West Seattle Blog…

West Seattle safety: 1 long-sought signal soon, another – not

North Delridge neighborhood leaders have long been pushing for a traffic signal at Avalon Way and SW Genesee – and now if all goes according to SDOT‘s schedule, it’s just months away. In comments following our report on a contradictory-but-brief discussion of its status at the Southwest District Council meeting, two commenters said that signal is actually planned for installation this year. So we asked SDOT for official confirmation. Communications director Rick Sheridan‘s reply:

SDOT will install a full traffic signal at Avalon Way & Genesee, which will cover all legs of the intersection. We will additionally install new curb ramps to improve access for pedestrians and the disabled. The work is tentatively scheduled for the third quarter of 2012.

The status of another signal long sought by West Seattle neighborhood activists, at 47th/Admiral, has NOT changed, however. We asked Sheridan about that too:

We did reevaluate all signal requests in December 2011. Given limited funding for signal improvements, this location did not rate high enough compared to other locations where a signal would be beneficial.

SDOT has implemented several enhancements at 47th and Admiral to improve safety. These include curb bulbs on SW Admiral Way to shorten the crossing distance, high-visibility signage overhead and roadside to warn drivers, and flashing beacons. We also installed “stop lines” and signs to direct motorists where to stop if a pedestrian is using the crosswalk. We have also measured vehicle speeds approaching the crosswalk from the east, and the data shows good compliance with the posted speed limit on Admiral. This corridor is also equipped with radar speed signs at each end to educate drivers and enhance compliance with the posted speed limit.

The fifth anniversary of the deadly crash at 47th/Admiral was marked in November by a rally (WSB coverage here) organized by the Admiral Neighborhood Association, which continues to lobby to get a light.

Followup: Why Fauntleroy/35th stoplight wasn’t fixed sooner

(Taken on 35th looking toward Fauntleroy minutes before light was fixed this morning)
An unusual traffic problem made news here earlier today: The stoplight at 35th/Fauntleroy was in flashing-red mode, which slowed eastbound West Seattle Bridge access dramatically till the problem was fixed just before 8 am. By more than one account, the problem had started last night, which gave rise to the question, why wasn’t it fixed before it became a rush-hour chokepoint? We asked SDOT, whose communication director Rick Sheridan just shared the answer:

Though reported overnight, the signal required specialized diagnosis and repair expertise. Until that time, the intersection safely operated as an all-way stop. We had a signals crew with the needed skills troubleshooting the issue just after 7:00 a.m. After a lengthy investigation they found a bad splice in one of the many junction boxes in that area and corrected the problem. Deploying SPD officers to direct traffic when the signal is in “flash” mode is not typical for this type of malfunction.

Traffic alert: Daytime detours next week

Heads up on a detour next week that’s part of one of the ongoing projects in the area. From SDOT, the map (click it for a larger image) and announcement:

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) continues performing seismic work on the Fauntleroy Expressway in West Seattle.
 
Next week, from Monday, February 13th to Friday, February 17, from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day, SW Avalon Way will be restricted and the following detour will be in place (please see the attached map):
 
Northbound motorists traveling on SW Avalon Way will be detoured to eastbound SW Spokane Street. They will then be directed to perform a u-turn at 26th Avenue SW onto westbound SW Spokane Street and then north on Harbor Avenue SW. Northbound trucks and Metro buses traveling on SW Avalon Way will be flagged through the work zone.
 
During these times southbound traffic on Harbor Avenue SW will experience short delays at SW Spokane Street.
 
The SW Spokane Street on-ramp to the West Seattle Bridge will remain open.
 
Police Officers will assist traffic.
 
Nighttime closures affecting motorists westbound on the West Seattle Bridge and eastbound on Fauntleroy Way SW will still be in effect, as previously announced, from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. Monday through early Saturday mornings.

Also from SDOT: RapidRide-related work starts next week

Metro‘s route restructuring isn’t the only side effect of RapidRide coming to West Seattle this fall. As Metro and SDOT have been warning for many months, lots of road work is on the way too to facilitate it, and that work starts in a big way next week. Here’s the announcement just sent out: Click to read the rest of Also from SDOT: RapidRide-related work starts next week…

First look: City’s plan to avoid future bridge-closure ‘surprises’

If you had to leave West Seattle for points eastward during the daytime last Saturday, you probably remember the bridge backup caused by what was supposed to be a weekend-long closure of the eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct. The city had put out the word in advance, but not loudly and boldly enough, and worst of all in many eyes, there were no warning signs as you approached the bridge. After a deluge of complaints – and questions from us – SDOT promised a review of what went wrong with getting the word out and how that would be fixed for future closures. They also promised us the resulting report. We received it this evening; we’ll be writing a followup story, but there’s no point in you having to wait till then to read the report if you’re interested. It identifies 7 “issues” and how they’ll be addressed. Here’s the 2 1/2-page report, in memo form (PDF).

P.S. **No West Seattle Bridge closures scheduled this weekend**, once tonight’s eastbound SSV and Fauntleroy Expressway closures end by 5 am (the nighttime closures continue next week).

Work starts Monday as SDOT adds another Alki-area stairway

(Stairway at 61st/Spokane, which will connect to another one above it as a result of this project)
From SDOT: Work starts Monday on a 2-month project to build a new staircase and path in the South Alki/Beach Drive area, at 61st/60th/Spokane (map). Read on for the full announcement: Click to read the rest of Work starts Monday as SDOT adds another Alki-area stairway…

The NEXT bridge crunch; bike/pedestrian path alert; more, @ Viaduct South Portal Working Group briefing

(Spokane Street Viaduct construction photo, from presentation at Wednesday meeting)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Get ready for another traffic crunch on the Spokane Street Viaduct section of the West Seattle Bridge. That was one of the toplines from Wednesday’s meeting of the South Portal Working Group, an advisory group convened mostly on behalf of the ongoing Alaskan Way Viaduct/Tunnel work, but typically briefed on other major road projects affecting our side of the city, so we usually cover this group’s quarterly meetings as a place to get MEGA-EARLY heads-up.

First – if you want to cut to the chase, here’s the entire 42-page presentation given to the group, covering the north and central area progress on 99 as well as components of more interest here. Tons of information.

Now, back to that aforementioned crunch: According to SDOT, sometime next month, all Spokane Street Viaduct traffic will have to be shifted onto the new north-side structure, so that work can be done on the old south-side structure for at least six weeks. When that happens, there will be three traffic lanes – one eastbound, and two westbound.

More on that – and other toplines from the meeting, including some discussion of last week’s eastbound bridge-closure backups, ahead: Click to read the rest of The NEXT bridge crunch; bike/pedestrian path alert; more, @ Viaduct South Portal Working Group briefing…

West Seattle road work: SW Myrtle repaving ahead

Working on a couple of transportation-related stories to publish before the day’s done, we happened onto another one: February 18-19 are the dates set for repaving three blocks of SW Myrtle just south of High Point Community Center and Walt Hundley Playfield, east of the work just done on 35th itself between Myrtle and Othello. From SDOT:

Crews will be grinding and re-paving SW Myrtle St between 35th Ave SW and 32nd Ave SW through the weekend. Expect lane closures. Sidewalks will remain open. Buses will be rerouted around the area.

This is from the SDOT Seattle-Area Construction Lookahead – which has lots of other dates and locations of upcoming work, including the ongoing overnight West Seattle Bridge closures; see it here.

Proposed Metro route changes, round 2: West Seattle changes

4:15 PM: Metro has just published its revised proposal of route changes for this September, timed with the debut of West Seattle’s RapidRide Line C. The list starts here; we’re reviewing now to add the highlights for West Seattle, but wanted to make sure you knew it was live, so you can do the same. The first public briefing on the changes is scheduled for tonight’s Southwest District Council meeting, South Seattle Community College board room (6000 16th SW), 7 pm. There’s also an online survey, and (as reported here earlier) two West Seattle open houses ahead, as well as some informational tabling (here’s the calendar with all locations and dates).

UPDATED 4:51 PM: Some toplines of what Metro says has changed from what was proposed last fall:
For Route 22:

Change from November 2011 suggestion
Metro is no longer proposing to completely replace Route 22. During public outreach in November 2011, we heard that loss of transit service in Arbor Heights would negatively affect many riders, and the steep slope between California Avenue SW and Fauntleroy Way SW, will make the RapidRide C Line inaccessible to many Gatewood residents.

For Route 37:

Change from November 2011 suggestion
*Keep some service on Route 37.

During public outreach in November 2011, Metro heard that this service is important to riders along Beach Drive SW and Alki Avenue SW because steep grades and distance make it difficult to reach alternative service. Metro will continue to analyze ridership patterns and the overall transit network, and may consider more changes in this area in the future.

For Route 55:

Change from November 2011 suggestion
*Operate trips during peak hours to downtown Seattle in the morning and to the Admiral District in the afternoon to prevent overcrowding on the C Line.

For Routes 56/56X:

Change from November 2011 suggestion
Increase the speed of Route 56 Express by skipping the stops at SW 26th Street and Chelan Avenue SW.

8:27 PM NOTE: We’re currently at the Southwest District Council meeting, where Metro is doing its first community briefing (as previewed earlier). Highlights to come. Outreach continues all month; Metro’s final recommendation has to go to King County Executive Dow Constantine in mid-March, and it will go through the County Council, with an expectation that they would “take action” in May.

West Seattle Bridge closures: Next one overnight; SDOT leader promises ‘improved … plan’

In case you missed the gridlock and frustration earlier this weekend: The eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct – that’s the official name for the West Seattle Bridge between 99 and I-5 – has another construction closure overnight, 12:01 am-5 am Monday. That’s a remnant of what was supposed to be a weekend-long closure that caused weekday-style gridlock for most of the day Saturday, until SDOT suddenly announced it was ending early after “completing required work early.” Though the closure had been mentioned in SDOT updates dating back more than two weeks (here’s the first one we published, on January 12th), they all included it in lists starting with much-less-impactful overnight closures; the biggest complaint Saturday was an offline situation: No signage on bridge approaches warning of the closure, neither electronic nor analog. In addition, as some pointed out, while the 1st Avenue South offramp was open, it was narrowed to one lane.

Along with a 97-comment discussion here on WSB, some concerned West Seattleites contacted SDOT directly. Among them was one who shared with us a response he received from the man who runs SDOT, director Peter Hahn:

I share the concerns you describe below. The SDOT people who have worked on the outreach plan for the projects(all) impacting W. Seattle will be meeting with me Monday and devising an improved responsive plan of coordination and outreach. We will share that with the community.

We also had e-mailed SDOT media contacts during the closure jam as well as West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who chairs the council’s Transportation Committee, who replied that the city “must do better.” Ironically, the Saturday backup coincided with a four-hour Open House at City Hall to which all Seattleites were invited to come meet city reps and get “information from city departments,” SDOT included.

Metro ‘restructuring’: New plan coming out; more meetings set

Following the first round of community meetings about Metro‘s proposed “restructuring” plan to take effect in connection with the West Seattle RapidRide launch this fall, a new proposal is due out next week, and another round of meetings is set, to get your take on it. Two are set for West Seattle – 6-8 pm February 15 at Madison Middle School, and 6-8 pm February 16th at Chief Sealth International High School. Metro says you can watch this page for the new proposal around February 1st. (One expected change was reported here in December, when a Metro planner told the Admiral Neighborhood Association that the new version wouldn’t take away as much service in that area as first proposed.)

West Seattle snow aftermath: Storm by the numbers

(January 16th WSB photo, de-icer truck during “the calm between the storms“)
Just wrapped up at the City Council Transportation Committee‘s meeting, chaired by West Seattle-residing Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, the first preliminary briefing on how the city handled last week’s snow/ice storm. SDOT reps summarized it as a “really challenging week.” By the numbers:

$2.2 million = city’s budget for storm response
$1.35 million = projected total cost of storm response
($1.18 million costs confirmed so far)
55,353 = gallons of liquid salt brine used
(46,000 gallons kept in stock year-round)
5,015 = labor hours
3,941 = hours of equipment usage
3,372 = tons of rock salt used
946 = lane miles plowed/de-iced/etc.
100+ = emergency calls handled by SDOT from SPD, SFD
$100 = how much a ton of rock salt costs the city

Other notes from the briefing, ahead: Click to read the rest of West Seattle snow aftermath: Storm by the numbers…

Fauntleroy ferry dock without tollbooths? Potential proposal

Before our next weather-related roundup, we’re going to squeeze in a few non-weather stories. This one is from our friends across Puget Sound at The Kitsap Sun: They are reporting on a study presented earlier this week in Olympia, suggesting dramatic changes to the Washington State Ferries fare system. One of those suggestions would remove tollbooths from the Fauntleroy dock, and instead implement the “Good To Go” electronic pass system that the state is using for the Tacoma Narrows and Highway 520 bridges. Read The Sun’s story here.

How to lift a 100-ton girder 1 inch: Up-close look at the Fauntleroy Expressway seismic-retrofit crew

(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB, unless otherwise credited)
Good news if you are among the nighttime drivers dealing with west-end bridge closures for the Fauntleroy Expressway quake-resistance project (well, technically, seismic retrofitting): The work is ahead of schedule, according to superintendent Jeff Bailey with general contractor C.A. Carey.

We (WSB editor Tracy Record and contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli) met Bailey and his crew last night while visiting the work site under the bridge with Bob Derry of Stepherson & Associates, which is doing communications consulting on the project; we’ve brought you their updates in multiple community-council reports over the past four months.

If you’re just tuning in – the Fauntleroy Expressway is the almost-half-century-old, half-mile-long western end of the high bridge. It’s undergoing work with this goal, from the project page: “Once completed, the seismic retrofitting improvements will decrease the probability that the Fauntleroy Expressway will collapse after a large magnitude earthquake.”

Seeing the current work up close, it’s not as dramatic as the images evoked when we heard the crew would spend months lifting the bridge deck, one section at a time, to replace rubber seismic cushions. The “lifting” does not involve some kind of big hoist, no cranes, nothing overhead, in fact – it actually involves crews going up in cherry-pickers to place a 600-pound jack under each (up to) 100-ton girder:

Here’s a closer look at one of the jacks:

Once the jacks are in place, the crew uses them to lift the bridge deck one inch (any more, Bailey explains, and the rules change), taking out the old cushion, then testing the space with this T-shaped tool dangling short chains:

(Cameraphone photo by Tracy Record)
The sound of the chain links against the concrete helps crews confirm if the concrete is in good shape.

(Photo courtesy Bob Derry)
And when they put in a new cushion, it has “glue” on one side. You can see all the phases in this video Christopher put together – including the traffic passing by on both sides of the work zone:

Fauntleroy Expressway Work from christopher boffoli on Vimeo.

The project also has involved jacketing bridge support columns with steel. Next week, Bailey explained, they’ll put grout in, between the steel and the concrete, though he says the void isn’t that wide – one inch all around.

Watching all the work from beneath, we wondered aloud what’s visible atop the bridge while the deck is being raised from below. So Bailey took us up to look. Turns out you would barely notice the bump if you drove over it:

Our trip topside was more notable just for the chance to stand on the bridge without traffic.

(That’s Bailey at left, Derry at right.) But back underneath, the crew – about 20 people on an average night, according to Bailey – was moving forward, removing and replacing the cushions, one by one, moving from girder to girder, section to section.

So far, he added, they haven’t heard many complaints about effects of the project and its closures. We mentioned receiving a few notes earlier this week about the under-bridge park/ride spaces being blocked off earlier this week; he said the crews had moved fast enough in the previous few nights for much of the space to open back up again.

What’s next? Overnight closures are expected on weeknights the next two weeks; there’s no firm plan yet for weekend closures, which were mentioned as a possibility during community-meeting briefings next fall. The $3 million project, funded by the Bridging the Gap levy, is expected to be complete before summer.

Viaduct/Tunnel project traffic alert: Alaskan Way S. reroute

Since Alaskan Way is part of the surface connection between here and downtown/points beyond, you might be interested in this WSDOT announcement about a reroute taking effect tomorrow (see the map here):

Drivers who use Alaskan Way South along Seattle’s waterfront can expect major changes beginning this week as crews make way for the SR 99 tunnel construction zone.

Washington State Department of Transportation crews will reroute Alaskan Way South between South Main and South King streets beginning at 5 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 5. Drivers will travel on a new temporary roadway located underneath the Alaskan Way Viaduct, while crews use the old roadway to relocate utilities and prepare for tunnel work.

Click to read the rest of Viaduct/Tunnel project traffic alert: Alaskan Way S. reroute…

Transit changes for the extra New Year’s Day holiday today

A few quick notes: No Water Taxi today; Metro is on a Sunday schedule; so is Sound Transit; state ferries are on the new winter schedule that took effect Sunday.

2nd West Seattle Water Taxi ticket machine coming to Seacrest

(WSB photo from October 2010)
With rising West Seattle Water Taxi ridership – noted here a week ago – comes a rising demand for tickets, so the county is about to install a second ticket machine at Seacrest. It’ll be right next to the first one, according to this afternoon’s announcement, which mentions another change as of this Thursday:

On the same date, a new King County Ferry District fare policy will be implemented. Tickets sold through our TVMs will now show a sixty-day expiration date. Please be aware of this change, as the ticket will not be valid beyond the listed date.

(And remember that, as also reported here last week, fares will go up 50 cents next spring.) P.S. Holiday schedule note – no Water Taxi service next Monday.

West Seattle Water Taxi ridership skyrockets: Not just ‘Viadoom’

(WSB photo from October 24, taken at Seacrest Pier)
We were asked recently about West Seattle Water Taxi ridership since the week-plus Alaskan Way Viaduct closure. Found the answer hiding in plain sight on the Water Taxi website. Even after the late-October closure, ridership ran way above last year, according to this month-by-month chart, which reports 9,734 rides last month – close to quadruple the 2,578 rides in November of last year. According to both the King County Ferry District‘s online budget documents and discussions we’ve had with the staff of County Councilmember Joe McDermott (who chairs the Ferry District’s Board, another set of hats the council wears), the 2012 plan for the Water Taxi includes a 50-cent fare increase in the spring as well as ongoing planning for new vessels to take the place of the leased boats that have been in use on the WS and Vashon routes. (Most of the cost of those boats will be borne by grants from the federal government.) One more note: No Water Taxi service on the two upcoming “official holiday” Mondays, December 26 and January 2.

West Seattle road work update: California SW resurfacing finished

As of 2:30 pm – a couple hours ahead of schedule – the California SW resurfacing between SW Findlay and SW Graham is finished, and the heavy equipment’s gone; just some sign pickup left to be done. If you haven’t driven it yet, here’s what they did: Scraped off the old asphalt on the travel lanes and put down new asphalt; the center turn lane and outside parking zones were left as they were. Rather than big jobs like last year’s Fauntleroy Way overhaul, this year we’ve seen smaller spot-paving/resurfacing work, a block or two or three at a time

Metro changing its proposed changes, planner tells Admiral Neighborhood Association

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Admiral won’t lose as much Metro bus service as the first draft of the transit service’s “restructuring” plan proposed.

That’s what lead planner Jack Lattemann told the Admiral Neighborhood Association tonight, in the first public update on what’s happening since the public-comment period for that draft plan closed. The “restructuring” is planned in connection with next fall’s debut of RapidRide service in West Seattle (which will replace the 54).

And they got plenty of public comments, he said: 3,000 people took the online questionnaire; another 1,000 people provided non-online written comments. As an Admiral-specific result, he said, “I can assure you that we are going to submit a revised proposal that will include some level of bus service on California 7 days a week all the way as far north as Atlantic Street … it looks like that is going to be feasible,” said Lattemann. “We’ll have a second round of proposals out in about a month.”

That round will include another series of community meetings, he said, likely in the first two weeks of February. He says other “concepts” from the draft circulated online and at public open houses (including two in West Seattle) are being revised in response to public comments, too.

One option for that could be extending Route 128, Lattemann said, and that route already is up for an extension with service at least until midnight – California and Admiral both will be served at least that late, he said. (It also, he said, is up for the addition of two afternoon trips to help with the student load at those times.)

Click to read the rest of Metro changing its proposed changes, planner tells Admiral Neighborhood Association…

2 tolling notes: 1st meeting ahead for 99 committee; 520 date

Just minutes apart, WSDOT sent two news releases that relate to tolling. The first one is perhaps of the most interest here – the committee that’s going to discuss tolling for the future Highway 99 tunnel, and how to reduce the likelihood it will lead to “diversion” (people using other roads instead), has its first meeting set for tomorrow. The second one – Tolling on the 520 bridge across Lake Washington is now set for December 29th. For full details, here’s the 520-toll-date news release; read on for text of the news release about the 99 tunnel tolling committee: Click to read the rest of 2 tolling notes: 1st meeting ahead for 99 committee; 520 date…

Where’s the ferry? WSF offers new ETA feature online

If you use Washington State Ferries, from Fauntleroy or anyplace else, you probably know about Vessel Watch – the GPS-enabled online feature that shows you where any given ferry is at any time. WSF just announced it’s added a feature to Vessel Watch: The estimated time of arrival (ETA) for whatever ferry you’re keeping an eye on. Read on for the details: Click to read the rest of Where’s the ferry? WSF offers new ETA feature online…

First closure dates set for Fauntleroy Expressway seismic work

(NEW INFO FOR MONDAY NIGHT 12/12 – Closure will start 10:30 pm because of football.)

New information this afternoon in a road project we’ve been tracking for months: The earthquake-safety upgrade of the Fauntleroy Expressway section of the southwest end of the West Seattle Bridge. The city has just announced the dates/times when it will be closed so the contractor can lift sections of the bridge to install seismic-safety features. From SDOT:

The first closures of the Fauntleroy Expressway are scheduled to occur December 12, 13 & 14. Each night the Fauntleroy Expressway will be closed at 9:00 p.m. and reopened the next morning at 5:00 a.m. These closures mark the beginning of a series of night and early morning closures that will take place through June of 2012.

In numerous community-group briefings we’ve covered leading up to this, the detour plan has generated some questions. Here’s the one-sheet explaining it all. The project actually has been under way for a few months, but the first phase has mostly involved reinforcing columns under the bridge, and has not involved traffic effects. Meantime, SDOT says it’ll announce additional closure dates as they are set; project consultant Josh Stepherson had said at community meetings that once the contractor goes through the first round of bridge-lifting, they’ll have a better idea of how the subsequent ones will go.

Congrats, West Seattle In Motion ‘Staycation’ winner Lillian Dabney

(Photo by Darcy Edmunds: From left, Jessica Lynn, The CoHo Team; Lillian Dabney, InMotion Winner; Peter Wolf, The CoHo Team; Carol Cooper, King County Metro; Cara Mohammadian, The CoHo Team; Lisa Quinn, Feet First)
This summer and fall, WSB was proud to be a co-sponsor of West Seattle In Motion – encouraging people to try alternate ways of getting around now and then, such as walking, bicycling, or taking the bus. One incentive, besides a healthier environment and healthier you, was a chance to win the In Motion Staycation Prize Package, which has just been awarded, according to Lisa Quinn from Feet First:

Drumroll, please….We are delighted to announce the winner of the ULTIMATE West Seattle STAYCATION: Lillian Dabney. Lillian will enjoy two relaxing nights at the Wildwood B&B, a visit to Head to Toe Day Spa, an Alki Kayak Tours adventure, dinner at Spring Hill Restaurant, tickets to ArtsWest, and more! Thanks to The CoHo Team for generously donating this amazing grand prize valued at $1,000!

Lillian wasn’t the only winner. West Seattle, over the last four months 1,200 of you joined together to made a real difference to the community and the atmosphere.

While the official West Seattle In Motion program ended on October 31st and registration is now closed, we still need your help to find out what you liked about In Motion, or how we can improve the program. If you participated in the West Seattle In Motion Program, please take the wrap up survey ASAP by visiting www.surveymonkey.com/s/westseattle. … Want to stay engaged and keep earning rewards for traveling smarter? Check out the Seattle Walk Bike Ride Challenge!

From Lillian: “Riding the bus, I feel like I am a part of the world.” P.S. Along with WSB and The CoHo Team (which is also a WSB sponsor), WS In Motion was co-sponsored by Sustainable West Seattle.

Video: Safety rally, Tatsuo Nakata tribute @ 47th/Admiral

Five years after a deadly crash at 47th/Admiral – which stretches between the corners holding busy Life Care Center and Alki Mail & Dispatch, and is within a half-mile of two elementary schools – neighborhood leaders are still campaigning for a pedestrian signal. So this morning, the Admiral Neighborhood Association led a rally at the five-way intersection – in memory of 26-year-old Tatsuo Nakata, killed there in November 2006 (the 9th pedestrian killed in Seattle that year, it was pointed out at the time).

Speaking during the rally were former Seattle City Councilmember David Della, for whom Mr. Nakata had worked, and current Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who chairs the Transportation Committee, as well as ANA president Katy Walum and vice president Karl de Jong – who lives across the street and heard the crash:

As Councilmember Rasmussen noted, “There have been a lot of changes at this intersection” since the deadly crash, “but I don’t think it’s enough.”

The light request is a frequent topic at ANA meetings (usually the second Tuesday of the month, 7 pm, Admiral Congregational Church at California/Hill); this past March, Walum read an SDOT letter turning down the request, but the group vowed not to give up. That was about nine months after they stepped up the campaign (June 2010 WSB coverage here), including a pitch to Mayor McGinn and Council President Richard Conlin at a meeting of the 34th District Democrats, whose chair Tim Nuse joined in this morning’s rally.

SDOT says Spokane Street Viaduct’s new 1st Avenue S. ramp won’t be ‘fully open’ before summer

Once upon a time, the city had said they hoped the new 1st Avenue South on- and off-ramp for the westbound Spokane Street Viaduct – the now-being-widened section of the West Seattle Bridge between I-5 and Highway 99 – would be open by this fall, maybe even before the Alaskan Way Viaduct‘s closure last month. It wasn’t. So many then asked, when WILL it open? We asked SDOT, and were told the contractor was coming up with a revised schedule. Now, that’s in, and our answer has finally arrived from SDOT spokesperson Rick Sheridan:

While the overall project is nearly 90 percent complete, our Spokane Street Viaduct contractor has not finished constructing the First Avenue S on-/off-ramps due to delays in receiving critical construction materials. Their steel subcontractor has yet to deliver specialized steel girders needed to complete the ramp.

When the girders finally arrive from the fabricator, it will take at least two months to complete the ramps. At that point in the construction schedule, we will need to transfer traffic to the viaduct’s new roadway to resurface the existing deck and cannot safely allow use of the on-ramp. Due to this, SDOT does not anticipate opening the ramps fully until the overall project is completed in July 2012.

We understand that the loss of this access point does create inconveniences for West Seattle residents and businesses. Alternate routes such as accessing the high rise bridge via I-5 or SR-99, the lower Spokane Street Swing Bridge or the First Ave S Bridge will continue to serve as good options for reaching West Seattle. The overall project remains on budget and scheduled for completion by summer 2012.

If that timeframe holds, it will be 26 months after the closure of the old 1st Avenue South onramp to the westbound bridge; just before that closure, we were told the ramp would take “at least 16 months” to build.

As-it-happened: Mayor’s road-safety-summit stop in West Seattle

6:16 PM: We’re at Southwest Community Center, awaiting the start of the final stop on the citywide tour for Mayor Mike McGinn‘s “road safety summit” (explained here). Seattle Channel is not livecasting this, a rare occurrence; we’ll publish updates as it goes. The mayor’s just about to step to the podium. We’d estimate the crowd at more than 50.

6:24 PM: The mayor says Councilmember Tom Rasmussen will join the meeting shortly. “What prompted me to put together the road-safety summit is, it’s become clear to me … people feel very strongly about how we use our roads, how we share our roads, how others use the roads … I’ve heard bicyclists complain about drivers, drivers complain about bicyclists” (and so on), he opens. “No matter how you get around,” there are “tragic deaths” on our city’s roads. He tells the story of the Greenwood crash that left a teenage boy injured for life. He says engineering, education, enforcement, and empathy are needed to address the problem. Yes, we can change, he insists, citing the dramatic shift in how smoking in public is treated – 30 years ago, this room might have been full of people smoking, ashtrays on the tables in front of them, and that is now illegal and unheard of. “We CAN change,” he says. But he says, “I don’t have all the answers” – he believes the community does.

6:32 PM: Dr. David Fleming, who runs Seattle-King County Public Health, takes the podium. He says traffic injuries and fatalities are a public-health issue. He says car fatalities have dropped 25 percent in recent years, but bicycle and pedestrian fatalities have stayed about the same. He explains why he uses the term “traffic crashes” versus “traffic accidents” – because crashes are not things about which nothing can be done. (Editor’s note – that’s part of our style guide, too.) “Fundamentally, these deaths are the result of actions that are under our control, and that we can do something about, and that’s why we are here tonight,” Dr. Fleming says. There’s not “one solution,” he cautioned, but instead, a “more robust toolbox” should and could be developed. He adds another “E” to the list above – “expectation,” with everyone engaging in the behaviors that will make a difference. And yet “defensive driving” matters, he says, since you need to anticipate that someone else might not meet your “expectation.”

The end result of efforts to change and improve, he says, could be “safe and vibrant streets.”

6:41 PM: Rick Sheridan, SDOT communications director, now at the podium, explaining what people at tables are being asked to do for the next 15 minutes or so, before reporting back to the full group.

(Our as-it-happened coverage, after the jump) Click to read the rest of As-it-happened: Mayor’s road-safety-summit stop in West Seattle…