TRAFFIC/TRANSIT TODAY: Monday updates & road-work alerts, including Roxbury rechannelization

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
No incidents in the area so far this morning. And still no school for Seattle Public Schools – this is the fourth weekday of the Seattle Education Association strike. (Non-public schools remain in session.) Road-work alerts:

SB 21ST BETWEEN ANDOVER & GENESEE: This section of 21st will be closed to through traffic for repair work as part of the Delridge-Highland Park Neighborhood Greenway project, as announced here.

ROXBURY/35TH RECHANNELIZATION: Nighttime work to restripe and remove the old stripes (via hydroblasting) is beginning – crews were seen out last night on Roxbury. Here’s the alert.

8:40 AM: Just checked out Roxbury. It is now officially rechannelized (one travel lane each way, center turn lane) from 35th to just west of 17th.

New configuration in place on SW Roxbury this morning. Old striping gone, 35th to 22nd. pic.twitter.com/fHCtZdiYAL

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) September 14, 2015

The old lane lines are mostly gone west of 22nd; still some work to do east of there.

9:04 AM: We also went again to see if the SPU sewer work on 48th/49th has begun. While we still haven’t found anything in the Seaview area, we did find crews on 49th north of Hudson, which is closed to through traffic. (This also might affect you on west-east routes – we initially went west on Hudson and had to turn into the alley because it was closed at Hudson.) We’re checking with SPU to get an update.

10:36 AM: Nothing to add to that yet but – a crash reported in the 7100 block of W. Marginal Way, blocking southbound lanes right now, per scanner traffic. No injuries reported so far.

4:49 PM: Here’s what SPU says about the road projects:

The work on 49th Avenue SW was scheduled to begin the week of September 8. The contractor started light mobilization last week and began heavier construction this morning, as you saw. Work on the sewer repair will take approximately one week.

* The other sewer repair project you mention is on 48th Ave SW. The work on 48th Ave SW between SW Juneau and SW Raymond Street will begin this week, with mobilization as early as Wednesday, and will also take approximately one week to complete.

ACG September 14, 2015 (8:34 am)

Why are the school zone lights flashing at Gatewood when there is no school today? Just be warned, folks. It would totally suck to get a school zone camera ticket on a day when there is no school!!!!

WSB September 14, 2015 (8:37 am)

We wrote about that last week; maybe I should mention it daily. SDOT says they were preprogrammed. If a camera ticket arrives, you won’t be charged.

ACG September 14, 2015 (9:23 am)

Thanks, WSB!!!

N September 14, 2015 (10:11 am)

Still incredibly frustrated with the entire principal of the re-channelization of Roxbury. However, what makes this even worse, is that WSDOT performed NONE of the road repairs that were promised. What a joke…

WSB September 14, 2015 (10:23 am)

N, it’s not complete. The basic restriping of the lanes is (as noted by us while checking on it this morning, NOT as formally announced by SDOT or anyone else) and that’s why we added this – we noted the preliminary marking earlier this month and then apparently last night (as tweeted by area resident @smokeycretin9 ) they started the nighttime restriping and hydroblasting work. Other work is continuing. Sorry if the way I wrote it suggested they were done. Literally, I meant only the actual “rechannelization” as in the lane reconfiguration, which as you note is only part of the project as detailed last April https://westseattleblog.com/2015/04/happening-now-sdot-unveils-sw-roxbury-plan-at-westwood-roxhill-arbor-heights-community-council-meeting – TR

Chris September 14, 2015 (10:29 am)

Traffic seemed to be flowing pretty normally on Roxbury this morning, even with drivers adjusting to the new lanes. None of the feared “gridlock”, as far as I could see.

JordanP September 14, 2015 (10:56 am)

The city is just asking for everyone to stop using arterials that are ceasing to exist and using neighborhoods streets as faster ways in and out of our neighborhoods. Very unfortunate, but with stop lights and and single lanes it is getting to a point where side streets without lights are faster alternatives to what were once major arterials.
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Fauntleroy, when we moved here 23 years ago had three arterials that got us close with a total of 6 lanes in and 6 lanes out. If they cut 35th to one lane as well, that will have dropped to 3 lanes in and 3 lanes out and no real areterials at all, while the city continues to increase density in the neighborhood.
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Add the controlling of the light at Fauntleroy and California by the C Line bus and that intersection is quickly becoming one to avoid. I sat through two full cycles one day as the light should have turned green for my direction (south bound on California) but instead went to the left turn light on Fauntleroy and then through the full cycle again before finally getting to let us go. I made the mistake of stopping for the yellow light there, will never make that mistake again at that intersection.
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Little wonder I will drive to Southcenter to shop rather than the Alaska junction anymore. I hate having to do that, but time and convenience makes it worth it.

KBear September 14, 2015 (12:11 pm)

Yeah, because there’s NOOOO traffic ever by Southcenter!

Neighbor September 14, 2015 (12:18 pm)

Joe Szilagyi September 14, 2015 (12:32 pm)

In what possible scenario is a drive from anywhere in West Seattle city limits to Southcenter faster than driving to the Junction for a to b travel time? I have to call foul.

Josh September 14, 2015 (12:36 pm)

I thought it would be nice. But heading Eastbound on Roxbury, trying to to left onto 26th, was impossible. Line of cars coming west. 3 light cycles to turn left.

Joe Szilagyi September 14, 2015 (1:48 pm)

@Josh I’m pretty sure the long term plans there are a controlled left turn cycle or whatever it’sc alled.

chemist September 14, 2015 (3:41 pm)

Signals are being considered….
http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/docs/SWRoxburyFactSheet.pdf

Can anything be done to improve conditions at 26th Avenue SW and SW Roxbury Street?
SDOT will be installing left turn pockets on 26th Avenue SW for the northbound and southbound approaches to Roxbury. This change is intended to resolve left turn and angle collisions that have occurred at this intersection 15 times in the past three years. Traffic signal changes are also being considered for this intersection.

Neighbor September 14, 2015 (5:33 pm)

The Roxbury work is a SDOT project not state (WSDOT). More than likely work within city limits will be a Seattle project. (Sorry about the previous one-letter post. Problems with connection.)

Cainipoo September 14, 2015 (5:48 pm)

@JordanP, totally agree!! Traffic has been light in the mornings heading south on California, but that will change once SPS begins school.

Greystreet September 15, 2015 (11:30 am)

Oh wait until you hit Roxbury when the school on Roxbury (the name escapes me at the moment) has the school zone lights on, I sat in backed up traffic yesterday afternoon past 14th when the school zone was on because the lane changes.

35th has already begun to be reduced, I get that people are fed up but as I have posted before–West SEattle is growing which means increased density of people and instead of looking at ways to manage traffic better the proverbial “they” are reducing traffic lanes…I’m sorry but it just doesn’t make sense to me and I agree with the above posting that I will start to use arterials to avoid these one lanes and lights.

Sincerely frustrated.

Chuck September 16, 2015 (5:26 am)

Grey, I totally agree. I realize that no city had ever paved their way out of traffic, but Seattle seems determined to unpaved their way into gridlock. What 35th will look like in a week really concerns me. I expect backups from Roxbury to Alaska and suspect that new dive times along that route will surpass 10 minutes.

WSB September 16, 2015 (7:58 am)

If you see this anticipated gridlock, please be sure to report it in the daily traffic watch. We travel on Roxbury and 35th multiple times most days but maybe not at the same times you do. As for “forcing” those involved to use the same routes … project manager Jim Curtin is an Arbor Heights resident and actually does.

Sorry, comment time is over.