TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Back-to-school Monday

(Live view from the east-facing WS Bridge camera; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:03 AM: The last of the post-winter-break back-to-school days is here – Seattle Public Schools classes resume today after two weeks off.

Also of note: If you drive/ride/bike/walk along Delridge, get ready for the repaving project that begins Thursday in the Phase 1 zone (between Trenton and Henderson) – it’ll mean slower going and southbound detours (here’s the latest).

And an alert for those who travel through SODO – some work on Spokane Street today and tomorrow.

Have a safe day, and share the news when you can if something of note happens along the way.

7:37 AM UPDATE: Still quiet.

jedifarfy January 7, 2013 (7:37 am)

Not sure if it’s traffic or a new driver but my 120 bus is running about 15 minutes behind.

wsea January 7, 2013 (8:39 am)

The traffic camera makes me appreciate rejecting the job offer on the eastside. Sure would be nice to have the 99 connect to i-90 once the tunnel is finished. I bet this would reduce the bridge traffic.

Work downtown January 7, 2013 (8:48 am)

Hmmm, the “live” camera is actually from last week…

WSB January 7, 2013 (8:51 am)

You’re the second person to mention that and I think there might be an ISP out there with caching problems – it’s been updating continuously on this end all morning, and it is NOT on our server, so there is no reason that it would update for me when I refresh the page (it is NOT an auto-refresh) and not for others. Last report I got, I looked at 7:52 and it showed that time stamp and an appropriate light level; now it’s lighter and time-stamped 8:48. Please try refreshing, cache-clearing, etc. – TR

jgonplay January 7, 2013 (9:38 am)

I get a “Not Found, Error 404 Sorry! Thanks for trying! ” when trying the link for “here’s the latest” which is referencing https://westseattleblog.com/2013/01/seattle.gov/transportation/pave_delridge.htm

WSB January 7, 2013 (9:50 am)

URL was missing a few letters. Link’s fixed now. Thanks!

Ian January 7, 2013 (9:58 am)

I am new to commuting outside of WS in the morning, I have an 8 am class at SPU… bummer. Anyway, today was much different than the commute on Friday. Which is more like the daily commute? I try to leave by 7, what should I expect for the bridge and 99? Thanks!

gatewoodsue January 7, 2013 (11:45 am)

Ian – IME the bridge is usually not bad if you get on it before 7, after that it gets more & more crowded until the 10:00 hour…but rarely will it take you an hour – you should be able to make your 8:00 class if you leave by 7:00

West Seattle since 1979 January 7, 2013 (1:45 pm)

I noticed there were more people on the 21 local that gets to 35th and Avalon at about 7:17 than I’d ever seen before, even before the winter break for the schools.

Me January 7, 2013 (6:52 pm)

Ian – too bad your class isn’t at 8:30. If you get on the bridge at 8am, it will be free-sailing (disagree with gatewoodsue and the comment “more and more crowded until the 10:00 hour).
It’s really bad between 7-8 unless it’s a holiday, beautiful weather, or a Friday. Before and after you should be ok.

East Coast Cynic January 7, 2013 (9:43 pm)

From personal experience-a little over 3 years ago–I-5 N is bad up through 10am, as a matter of fact, it was worse in the later hours than the earlier ones.

Ian January 8, 2013 (7:25 am)

Thank you all for the input, I will keep it in mind for when I am running out the door!

Carolyn January 8, 2013 (8:34 am)

Ian, try going up Columbian Way to Beacon Hill, then past PacMed Hospital over to Broadway. You may encounter more traffic signals, but in the long run you’ll save time and miss a bunch of traffic. That’s the route I always take to go to the Swedish Medical Campus any time of the day as I-5 is always a mess!

Maria January 8, 2013 (10:39 am)

Ian – I commute north on 99 and will say that the most unreliable hours are 7am-9:30am. It used to free up after 8:30, but the tunnel construction now bogs that down, and I do beleive more commuters are leaving earlier. Therefore, I try to hit the bridge by 7am rather than leave the house at 7am. If the 99N onramp backs up to west side of the high rise and you can see the car lights on 99 aren’t moving (which translates to >45 minutes), then I’ve done what Carolyn does and go up Columbia Way and head north across the Rizal bridge past the ID and down Boren to Westlake which will take you to SPU.

westseattledood January 8, 2013 (11:48 am)

re: the syncing of traffic.com camera shots

My two cents- i figured out that two of the four browsers i use on my smart phone show Jan. 2 screenshot. these particular browsers compress data and that seems a plausible factor. i dunno for sure, but doesn’t seem to be an isp issue, fyi.

Onward…;)

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