West Seattle traffic alert update: 35th SW crash scene clear

12:12 PM: A crash at 35th/Henderson has police diverting traffic north of the scene, at SW Trenton, and south at Barton. More details to come.

12:19 PM UPDATE: Added a photo. No information so far on the circumstances of the crash, but as the picture shows, two cars were involved. The private ambulance was there to take one person to the hospital. It and the fire truck have just cleared, according to our crew on the scene, but you’ll want to avoid the area a while longer, till debris can be cleaned up, and vehicles towed if needed.

1:03 PM: Went back over to verify – the scene is all clear, traffic back to normal.

velo_nut May 31, 2011 (1:07 pm)

another reason I-35 needs to be one lane each way with a center turn lane.

clark5080 May 31, 2011 (1:11 pm)

That doesn’t stop people from turning in front of you like happened to me of course unless you add a light at nearly every interscetion

Franci May 31, 2011 (1:18 pm)

A little off topic but.. I’ve been very surprised lately at the number of drivers who don’t seem to understand what the center turn lane is for… too many times lately I’ve been following behind someone who stops in the travel lane with their left turn signal on, the center lane is empty, and wait for the traffic in the far left lane to clear before turning.

R May 31, 2011 (1:44 pm)

Is it me or have there been a number of accidents at that corner recently?

Charlie May 31, 2011 (1:46 pm)

35th at Trenton has a turn lane already. Plus a stoplight, though no dedicated left turn light.

biankat May 31, 2011 (1:46 pm)

Agreed, Franci.

anonyme May 31, 2011 (3:17 pm)

As I was walking home a short time ago, an entire stream of traffic set off the speed monitor at 35th & 100th. Every.Single.Car.SPEEDING.

coffee May 31, 2011 (3:29 pm)

My beef with the single lane, and center turn lane, many many people turn it into a passing lane. Happens all the time on fauntleroy and delridge.

kgdlg May 31, 2011 (3:37 pm)

i cannot believe the speeding on 35th. the only thing that will stop this is enforcement!!! more SPD!!!! remember how people fought the “road diet” on fauntleroy? can you imagine trying to do this on 35th? people would lose it. i have no problems with SPD aggressively ticketing speeders here. and if this helps the budget gap, so be it. there is NO REASON anyone needs to go 50mph on 35th.

DCS Foyle May 31, 2011 (4:20 pm)

I’m with you, kjdlg, but we need to go one better. SPD simply doesn’t have the budget or the personnel to stake out all the speeding/aggressive driving hotspots like I-35/Admiral/WSbridge, etc. The solution is PHOTO RADAR! People fight it tooth and nail because they know how effective it is at catching speeders. Under the current ‘rules of engagement’, your chances of being caught while speeding are pretty slim, and with the relatively low price of speeding tickets, for most folks, the risk/benefit analysis pencils out in favor of taking chances. If the odds of being caught became a near certainty, people will adjust their behaviour. Photo radar works and is legal. And to the critics who complain that municipalities use them to generate revenue, I say two things:
1) Better you than me, and…
2) If you don’t want to pay, pay attention to your driving.

More attentive drivers = less accidents = WINNING!

anonyme May 31, 2011 (5:43 pm)

DCS Foyle – I’m with you 100%. I have no problem at all with the City earning revenue by busting jerks. Why should my property taxes have to cover everything? I’m not committing a crime, the speeders are. Let them pay.

Danny May 31, 2011 (5:47 pm)

Got passed by an SPD car on 35th yesterday, I was going 38 and he blew by me. No lights, just patrolling.

The problem I have with photo radar is that people paying more attention to their speedometers than the road are far more dangerous than someone going 40 in a 35.

cj May 31, 2011 (6:54 pm)

I hate when we have to drive down 35. There are a lot of aggressive drivers on that road and a lot of fast lane changers too. Its like half the drivers have more faith in your breaks than you do.

Mark Neuman May 31, 2011 (7:01 pm)

You can count me, also, as agreeing with DCS Foyle 100%

Dunno May 31, 2011 (7:31 pm)

I know for a fact speed was not a factor in this crash. Poor driving. Also uninsured. If we must have DUI checkpoints, why not proof insurance checks too. It’s BS that nearly half our drivers nationwide don’t have insurance. I’m all for photo radar!

Recall McGinn May 31, 2011 (7:34 pm)

I think that all drivers should be required to provide proof of insurance when renewing tabs or drivers licenses. Uninsured drivers should not be on the road.

rmp June 1, 2011 (7:28 am)

I’m with DCS too! But I also like the idea of “check points”! Too many uninsured drives in Seattle! I have been hit 3 times in the past 20 years all in West Seattle, NEVER did any of the “hitters” have insurance! No wonder those of us who have insurance keep paying more!

Desertdweller June 1, 2011 (8:51 am)

I drive on 35th from Westwood up to the bridge a few times a day and I hardly ever see anyone driving recklessly or speeding more than 5 miles over the speed limit. I hate to disagree with everyone, but it’s really not that bad. There are always going to be a few people who drive recklessly, but let’s be real folks, it’s a very small percentage of people.

mcbride June 1, 2011 (10:34 am)

Speeders are a problem. Inattentive drivers are a problem. Aggressive drivers are a problem. The fact is, this road has a Lot of problems, and pointing to any single one of them is to miss the point entirely. The problem is the road.
.
Look at the numbers for other streets in Seattle. Look at the accident rates. Look at vehicle/pedestrian collisions. Look at the Fatalities. Compare them to 35th Ave SW. This road is Broken. Speed reduction won’t fix the problem. Additional enforcement won’t fix the problem. Asking people nicely to observe common courtesy and accepted best practice driving methods won’t fix the problem. You have to fix the road.