meeting, Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda – the West Seattleite who holds citywide Position 8 – told her colleagues that the Department of Finance and Administrative Services was dealing with a high number of claims filed by pothole victims. We followed up with FAS to see just how high the stack was getting. Spokesperson Melissa Mixon looked into it and started her reply with one jaw-dropping, axle-busting stat: “The number of pothole claims for 2021 was 210 and the current count for 2022 is 300-plus.” She adds, “It is noteworthy though that pothole claims from the recent snowstorm already constitute approximately half of all our open claims.” The Risk Management division doesn’t have a geographic breakout, so we don’t know how many of those potholes are in West Seattle. SDOT does have a map showing fixed and reported potholes – here’s a screengrab:
Circles represent recently filled potholes; diamonds represent ones that are “pending.” You can report a pothole here. If you’ve sustained damage from one on a city road, here’s how to file a claim. We asked Mixon how that process works: Your claim is assigned to an adjuster. They reach out to the relevant city department (SDOT) in this case for a formal response. Then they can either close the claim for lack of contact or information, tender it (when another entity is responsible), deny it (if the city isn’t found negligent, or settle it.
(WSB file photo)
Washington State Ferries continues planning for the Fauntleroy dock/terminal replacement, which could start construction as soon as 2025. WSF hasn’t convened the Community Advisory Group for the project since early December (WSB coverage here), but now two dates are set for presentations and discussions – March 2nd and 16th. The announcement sent to advisory-group members says these meetings will focus on “screening criteria and draft alternatives.” The dock/terminal replacement is intended to address challenges including earthquake safety and sea-level rise. The meetings are online and open to everyone – you can RSVP here to get the attendance links.
Immediately south of the heart of the downtown White Center business district, 16th Avenue SW widens to four lanes, and it’s been precarious for pedestrians, with more than 20 injured over the past decade, and at least two killed. So King County is planning a rechannelization project for 16th SW between 100th and 107th, and brought early word of it to last night’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting, which we covered for partner site White Center Now. This stretch is of extra interest to West Seattleites, as 107th is a much-used route between WS and WC. King County Roads has launched a survey asking for opinions on two options, both of which would narrow that stretch to one travel lane each way, while adding parking:
As shown above, one option adds parking on the east side and bike lanes, while the other adds parking on both sides. You can tell King County what you think via this survey. The project website has even more details – including, at the bottom, the project budget (about $1 million) and a construction timeline – 2024.
The road-rebuilding is done; station installation has begun. But much of the newest update from the RapidRide H Line project team is about trees.
(SDOT photo)
MORE TREES: Beyond what’s already in some of the medians, the project team has a lot more tree planting to do:
We have a policy to plant 2 new trees for 1 tree that was removed. The project will plant about 150 trees along the project area once landscaping is completed.
Our Urban Forestry team has been working with the project’s landscaping contractor to identify and finalize the locations for new trees located on and near Delridge Way SW. These locations have been marked with stakes in the median and planting strips throughout the corridor. We expect to plant these trees and restore the corridor with grass this upcoming spring.
If you would like to provide feedback on the proposed locations of these trees, please contact the Urban Forestry team at seattle.trees@seattle.gov.
SHELTER-SITE TRIMMING: The project team also notes, “If you live near a bus shelter installed by King County Metro, please be aware that pruning to a greater height of 11-12 feet of vertical clearance is necessary for bus shelter installation. If trees near your property need to be trimmed, you will receive additional notification of the schedule for this work from King County Metro. This work will be done by a Registered Tree Service Company under an SDOT Urban Forestry Permit to provide an 11 to 12’ clearance for shelter installation.” They’re expecting to schedule this work in February.
REMINDER FOR PROPERTY OWNERS: The update also includes a reminder that property owners need to keep trees and shrubs trimmed to eight feet of clearance above sidewalks. Further details about that are in the full update.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Instead of the bridge, this month the West Seattle Transportation Coalition chose to focus on buses and ferries. Here’s what happened at Thursday night’s online meeting:
METRO’S WEST SEATTLE FUTURE: The centerpiece of the meeting was a conversation rather than a presentation. King County transportation-policy adviser Chris Arkills, a frequent WSTC attendee, was a guest this time. First, he reiterated that Metro plans to return to the high bridge once it reopens. “The low bridge has served us well” in the meantime, but with Terminal 5 reopening to regular cargo-ship calls, other demands will be front and center. So that means schedules will be a bit in flux when West Seattle routes change over from low bridge to high bridge this summer.
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