Tomorrow marks 11 months since the West Seattle Bridge closed. Tonight, 3 notes:

WHO’LL FIX IT? As SDOT‘s consultant WSP continues designing the repairs, and the process of hiring a contractor approaches, City Councilmember Lisa Herbold’s weekly newsletter has this note:

One aspect of the West Seattle Bridge project that hasn’t received a lot of attention is the potential use of a community workforce agreement, and use of geographic hiring preferences.

The City’s Department of Finance and Administration is pursuing an exemption from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to allow us to use a Community Workforce Agreement (CWA)/Priority Hire on the project. Early in the Trump administration, USDOT withdrew proposed rulemaking that would have allowed geographic hiring preferences. In light of termination of the pilot program, these type of issues require FHWA’s consultation with the USDOT Office of the Secretary and Office of General Counsel. SDOT says, “We will work in partnership with FAS, with Build America, NACTO, other allies, and our congressional delegation to ensure Secretary of Transportation Buttigieg has this issue near the top of his agenda.”

Here’s a city document explaining CWA/Priority Hire. As for the timeline, as of the February 11th West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force meeting, SDOT expected to start seeking bids as soon as this week.

LOOKING WAY INTO THE FUTURE: Also from Herbold’s newsletter:

SDOT is continuing work on scoping for a study for replacing the bridge, which will eventually need to happen. They are coordinating with the Sound Transit Engineering Working Group to discuss Sound Transit’s assumed marine navigational clearance requirements as well as how to best align initial screening of alternatives with their DEIS release for the West Seattle to Ballard Link Extension project.

One potential wrinkle, though, is the Sound Transit “realignment” that could push back West Seattle light rail even further than the recently revised date of 2031. ST’s board is scheduled to look at some realignment scenarios when it meets this Thursday afternoon.

LOW-BRIDGE TICKETS: This is the fourth week that citations are being issued to low-bridge rulebreakers, seventh week since the cameras were turned on. In the first two weeks of $75 citations – February 1st through 15th – Seattle Police tell WSB they’ve sent 3,277 citations from the camera photographing vehicles headed eastbound, 4,099 from the camera photographing the westbound direction. If all of those resulted in $75 payments, that’s more than half a million dollars. However, the money doesn’t all go to the city. It contracts with Verra Mobility – formerly American Traffic Solutions – to run the cameras, and a cut goes to the state, as explained in our coverage last year pf the ordinance authorizing the cameras:

After paying for administrative costs, half of the remaining funds are to be remitted to the state’s Cooper Jones active transportation safety account, which the state uses to fund grant projects or programs for bicycle, pedestrian, and non-motorist safety improvements. The remaining half of the funds may only be used for transportation improvements that support equitable access and mobility for persons with disabilities.

If you need a refresher on the current rules, go here.

(Video recording of SDOT’s stream of Thursday night’s meeting)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Last night’s SDOT open house about the proposed West Marginal Way protected bicycle lane began with a guided “moment of meditation and reflection.”

As you can hear on the meeting video (6:20 in), attendees were urged to picture someone they love, and wish them health, happiness, freedom from suffering. It might have been ideal if SDOT’s project manager Brad Topol had also suggested that attendees picture someone who prefers a different mode of travel and wished them well, as the screen chat during the meeting veered into bikes-vs.-cars territory, though SDOT contends cars and trucks are not using the lane in question much anyway – their data has 20 percent of the southbound traffic in that area in the outside lane.

Here’s what happened during the meeting and what’s next. Read More

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

SDOT says it’s making progress toward high-bridge repairs, though they are still more than half a year away.

The bridge update brought most of the new information at Thursday’s monthly meeting of the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force, but with so many related projects, the meeting was stuffed so full of presentations that CTF members had little time to discuss anything, and the plan for breaking into groups for opinions of the West Marginal Way bike-lane proposal had to be scrapped.

First, here’s video of the two-hour meeting:

Here’s what caught our attention:

Read More

(West Seattle Bridge as seen tonight on SDOT camerq)

The West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force continues meeting online monthly to hear and talk about the bridge and associated projects, and its next meeting is scheduled for 4-6 pm tomorrow (Thursday, February 11th). Here’s the agenda; it includes an update on progress toward repairs, a look at low-bridge access, and a review of the proposals for West Marginal Way SW north of the Duwamish Tribe Longhouse. That will include the attendees breaking into two discussion groups; the link for watching the meeting including group A is here, and the link for group B is here. If you can’t watch the meeting, but are interested in what’s happening with repair planning, SDOT published this update last week. They’re still projecting “mid-2022” for reopening, spokesperson Ethan Bergerson told WSB this week, “and we will be able to give a more certain schedule update once the contractor is selected and the project reaches a further stage in design.”

(Low-bridge camera installation, December 2020 – SDOT photo)

Since the shutdown of the high-rise West Seattle Bridge on March 23, 2020, the city has restricted access to the low bridge (formally the Spokane Street Swing Bridge), saying that without restrictions, the low bridge would be jammed. At first, intermittent police presence was used to enforce the restrictions; now, cameras are up, photographing license plates for $75 citations to be sent to unauthorized drivers. Those cameras were activated two and a half weeks ago; SDOT says it has no stats yet on how many citations have been sent, but if you’re interested in the overall justification for restrictions, here’s a new document:

That 24-page document (also viewable here) is a “checklist” supporting a Determination of Non-Significance – a declaration that restricting access to the low bridge does not require a full environmental-impact study. It was linked from today’s city-circulated Land Use Information Bulletin. If you disagree and think the access restrictions should get a full environmental-impact study, you have until February 18th to appeal the determination – this notice explains how.

P.S. The low bridge will be a topic when SDOT reps appear at tonight’s West Seattle Transportation Coalition meeting; our morning preview has the agenda and viewing/participation info.

Exactly 10 months ago – on March 23, 2020 – the city announced the West Seattle Bridge was unsafe and would close within hours. At the time, there was concern it might be unstable enough to fall apart. Stabilization work ensued. SDOT refers to that as “Phase 1 rehabilitation” in a just-published closer look at the work it’s completed, including an explanation of what’s visible from beneath the bridge:

That graphic, credited to SDOT’s consultant WSP, shows, among other things, the bolts for the brackets holding the “post-tensioning” steel cables strengthening the bridge. In a summary of the stabilization work last month, SDOT said 10 miles of those cables had been installed. One of the final tasks, completed this month, was to coat those brackets, according to SDOT’s new update. So what’s next? The update has the same timeline reported in our coverage of this month’s Community Task Force meeting – they’re designing “Phase II” now, expecting to hire a contractor in the spring, starting the work in fall. The timeline shown at the CTF meeting suggested completion in midyear 2022.

(WSB file photo)

As announced earlier this week, the West Seattle low bridge (Spokane Street Swing Bridge) will close 8 am-1 pm this Saturday (January 23rd) to all but emergency traffic. SDOT says the shutdown is necessary for an inspection. Commenters wondered about plans for rerouting buses during the closure; we inquired with Metro, and tonight the official reroute plans – all of which use the 1st Avenue South Bridge – are available:

C Line

Routes 120 & 125

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

The West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force‘s first meeting of 2021 was far more of a briefing than a discussion, two hours stuffed with information tidbits on almost every bridge-related topic.

When the volunteer advisory group’s members agreed to keep meeting even after Mayor Jenny Durkan announced her decision to have the closed high bridge repaired rather than replaced, that was one major role they agreed to keep – community information conduits. So as co-chair Greg Nickels described it, what happened at Wednesday’s meeting was the start of their “second phase of work”; co-chair Paulina López also urged CTF members to let them know how they’d like to “devote (their) energy … to next steps.”

The meeting video is above, and the full slide deck is here; below, highlights of what the group heard:

BRIDGE UPDATES: The high bridge has now been closed for almost 10 months. Project leader Heather Marx said stabilization work – a necessary first step no matter whether repairs or replacement had been chosen – is done and now they’re monitoring the bridge’s stability. She showed a schedule for both high- and low-bridge work ahead:

Read More

Three West Seattle Bridge notes tonight:

LOW BRIDGE CAMERA TICKETING: Two days into the city’s use of automated cameras to enforce low-bridge restrictions, no data yet – we asked SDOT how soon information would be available about citation numbers and traffic value, and the bottom line was, not soon, according to spokesperson Ethan Bergerson. “It will take us a little while to know how many citations have been issued because the photos need to be reviewed by SPD before a citation is issued. We will give updates about Low Bridge traffic and enforcement during future Community Task Force meetings, although it will be too soon to provide any data at tomorrow’s meeting.”

MEETING TOMORROW: The West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force meets online at noon Wednesday. A preview of the presentation shows an even busier agenda than you’d guess by looking at the lineup – timelines for work on both the high bridge and the low bridge, updates on traffic-mitigation projects under Reconnect West Seattle – including what’s being considered for West Marginal Way SW – and more. You cam watch via YouTube livestream here; you can comment via email at westseattlebridge@seattle.gov.

BRIDGE MONEY: As mentioned by two city councilmembers during their Monday morning briefing, the Puget Sound Regional Council is considering routing $15 million in federal money to the city to help with the high-bridge repairs. That’s about a third of the very rough early estimate of the work’s cost. This is a topic on Thursday morning’s meeting of the PSRC’s Transportation Policy Board, 9:30 am online. The agenda includes information on how to watch and how to comment.

Two bridge-related notes today:

COMMUNITY TASK FORCE MEETING NEXT WEEK: During last night’s District 1 Community Network meeting, West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force member Deb Barker broke the news that the WSBCTF will meet next Wednesday (January 13th). SDOT confirms to WSB that the meeting is set for noon Wednesday; no link or agenda yet. Though the WSBCTF, which is an all-volunteer group, decided to keep meeting, the other advisory group assembled and convened last spring – the Technical Advisory Panel – ended its work last month (as reported here last week).

FRIDAY UPDATE: The meeting viewing link has been added to this page along with a note that agenda items will include low-bridge access policy and Reconnect West Seattle.

LOW BRIDGE CAMERA-TICKETING REMINDER: We reconfirmed with SDOT today that the low-bridge enforcement cameras remain on schedule for activation next Monday (January 11th). Between 5 am and 9 pm, 7 days a week, the cameras will photograph plates (but not drivers) of vehicles crossing the bridge, and the owners of vehicles that aren’t authorized to be using the bridge at the time will get $75 citations. Need a refresher on the current rules? Go here.

(Photo by Tony Welch)

Though the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force plans to continue meeting, the other advisory group convened by the city after the bridge’s closure has disbanded. SDOT has announced that the Technical Advisory Panel met for the last time in mid-December. Its post also listed the full roster of TAP members:

Stephen Dickenson, PhD, PE, DPE, New Albion Geotechnical, Inc.
Gregg A. Freeby, PE, American Segmental Bridge Institute (ASBI)
Reggie Holt, PE, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Office of Bridges and Structures FHWA Headquarters, Washington DC
Debbie D. Lehmann, PE, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Washington Division Office
Barbara Moffat, PE, SE, Stantec
Scott Phelan, PhD, PE, SE, David Evans and Associates, Inc
Professor John F. Stanton, University of Washington
Adolph Furtado, PE, Lin & Associates, Inc.

Furtado is the only member who wasn’t on the roster announced in May. The TAP’s meetings, unlike the Community Task Force’s meetings, were not open to the public. One other difference: The TAP members were paid, while the CTF members are not. Among other key findings along the way, the TAP issued a memo in July affirming SDOT’s June take that the bridge seemed fixable. What was determined in the ensuing months, before Mayor Jenny Durkan‘s November announcement that repairs would be pursued, was that they were feasible as well as possible.

(WSB photo)

Despite the rain and the wind, crews did manage to get one of the two hanging platforms down from the West Seattle Bridge this morning. Our photo shows the one that remains; SDOT says that one is scheduled to be brought down in the second window they have planned for this work, 7 am-11 am tomorrow. This marks the end of what SDOT calls the “emergency stabilization” work, described as follows in an update today:

Post-tensioning cables: Installed nearly 10 miles of taught steel cables inside of hollow areas of the bridge structure to strengthen and reinforce the bridge’s post-tensioning system, reducing the risk of further cracking.

Carbon-fiber wrapping: Surrounded sections of the bridge with carbon fiber-reinforced polymers to further support and strengthen the bridge. Crews performed multiple rounds of carbon-fiber wrapping and completed the final installation last week.

Pier 18 bearing release and replacement: Replaced neoprene lateral bearings which were compressed and bulging, locking together two critical parts of the bridge that typically are independent of each other. The bearings were creating additional pressure and preventing the bridge from moving as it should. Over the last few weeks, crews finished pouring and curing the concrete that will hold the new lateral bearings in place.

Next comes designing of, and hiring a contractor for, the repair plan, which SDOT says “will likely include additional post-tensioning and carbon-fiber wrapping on the center bridge span, as well as the two ‘tail spans’ on either side of the center span.”

(November photo by Tony Welch)

We reported back on Monday that the two work platforms that have been hanging from the West Seattle Bridge for months are about to come down. Today SDOT confirmed the platforms will be lowered onto barges next Monday and Tuesday:

This will take place between 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. on both days. During this time, there will be a waterway channel closure, which means that maritime traffic/boats will not be able to pass under the West Seattle Bridge. We have issued a notice to mariners and the Port of Seattle, and we do not expect any disruptions to Low Bridge operations for people walking, biking, or for those who have access to drive across.

When this is complete, height restrictions for passing under the bridge – which have been in place since the work began – will be lifted. After the work platforms are lowered, work will be substantially complete. In early January, we will be offsite disassembling the platforms. We’ll also be finishing one last round of painting/coating the post-tensioning brackets. Coating the post-tensioning ends will protect the new system.

Next phase of work will be the actual repairs – but first, SDOT says, they have to finish design (which is being done by consulting firm WSP) and hire a contractor.

(WSB photo)

The two movable work platforms attached to the West Seattle Bridge could be brought down before Christmas. That’s part of today’s weekly SDOT update on ongoing bridge-related work. Lowering the platforms back down onto a barge will mark the end of what SDOT refers to as “Phase 1 Stabilization” – primarily involving carbon-fiber wrapping and strengthening with steel cables (“post-tensioning”). Contractor Kraemer North America is also wrapping up work on replacing the damaged bearings at Pier 18 (in this case, “pier” refers to a bridge support). The stabilization work had to be done first regardless of whether a repair or replace pathway was pursued; next comes repair design and contractor selection.

On the low bridge, installment of the new enforcement cameras is complete; SDOT tells us, “We are planning on testing the new system through December, and expect to begin issuing notices for unauthorized bridge usage in early 2021.”

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Though the big West Seattle Bridge decision has been made, there’s still a lot going on, and so the Community Task Force will continue.

That’s one of the headlines from the CTF’s online meeting this afternoon. Here’s the video:

Also discussed: Stabilization, repair timeline, West Marginal Way, the low bridge, and more.

Read More

(Reader photo)

Since tomorrow is December 1st – once the targeted date to have enforcement cameras operating on the West Seattle low bridge, with a month of warnings followed by official ticketing – we checked with SDOT about the status.The cameras are not installed yet; installation is now expected “the week of December 7th,” according to SDOT communications director Michael Harold. (Back when automated enforcement was first mentioned publicly in June, they were hoping for August, but the timeline has slid at a couple spots along the way.) Activation is now expected in “late December/early January,” so at this point it looks like the “real” camera ticketing, with $75 fines, is unlikely to start before February. Harold says they’ll have a “more in-depth Low Bridge automated enforcement update” later this week, including a briefing when the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force meets at noon Wednesday (December 2nd); here’s the link for viewing that meeting.