TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Tracking Tuesday; new stop signs on 26th SW greenway

(City cameras are broken again, so here’s a state camera, 1st Ave. S. Bridge; see other cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:47 AM: No specific incidents so far on the routes through/from West Seattle, but we’re watching as usual, for the morning commute and beyond.

8:05 AM: Thanks to the commenters who pointed out that the SDOT cameras are stuck again. So we’ve switched to two state-run cameras, facing south over the south end of the 1st Avenue So. Bridge, and looking south over I-5 just south of the West Seattle Bridge.

8:33 AM: Tommy and Lindsey have both pointed out that new stop signs are installed on the 26th SW greenway in North Delridge. (Added Tuesday pm: Greenway info/map here) And, not all drivers are noticing. Tommy sent this quick clip:

And Lindsey tweeted:

There's a set of new stop signs up at 26th & Juneau. Beware, a lot of cars haven't noticed them yet. @westseattleblog

— Lindsey Hurd (@lindseyhurd) November 19, 2013

By the way, if you have a question about neighborhood traffic safety, SDOT’s Jim Curtin is the person to ask, and he’s the guest at tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting – 7 pm, Southwest Precinct (Webster/Delridge).

P.S. The city traffic cams are working again, so here’s the east-facing one from the bridge:

For more cams, see the WSB Traffic page.

10:32 AM: SDOT reports via Twitter – and commenters have noted here, too – that northbound 99 is closed at Battery St. Tunnel.

4:32 PM: From SDOT – an alert for tomorrow morning:

Tomorrow morning, November 20, the Homeless Advocates March will get underway at 7:45 a.m. after the participants spend the night at Westlake Park. A Seattle Police motorcycle escort will accompany the 100 participants in the street as they make their way east on Pine Street to Fifth Avenue, then southbound on Fifth to the City Hall at Cherry Street. The activists have a goal to “Get 1000 people off the streets by summer 2014.” They will occupy the Committee to End Homelessness in King County (CEHKC) Governing Board Meeting being held at 8:30 a.m. in the Bertha Landis Room of City Hall. Motorists can expect to encounter delays between 7:45 and 8:30 a.m. as the marchers move along the downtown streets. Given the timing of the event, commuters may need to allow for extra time to get to work.

workdowntown November 19, 2013 (7:25 am)

Camera seems to be stuck on yesterday afternoon. Traffic is much worse than that!

Bigred November 19, 2013 (7:25 am)

Is it just my computer? All of the cams seem to be stuck on yesterday around 2pm? Don’t be fooled!

Greta November 19, 2013 (7:29 am)

Bridge lane to NB 99 ramp is crawling. Sign says time to Ballard is 26 minutes.

Enough November 19, 2013 (8:01 am)

Fauntleroy is backed up. Bridge backed up to 35th.

WSB November 19, 2013 (8:07 am)

Apologies, I thought it looked a little light – in both senses of the word – when I put this up, but did not check back. All the city cameras are stuck again so I’ve put up a state camera.

Shannon November 19, 2013 (8:11 am)

55 min from Morgan Junction to downtown… pretty slow this morning! Also small accident just over the midpoint of the bridge going eastbound, didn’t look like it was affecting much.

East Coast Cynic November 19, 2013 (8:19 am)

Slower than usual times on a rainy day, particularly after Monday and before Friday, par for the course.

Which makes the anguish of the Metro Cuts early next year all the greater.

dq November 19, 2013 (8:22 am)

If you can get to the water taxi, it’s smooth sailing and an easy 12 min crossing.

WSB November 19, 2013 (8:46 am)

City cams are working now and I have re-added the bridge cam to the bottom of the story …

NorDel November 19, 2013 (9:46 am)

There are two other new stop signs that I noticed this morning. 26th and Dakota and 26th and (SW Plumbing/Delridge play field haha) sorry. I can’t think of the street name!

WSB November 19, 2013 (9:54 am)

That’s SW Alaska. Thanks, NorDel!

JBK November 19, 2013 (10:04 am)

Wait, that video can’t be right. I thought only bicyclists ran stop signs.

West Seattle since 1979 November 19, 2013 (10:21 am)

I’m looking out my window from Yesler Way in Pioneer Square, and noticing that traffic on northbound 99 is barely moving, so if you’re thinking of using 99 to go north you might want to take another route. Not sure what’s causing the problem–I can only see one little stretch of roadway.

lil November 19, 2013 (10:27 am)

On the onramp to 99N and it looks like the Battery Street Tunnel is closed. Traffic is very slow.

WSB November 19, 2013 (10:32 am)

Thanks – northbound 99 at the tunnel is “closed due to an accident,” according to SDOT via Twitter, but it wasn’t on the 99 log (apparently nobody hurt). Adding – TR

Thomas November 19, 2013 (10:50 am)

@JBK: You’d be amazed at what vehicles are choosing NOT to stop. The public Seattle public school bus did stop (with flashers) like expected, but the private school buses were barely slowing down. Go figure.

Civik November 19, 2013 (10:55 am)

No surprise the stop was run. That person doesn’t even know how to use a traffic circle!

s November 19, 2013 (11:16 am)

That last car went clockwise by the circle to turn left. Is that legal? I thought that with traffic circles, you had to go counterclockwise and that the car in the circle always has right of way. But I see a lot of cars going clockwise to go left or use regular-intersection rules for right of way. What is correct?

KBear November 19, 2013 (11:50 am)

Traffic circles shouldn’t even have stop signs! It’s contradictory, like putting a stop sign and a yield sign on the same post. You’re supposed to slow down and yield to any traffic already in the circle. The only reason for adding stop signs is because Seattle drivers can’t figure out traffic circles.

junctioneer November 19, 2013 (12:29 pm)

@ s: You should go around the loop, counter-clockwise. Many cars do go clockwise, and many stop and get confused about who should go first. Many here do not know how to use traffic circles.

@ KBear: Agreed, it is a little funny, although I don’t know the intersection. It’s somewhat understandable not noticing a stopsign at a traffic circle. I thought traffic circles replaced stop lights. It’s not really like having a stop light and a stop sign at the same time, but it makes me thing of that…

westseattledood November 19, 2013 (12:58 pm)

KBear – funny and true!

Stay to the right people!

skeeter November 19, 2013 (1:38 pm)

http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/sdotfaqs.htm#nto

How do I turn left at a traffic circle?

State Law does not distinguish between a traffic circle and a larger roundabout. Consequently, a driver turning left at a neighborhood traffic circle must proceed counterclockwise around the traffic circle. However, we recognize that there are instances when drivers may need to turn left before a traffic circle, such as when cars park too closely to the right side of a circle or when a driver can’t maneuver a larger vehicle around to the right. Turning left in front of a traffic circle in those instances can be safely performed if the driver exercises reasonable care and yields to pedestrians, bicyclists, and oncoming traffic.

MB November 19, 2013 (1:45 pm)

Uh, when the heck were stop signs put in there? I’ve lived on that street my entire life, travel through that intersection daily and must have been one of the people who “blew through the stop sign” this morning. I didn’t notice it at all. Why on earth would anyone expect to see a stop sign at a traffic circle. As said above, doesn’t it negate the purpose of the traffic circle all together? I actually think stop signs there are a good idea, but not in addition to a traffic circle…really, really weird. Not sure why any strange traffic revisions in this city surprise me anymore :/

WSB November 19, 2013 (2:03 pm)

Sorry I didn’t go find this earlier – here’s the map showing features of the greenway, including the stop signs:
.
http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/delridgegreenway.htm
.
Note that as we’ve mentioned in a couple spots, SDOT neighborhood traffic guru Jim Curtin (a West Seattleite) is the guest at the WS Crime Prevention Council meeting tonight. I don’t know how closely he was involved with the greenway, if at all, but I would guess he’d still be a good person to ask if you have questions. Also note that if you live in southeast WS, there’s an open house tonight about the proposed greenway there (see our “West Seattle Tuesday” calendar highlights) – TR

kjb November 19, 2013 (2:06 pm)

There are also 2 new signs on Hudson at 26th Ave. SW also a traffic circle intersection. I am having a hard time with the fact that the new speed bumps along 26th Ave. Sw are not painted with a more reflective paint – on a dark rainy night you can’t see them!

kjb November 19, 2013 (2:10 pm)

Ok, since traffic circles have come up, I am so puzzled by the small round thing not even in the middle of the intersection at the top of Snake Hill (Juneau) near the pond at High Point. It is in a ridiculous spot for going around it counter clock wise and doesn’t have an indicator just how you are supposed to maneuver around it.

Gordon November 19, 2013 (6:30 pm)

A stop sign at a traffic circle? Doesn’t that serve to confuse drivers?
Doesn’t SDOT usually add Warning flags to new traffic features? I didn’t see anything in the video.

Qwertycris November 19, 2013 (9:37 pm)

@kjb, you should definitely go counterclockwise around that traffic circle. I drive up Snake Hill almost every day and have lost count of the times I had to swerve to avoid someone because they didn’t see me as they went clockwise.

DRS November 19, 2013 (9:50 pm)

Stop signs at a roundabout are a little counter intuitive and I agree there should have been flags or something but hopefully this will help people slow down a little on that stretch.
The car in the video that made an illegal left was by no means a rare occurrences do people really tear through our neighborhood.
As for the top of snake hill, that is a roundabout and should be taken counterclockwise. I could get in an accident there every day if I wasn’t careful, there’s not enough room for two cars if you make an illegal leftamd lots of kids in both ends of the street.

sam-c November 20, 2013 (8:22 am)

kjb- yes, please go counter-clockwise around that. yes, it is a pain, I know from doing it, but ya just gotta do it anyway. we were almost in a head on collision at that intersection because a sounders-lovin soccer mom in a minivan went around clockwise and wasn’t even really paying attention.

Lindsey November 20, 2013 (8:25 am)

@gordon, at my street, Juneau, there was a “traffic revision ahead” sign about a half block in front of the stop signs. It still took me a little bit to notice them.

Thomas November 20, 2013 (8:55 am)

The intersection in the video does have a large orange construction-style “New Traffic Pattern” sign about 15-20 ft in front of it. I took that video, but just noticed today that none of the plants in front of the stop sign were removed, so the thing is almost unnoticeable. Definitely a bit of work to do on the intersections — hopefully the vegetation is cut back. But honestly, those intersections are VERY dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists, especially for people walking as there are no sidewalks south of that traffic circle.

I. Ponder November 20, 2013 (9:56 am)

Comments like “Why on earth would anyone expect to see a stop sign at a traffic circle.” reinforce my belief that most drivers are unqualified to operate a vehicle. The big red and white sign itself is notification enough. It’s because many drivers don’t practice basic safety, pay attention, or follow rules, that we need to install big chunks of concrete like traffic circles to slow them down.

Many drivers still haven’t noticed the crosswalk in the Alaska Junction or are clueless about the rules attached to it. Even if you think it’s stupid to have signs, traffic circles, crosswalks, or speed limits, you still must follow the rules of the road for the benefit of other people’s safety.

Jeff November 20, 2013 (10:07 am)

A circle with a stop sign
And some of you dont believe me when i say the people who come up with this stuff are lame
Really lame

MB November 20, 2013 (1:43 pm)

@ I. Ponder, I’m perfectly qualified, thank you very much. One speeding ticket my entire life and countless West Seattle folks who are still alive because I was the one paying attention on the road. I have never seen a stop sign at a traffic circle until this one and I am apparently not the only one, that doesn’t make me unqualified. Doesn’t help that on the approach it’s almost covered by branches, as pointed out above. When a traffic revision happens, especially one as important as a new stop sign, shouldn’t it be a priority to make it as visible as possible? A big red sign yes, in a spot that for a lifetime has never had a sign and is currently partially blocked by branches. A basic stop line would be helpful as well. When I approach that intersection I am usually looking to my left to see if anyone is going to come whipping around the corner from 26th and around the parked cars (that shouldn’t be allowed to park there). And I usually almost come to a stop anyway to make sure someone coming the opposite direction isn’t going to cut across the wrong way (also hard to see them approaching because of the plants in the traffic circle itself). I think the traffic circle there was a great addition when it was put in. As I said before, I think stop signs there are a great idea, I just think the combination of the two is strange and not something you usually see.

Jason November 20, 2013 (2:05 pm)

Yeah… people can’t be bothered to stop at stop signs. This is a video that I took while sitting at the Original Bakery. NO ONE STOPS (for 7 minutes). Some may slow down, but no one stops. Not even the school bus. Oh and if you are driving a motorcycle, then apparently stop signs don’t apply to you. I think one person actually stopped, but it was well over the crosswalk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n590awtnxGg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH94q0oB56M

WSB November 20, 2013 (2:16 pm)

And there’s a four-way, two-arterial stop near our house through which so many people blow, particularly westbound turning to northbound, that police come to stake it out from time to time, and we’ve had near-death experiences as we gingerly head northbound with those stop-sign blowers in danger of T-boning us.

MB November 20, 2013 (6:43 pm)

Just for the sake of clarity, the intersection in the video is actually at 26th and Brandon, not Juneau. Juneau is further down at the transformer station (though it sounds like there is a new stop there as well). There isn’t a traffic circle at 26th and Juneau. And yes, I have been one of very few cars who are now actually stopping at both. Heading Westbound on Brandon the new sign is super obvious, especially reflecting from headlights after dark. I hope they plan to come trim the branches covering part of the sign headed Eastbound. And I may not have a stop sign when traveling North/South on 26th right there, but I’m sure not going to trust that anyone is actually seeing the new East/West signs! Yikes!

kjb November 21, 2013 (8:16 am)

This morning I am watching traffic flow faster then ever on 26th – due to the new stop signs, the city has pretty much defeated the purpose of the traffic circles we fought for years ago. Once again 26th is an even easier straight away to avoid Delridge.

Sorry, comment time is over.