This one is just a few blocks north of the scene of last Saturday’s deadly crash: 35th SW is closed between Willow and Myrtle because of an accident that appears to have involved two cars, at least one with heavy front-end damage; didn’t look like serious injuries. Map:
Same spot my husband got in an accident almost a year ago this week. 35th is dangerous.
I got rear-ended a year ago just past the car wash, heading south on 35th. My first accident in 15 years of driving. 35th is nuts, too many folks with their own notion of what the speed limit is (and this includes the folks who drive 5-10 under). The speed traps from Morgan up to Highpoint sure have me think twice about how fast I roll up and down that hill, but I haven’t seen the traffic cops there lately.
My brother lives on 35th, not far from both of the accidents. We drive 35th all of the time and occasionally have yard sales at another family member’s home who also lives on 35th..this road is very dangerous!! We often see cars going at really excessive speeds..probably over 60, there are motorcycles racing and people doing crazy things. They do crazy u-turns to come to our yard sale and jaywalk with their small children. This looks like a road that needs much more vigilance by the police and more tickets need to be written for speeding and negligent driving in many cases. Hopefully, the police patrolling it will take some extra time to write some tickets.
I am a resident of Elizabeth House at Graham & Lantham, 2 blocks off 35th. I ride the bus and in doing so walk a lot. I’m also I’m a member of the High Point Neighborhood Association Pedestrian Safety Committee and all of us are very much aware of the safety issues on 35th. We’re trying to get the traffic light on 35th & Raymond changed to a 4-way signal because of the problem of trying to access 35th from Raymond.
We are also working towards a road diet from Myrtle to Juneau because we were turned down for our request for a speed limit reduction on 35th. All DOT would give us was BIGGER speed signs. This we feel is a waste of time. It’s very sad that it will take these tragedies over time to accomplish any thing.
In my travels out and about I see peole jay-walking and making u-turns all the time. People just do not think! Nor do a lot of drivers.
Hopefully it will help to get more concerned people stepping up and voicing their feelings to the city
dis..the way I understand it, U-turns are illegal in the middle of the block…must be made at an intersection..anybody? am I mis-stating here?
Jan, you’re right. My husband got a ticket for making a u-turn in the middle of the block. The cop said it would have been ok if he had done it in an intersection.
an intersection is probably the worst place to make a u-turn. I was also confused about whether it was legal, until I asked a large group of police officers at Starbucks. Here is the text from Wash. State divers’ ed manual (Seattle does allow them):
U Turns. You should only make a U turn when it is safe. U turns should not be made on any curve or when approaching the crest of a hill when your vehicle cannot be seen by others. Some towns and cities do not allow U turns. Check with local police to be sure.
Occasionally you will see a sign indicating no u-turns allowed, in certain locations, which is a black U-shaped arrow, with a red slash through it, inside of a red circle.
I’ve heard, in recent years, that both U-Turns and turning left over a double yellow line are indeed legal, in the Seattle city limits as long as neither action interferes with oncoming traffic, and can be done safely.
That, of course, is going to rely on the driver’s best judgement. The problem I have with this is that many people’s best judgement nowadays is “me first, to heck with you”.
In my opinion, U-Turns especially, should not be legal, especially with so many SUV’s and large pick-ups out there that can’t make a U-Turn in one swift maneuver.
I swear, that for many years, both actions were illegal, and if that is true, for the life of me, I can’t understand why they were made legal with how dramatically traffic has increased in recent years.
Mike
Betty,
Isn’t there funding coming via the Delridge Neighborhood District Council to pay for a permanent radar speed indicator at 35th and Raymond like the one near the Fauntleroy Ferry dock? I realize it is not a solution to the problem, but I thought that SDOT had actually agreed to its installation and that the money was allocated.
35th and Juneau.
That’s a scary intersection. I can’t tell you how many times there have been accidents there but according to SDOT the average over the years is not troublesome. Well, it is if you live on the corner! When you hear two cars crashing into each other, it’s unsettling. I’m sure SPD knows this corner very well. To extend my life, I’ve been making turns and crossing the street at Findlay–the closest intersection with a 4way signal. Here’s my query to the Bumper to Bumper column from January 2005:
Sorry, comment time is over.
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