(See 2:06 pm update at bottom of story, with bus info from Metro)
New information about the Alaskan Way Viaduct lane reduction that starts May 16th, according to WSDOT’s announcement this morning (here’s our earlier story). The media briefing wasn’t a presentation type of briefing but rather a Q/A opportunity availability with Viaduct project boss Ron Paananen. Here’s what we learned beyond what this morning’s announcement included:
*KEY POINT – THIS IS FOR A LONG, LONG TIME: The “2013” mention in the announcement is NOT the actual expected end date for this. Barring something unusual like a project stall, 99 will be down to two lanes each way, at least for this stretch, till the Central Waterfront replacement opens. If that’s the deep-bore tunnel, possibly late 2015. (And if the tunnel is tossed, Paananen warned, that would add at least 2 years to the replacement process.)
*FEWER LANES, SLOWER SPEED: The speed limit will drop as well as the number of lanes – to 35 mph. Heading north, toward downtown, the lane reduction and speed reduction will kick in, WSDOT says, just as soon as you get off The Bridge and get onto 99. It continues until roughly Royal Brougham Way (the street between the stadiums) before opening to three lanes each way again. Heading back south toward West Seattle, approximately the same stretch – Royal Brougham to the north, until Lander (which is a bit north of Spokane, the street The Bridge parallels).
*TRANSIT LANE DOESN’T RUN THE ENTIRE STRETCH: The mentioned-earlier northbound transit lane will NOT be through the actual work zone – it will be a partial stretch enabling buses that use The Viaduct to get a bit of a jump on traffic, but once they get to the actual work zone, it will be two lanes for everyone. (See the map atop our earlier story.)
*WHY DO THIS NOW? The reason one lane is being lost – on the west side of The Viaduct, in both directions – is because a few pillars for the new southbound replacement structure actually have to go through the footprint of the current one. So there will be pile-driving work right next to the travel lanes. How will that affect Viaduct stability? Paananen says they will monitor it carefully – the southern stretch has not had settling trouble in the past, but on the other hand, it’s technically more vulnerable, since the “fill” that changed the area from tidelands decades ago is deeper than it is under the rest of the viaduct.
We have a few other notes to add shortly. And if you have a “how is this going to work?” question that neither our coverage nor the WSDOT website is answering – PLEASE ask in comments, and we will do our best to pursue answers; WSDOT has a large and responsive media-relations team who (regardless of your view of the actual project merits) whom we are sure will pursue the answer for us/you.
2:06 PM UPDATE: Checked with Linda Thielke at King County Department of Transportation regarding Metro and the upcoming AWV lane reduction. For one – she says they will be out later this week with some information specifically targeted for bus riders whose routes will go through the construction zone. In the meantime, here’s the latest on bus-service increases past and possibly future as part of the “viaduct mitigation”:
To date, WSDOT has funded an additional 31 trips on routes: 21X, 56X, and 121. These trips were added a while back to make transit a good alternative for folks during the construction. Metro has seen ridership increase 11 percent on those trips (fall 2009 compared to fall 2010).
Right now, there is a proposal (not finalized yet) that would add more trips in October 2011. This would increase trips on the Rt. 120 funded by WSDOT and the Rt. 54 funded by Metro. And, the additional trips on the 21X, 56X, and 121 would continue.
Also, we’re seeing an uptick in inquiries about vanpooling and vansharing from the West Seattle area.
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