West Seattle Traffic Watch: Foggy morning; other alerts

7:21 AM: Commute alerts so far this morning: It’s not on the 911 log (yet?) but we just got a call reporting a crash on northbound 99. And even if you’re not taking 99, be careful in the fog. It’s not foggy at WSB HQ near Lincoln Park, but the traffic cams show fog to the north.

7:34 AM: Russ’s description via Twitter from aboard a bus: “Viaduct is a disaster again this morning.” The cams don’t look as bad as they looked yesterday, though, at this point.

7:51 AM: Russ says things got better once they got on 99. Reminder for tonight’s commute home: Seahawks game at 5:20 pm.

8:42 AM: Mike just tweeted about a stalled car on the right side of the eastbound highrise West Seattle Bridge.

Todd_ December 1, 2011 (7:50 am)

Bridge messed up again. Avoid.

Ben December 1, 2011 (7:50 am)

Lots of cars on Avalon are getting into the bus-only lane before it turns into a right-turn lane. SPD should station an officer there on a random morning or two. Bad drivers. Bad!

Aaron December 1, 2011 (8:04 am)

Caught the 7:33 #54 express bus. It is 8:05 and we still haven’t reached 99.

Neo-Realist December 1, 2011 (8:46 am)

I was wondering how far the bus lane on Avalon goes before other cars can use the far right lane. I did see quite a few cars queued up this morning in that lane ahead of our bus:/ Yep, get some cops out there to stop it.

km December 1, 2011 (9:51 am)

I counted FOUR stalled vehicles on EB west seattle bridge and NB 99 this morning between 8:50am and 9:20am. Two blocking the far right lane (99 exit lane), just before the bus lane started, one off to the shoulder of the 99N exit just before the merge with traffic from the lower bridge and one blocking the right lane of 99NB at the beginning of the S curves where there is no shoulder. After the debacle earlier this week with the stalled truck, you’d think that they would be more on top of this?

tk December 1, 2011 (10:17 am)

I just got a call that 99North is now completely closed off just before the 1st Ave on ramp (my friend noted that it was very strange as they were using the onramp to 99 from 1st Ave and there were no cars on 99, and then noticed the police lights blocking off all traffic), so they had an easy merge!

Ben December 1, 2011 (10:51 am)

@Neo – I believe it’s a bus lane until the white lane marking changes from solid to broken.

I wonder if it’s realistic in that location to install a short stretch of curb or other hard separation between the all-traffic lane and bus lane, just up to the point where it becomes a right-turn lane. Probably not, given that (I believe) at other times of day parking is allows in the bus lane, but something should be done. Otherwise it’s semi-pointless to have it be a bus-only lane at all when cars can stack up in front of it and cause unnecessary (and illegal) bus delay.

R0B0 December 1, 2011 (11:13 am)

Cheers to sdot for checking the forecast and salt slurrying the high bridge and it’s approaches! if the temps fell below 32° as predicted it would have been a black ice fiasco! Fog was crazy and if it froze on the surface it would have been quite nasty!

abstract December 1, 2011 (11:17 am)

There was a stalled car blocking one of the northbound lanes between the bridge and downtown around 9:10 causing backups. Stalled cars are getting really old.

R0B0 December 1, 2011 (11:50 am)

The forecast for the next couple days shows lows in the upper 20’s so take your time, especially if it’s foggy in the early hours. At least cool it down to the speed limit and don’t tailgate unless you want to be the next jackass on the news blocking hundreds trying to get to work! PS: solid white lines on 99 S-curves in sodo mean no lane changes!–