Just two days after the Westwood transit hub took centerstage at the Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council meeting, a new illustration of a not-so-new concern presented itself:

(Thursday photo courtesy Joe Szilagyi)
On Thursday, WWRHAH secretary Joe Szilagyi took that photo in the middle of a very recognizable crosswalk on SW Barton between the Roxhill Park bus stop and Westwood Village. He sent the photos to city leaders with this note:

I am writing about the crosswalk from the Rapid Ride terminal site at Westwood Village in West Seattle. At some point overnight or today, a car plowed through the crosswalk and demolished it, while leaving debris all over.

We have asked repeatedly for nearly two years for assistance and budgetary relief to fund proper, full, and safe mitigation for pedestrians crossing here in the form of a controlled crosswalk if possible, and failing that at minimum a user-activated flashing visual beacon. As of yet we have only heard several variations on how this is not feasible, beyond current budget realities, or ‘not proper’ or appropriate for this location due to the nearby streetlights at Barton and 26th for the Westwood Village entrance.

There is a user-controlled full crosswalk one block south on Roxbury adjacent to the intersection of Roxbury and 26th, by the Safeway supermarket. Why is that location appropriate for these controls to service that Rapid Ride C stop, while the full end-of-line terminal a block away on another arterial is not? It’s a miracle that no one was in the crosswalk when this happened.

If this slows traffic down on Barton that is an irrelevant concern to the safety issues. Please advise us with a schedule as soon as possible of when this specific crosswalk’s dangerous conditions will be rectified to the satisfaction of the community.

Please note that we are not asking for assistance or guidance on applying for a grant on our own for this. We are asking for SDOT and the City of Seattle to immediately begin remediation of the dangerous conditions at this location.

We were CC’d on that note, and on several replies so far. Councilmember Tom Rasmussen told Szilagyi that he would ask SDOT to respond. SDOT director Scott Kubly said, “I will have my team work with King County to get the shelter repaired and to evaluate what we can do to improve safety at this location.” One of the people from whom he requested followup, city traffic engineer Dongho Chang, replied this morning that he would get it reviewed, then wrote again this afternoon:

The sign was repaired today. We’ll need to chip out the concrete and install a new post anchor. I had staff review our records and we didn’t have any specific concerns that I was able to find today for the crossing. However, I spent some time observing and walking the area and I have some thoughts that I’d like to have a quick conversation with the community.

We verified before sunset that the sign has indeed been repaired:

(WSB photo taken late today)
But that doesn’t address the ongoing issue. The e-mail chain continued late in the day with WWRHAH co-chair Amanda Kay Helmick pointing out that the safety issue had been discussed with SDOT’s new transit division director Paulo Nunes-Ueno at the last West Seattle Transportation Coalition meeting (WSB coverage here) and that she had a walkaround tour set with him for March 30th. All involved are now deciding whether that is soon enough for an assessment, or whether the timetable needs to be accelerated.

The transit-hub-related issues discussed at WWRHAH’s monthly meeting last Tuesday at the Southwest Branch Library involved more than safety. Helmick had already announced that Metro had committed to sidewalk and lighting improvements; Metro’s Paul Roybal was at the meeting to confirm all that, saying the sidewalk work will go from 26th to 29th on the south side of SW Barton, and ADA improvements will be included. Preliminary engineering work is under way, he said, and a survey crew will be out soon; if all goes well, work could start late in the year (which would be two years after WWRHAH’s original walking tour with Metro and other reps).

Also at the meeting, Metro’s Doug Johnson talked about Metro changes that will take effect June 1st as a result of Proposition 1 money. Area residents remain concerned that the 21 isn’t getting much and the previously slashed 22 isn’t getting anything, with Arbor Heights service still suffering as a result. Johnson said this isn’t the only round of improvements; there will be more in the future. Helmick is gathering comments on how the 21/22 reductions have affected riders.

With some other routes – particularly the RapidRide C Line – getting added service, Helmick asked the Metro reps if that meant more layovers and more buses stacking up at the Westwood hub, where the “Wall of Buses” along Roxhill Park has been notorious. Johnson said drivers will still have breaks there but the buses will be moving more frequently to keep up with schedules, so it won’t be that noticeable.

Also at the meeting, Andy Thompson from Westwood Village’s owners, Madison Marquette. WWRHAH told him the center isn’t as walkable as it could be. He said they’re continuing to look into pedestrian safety concerns and questions, but that overall safety has been improved since the Seattle Police bike patrols began.

WWRHAH also talked Tuesday night about Roxhill Bog, one year after its first big discussion; a new report about its issues – particularly, why the bog isn’t much of a bog any more – is out. We’ll publish that part of the March WWRHAH story this weekend.

The Westwood-Roxhill-Arbor Heights Community Council meets first Tuesdays, 6:15 pm, SW Branch Library.