Traffic alert: ‘Expect congestion’ on E. Marginal starting Wednesday

For surface-street drivers just east of West Seattle: The recent East Marginal Way/Spokane intersection alert included a note about another upcoming project on East Marginal Way, just north of that area. Word just in from SDOT indicates that will start to affect traffic this Wednesday:

A contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation will reduce East Marginal Way South between South Hanford and South Horton streets to one lane in each direction starting June 15 between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. In addition, the roadway will be reduced to one shared lane for both directions of traffic, controlled by traffic flaggers, at night between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m. The work requiring this traffic pattern is expected to be completed by June 17. Drivers should expect congestion. Access to nearby businesses will be maintained.

The purpose of the work is to prepare for the bypass route that is expected to be
open to traffic on June 20 for the E. Marginal Way @ S. Horton Street Bridge
project. For more information, please see the project Web
site.

This city map shows the work zone and the bypass they hope to have in place by this time next week:

DB June 13, 2011 (6:53 pm)

Thank goodness. I thought there was going to be a way downtown that wasn’t blocked…

WS2SODO June 14, 2011 (11:47 am)

Maybe Mayor McGinn can join us to see how the whole “taking the side streets” thing is working out!

FionaEnzo June 14, 2011 (3:57 pm)

Grrrr. Can I also list my pet peeve. Morning drivers on the West Seattle Bridge who zoom up to the front of the standstill line of cars waiting to get on the viaduct, so their individual commute isn’t delayed by the tremendous back-up. Grrrrr. I try to train people not to zip up to front of line but someone always lets them in, so they never learn that being rude doesn’t pay.

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