Ok. REALLY..are they going to LEAVE it like that?!?!?!? The massive gap between the 'new' cement pavement and have blobs of asphalt they half heartedly filled the space with!??!?!?! Nearly all the new work from the junction to California, on the west side of the road, is a MASSIVE HAZARD.
MOTORCYCLES BEWARE!!! Especially heading WESTBOUND on the 's' curve part. It _WILL- catch your wheel and lean you into the oncoming traffic.
PLEASE tell me they're going to FIX IT!!!!
Cait
Member Profile
Thanks for the heads up! I'm avoiding this mess... I hope they do fix it.
It's not all done till October. Multi-stage project. The rebuilding, then the repaving ... Nonetheless, if there's a current safety hazard, I would advise a call to 684-ROAD to be sure it's on their radar.
thanks for the #, Lowman..I'll try and snag some photos of the worst of it when I can (or maybe the WSB photo Guru can take a spin down there and see what I'm talkin' about.
I am so glad I am not the only one so frustrated with this project! It is really difficult to drive on, and I am not sure yet how it is improving anything. Every afternoon, the light for a left turn onto California from Fauntleroy is backed up really far. I end up taking residential streets, which I doubt the residents care for (i.e., having thru traffic in their neighborhood). I am sorry in advance.
vincent
Member Profile
I hate progress. We should make them leave the road alone. can we have broken roads that need fixing called historic roads?
Hmmm, I am all for progress, and what looks like progress to me, would be repaving fauntleroy and keeping it two lanes, to accommodate for a growing population. This is a major route for ferry traffic, and decreasing to one lane is going to create a bottleneck.
Yes, the road is dangerous in some areas. Motorcycles and cars need to be careful in the middle lane. It will get fixed.
On the other hand, my son loves watching all of the construction going on. Pouring cement, loaders, excavators, breakers, backhoes. He is in heaven.
linda
Member Profile
I'm on one of those residential roads being used as a cut through from Fauntleroy to Morgan, unfortunately not the one that can actually accomodate two way traffic. We've noticed a massive increase in the traffic volume on our road, most of it going WAY too fast. If I had off street parking, I'd certainly use it as it's only a matter of time before my car (or a neighbor's car or many cars) gets hit the way folks drive on our road.
Wonder if we can complain to the city and get our "Local Access Only" signage restored......
Eeee....sorry to hear that Linda. I am not a speedracer (I proceed cautiously because visibility is limited with cars parks on the streets), but I do use your road!
I am all for this repaving, even if it's causing a current headache. The roads were awful for scooters--and heck, not great for cars either. I too am on one of those "cut-through to avoid the mess" streets and I really implore folks to slow down while driving through the neighborhoods. We got kids! We got pets! We got people taking license plate numbers!
Yes Bulldog. Slow Down if you are circumventing the construction. Our streets traffic volume has risen.
How much do speed bumps cost to put in? I have noticed a few in the area and our street is a wider city street. We could use one or two.
Traffic is light now because school is out. Wait until fall, and you have a single lane Fauntleroy to Alaska street. I'm in the minority, but I think this is a horrible downgrade.
linda
Member Profile
Cali101: Thanks for going slowly through our neighborhood, it is appreciated. Wish you were in the majority instead of the minority.
HMC Rich: We have two large speed bumps, they don't help much as folks still go flying over them.
I don't anticipate this situation improving even when repair work is completed. I'm in agreement with Dunno, this is a downgrade that's a bad idea for everyone who needs to drive on this road. And all those ferry folks who don't have a lot of alternate routes once they hit West Seattle are just out of luck. At least I have a couple of choices to avoid Fauntleroy and still get to work.
In addition, the traffic back up on Fauntleroy has certainly changed the ambience of our back deck. Instead of listening to the cars whizzing by, we now get to listen to them idle, some with stereos blaring and breathe the exhaust from all of those cars idling away waiting for the light at Fauntleroy and California. Talk about a major increase in the carbon footprint of the area!
What a bummer Linda. I am sorry you are impacted to that extent. I wish this wasn't happening to our area. I like the repaving, but not the narrowing to one lane each way. I think it is just going to present more of the same issues expressed in this string. I will try to change my attitude to one of hopefulness. :)
vincent
Member Profile
maybe we should widen the road to six lanes so that people can drive 50mph safely through west Seattle, After all its more important that people who live on vashon not be inconvenienced than the people who live in the neighbourhood be able to cross the street. we could be just like the north end with 99 bisecting entire neighbourhoods, I cant wait till they tear down all the houses on either side to make this new freeway available.
Knowing Seattle, that is a long way off.
austin
Member Profile
The previous two comments in this thread are hilarious..
Maybe WS could add a few more stop lights and be just like Federal Way! :)
linda
Member Profile
We are getting more stop lights! That's part of the project, to add at least two more "on demand" pedestrian stop lights on Fauntleroy: One around 40th, can't recall where the other will be.
I don't really want to create the Fauntleroy Freeway, I just would have preferred the repaving project retain the existing capacity of the roadway instead of cutting it in half.
Personally, I'm waiting to see what the city does after the first time a really bad head on collision happens in the new left hand turn lane when an impatient northbound driver uses this lane to pass at the same time an impatient southbound driver does....
Scary! We don't need more on demand stop lights. Where are all these pedestrians anyway? It is not like the junction or downtown Seattle where people constantly need to cross, but have to wait for the light to indicate crossing...no on demand there! I am just very baffled by this whole thing, and think it is the city's way of forcing its agenda on us.
Trust me, the first time you're on the wrong side of the street as a pedestrian, waiting to cross after the ferry has disgorged its vehicular contents, those on-demand lights are gonna look REAL sweet!
austin
Member Profile
Some people choose not to leave their cars, in which case anything that doesn't directly convenience the car-only culture will seem completely nonsensical.
Cali101, you'd be amazed how many pedestrians *do* cross Fauntleroy. There are bus stops along there. They put a pedestrian signal at Dawson last year and it is very often in use by local residents. They're especially helpful at night or in bad weather when visibility is less to see pedestrian.
Besides, if you're right and they're not necessary, then no one will push the button and the light won't change, so drivers won't have to be concerned with them. :)
Good point Sue! I try not to use them when crossing unless the flow of traffic is extremely heavy.
Does riding the bus count as a car only culture?
vincent
Member Profile
I love the, I wonder what the city will do when stupid impatient car drivers try to kill each other breaking the law in the centre line. The answer is pretty obvious, they give the survivor a ticket. Man you would think people were accustomed to off ramps appearing on roads whenever someone wrecked off the ditch.
also austin, I love your statement.
as much as I love to snark, bitch, whine, and be an overall pain...one thing I almost NEVER complain about is road construction. God knows we get reamed for enough taxes that are SUPPOSED to pay for that kinda thing..when it actually DOES happen, we shouldn't complain about it...
BUT SHEEEEESH....don't do a half ass job in the repair and make it MORE dangerous!!!
-
and yes..I think the re-lane striping is a BAD idea (screw the bike lane. I simply do not care..flame me and my 35mpg vehicle if you want). But the center turn lane is gonna be insane. And, yes, I'm fine with the extra 'on-demand' lights..it may help keep speed down a bit.
Take the bus you Plumbers, carpenters, electricians,painters, law mowers, construction,
police, aid people, restraunt and grocery suppliers, Boing suppliers(no wonder they want to leave), and on and on.
So we stop the cars and choke out WS with exhaust.
Send cars wizzing on side streets where our children and pets are. I don't want more roads or faster speed limits, in fact 30 mph should be the limit on all of Fauntleroy. 35th SW is next! All of these changes don't effect me, but I do read that it is already having a impact on others. I think these changes would be fine after a Sound Transit extention to WS.
BTW, I have no problem with more Ped lights, but with two lanes you prevent huge backups.
vincent
Member Profile
Oh the poor car victims! now that they will have to live with only two lanes of traffic, what will they take away next! Nice trying to throw in BOING! on top of there for the pity face.
We are talking about a neighbourhood arterial that's used for access for people in west Seattle ( GOOD! ) they can learn to drive the speed limit in one lane. If vashon people, and other high speed commuters have an issue with not being able to do 50 down a street in a different city, they can stay on the island. No one forced them to live there.
I could use some Boing supplies.
SarahScoot
Member Profile
Grr: Thanks for saying *exactly* what I was thinking in your last comment. Cue Beavis & Butthead:
"Heh. Heh-heh. 'Boing' supplies. Boi-oi-oing!!"
Vincent,
As my handle implies I really don't know. I'm sure you are right because the reality is the road will become one lane in each direction.
Are you Greg Nickels? You seem to know a lot about WS and its future.
Get used to it. Nikels & his travesty-that-passes-for-a-transport-dept. has decided, in their infinite wisdom, to turn Fauntleroy into a permanent parking lot.
They're taking out 2 car lanes to allow bike lanes -- rather than do something intelligent & have bike lanes in streets that parallel a main thoroughfare.
Don't you know only bad people drive cars from Vashon Island to get to north Seattle? We're all supposed to use bikes only. Anyone who has to use a wheel chair or cane? Bikers say, screw you. Learn how to bike 50 miles for your Rx.
And it's the bikers who seem to like having carbon monoxide spew out into the atmosphere.
Causing more lengthy commutes is not making anyone buy your old bike on craigslist -- it will only cause people to sit in their cars longer, spewing out more pollution, rather than get done w/ their drive quicker.
SIEG HEIL, bikers
& as Walter cronkite used to say,
"And that's the way it is."
Johnson, the reason for the restriping isn't just so they can put bike lanes in. Mostly, it's to calm down the traffic for people who can't seem to drive the speed limit, nor yield to pedestrians. And to put a turn lane in.
I hope that all of you who are complaining about the new lane configuration will just stay off Fauntleroy if you think it's going to be so bad, and you'll make the rest of us happier.
vincent
Member Profile
They're taking out 2 car lanes to allow bike lanes -- rather than do something intelligent & have bike lanes in streets that parallel a main thoroughfare.
Actually if you read any of the info on the project, two lanes are being done for traffic control, because its a area with chronic issues with speeding, and the inability for residents to safely cross the street, or merge into it. The bike "lane" (there is only one) is a side effect of having more room in the lanes with the configuration.
Your suggestion to move bike lanes to side streets has been disproved as a good idea time and time again, from a overall safety perspective. You also must not know much about the neighbourhood because there is not a side street that is parallel, unless your counting California or 35th. So your complaining about a side effect of a project, which you have assumed was the goal, and your suggestions are invalid.
Don't you know only bad people drive cars from Vashon Island to get to north Seattle? We're all supposed to use bikes only. Anyone who has to use a wheel chair or cane? Bikers say, screw you. Learn how to bike 50 miles for your Rx.
WOAH there tiger, there's foam all over the floor in front of you. No one said its bikes or nothing, the complaint is people who use a neighbourhood arterial as a freeway. the speed limit on the street is 35, Those fancy new radar signs frequently clock people blowing by at 50+, usually to catch a ferry.
also again your ranting about bicyclists, because they got a side benefit of a single lane out of this, maybe you should yell at the people who live near this street who wanted to be able to send their kids to the store or to school without being run over, those self righteous jerks, HOW DARE THEY.
And it's the bikers who seem to like having carbon monoxide spew out into the atmosphere.
Causing more lengthy commutes is not making anyone buy your old bike on craigslist -- it will only cause people to sit in their cars longer, spewing out more pollution, rather than get done w/ their drive quicker.
I really really want to know, your associating bicyclists, and speed limits, not to mention, living in a HIGHLY subsidised distance commute suffering suburb ( islands ) with pollution because you cant pass cars at high speed on Fauntleroy? Because your seriously implying some crazed rant about pollution and hating old people getting medication about a 1.1 mile stretch of road from California Ave, to SW Alaska st.
SIEG HEIL, bikers
NICE closing with a Nazi reference! Those bikers are just like a genocide fascist belief system, for using that extra 3 feet of space that was left over from the lane configuration. We should start a war against them! 1.1 miles of one bike lane shall not go unpunished!!!!
vincent
Member Profile
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