FOLLOWUP: Will/can anything be done about West Seattle-bound afternoon jams?

(Photo sent last Friday by bus rider stuck in downtown jam)

As another afternoon commute begins, we followed up on the complaints about last Friday, especially from bus riders caught in gridlock making their way to/through the south side of downtown. Along with complaints, some commenters had suggestions. We asked Metro spokesperson Jeff Switzer if any changes were planned to try to address the problem. Short answer, no. Longer:

Friday’s downtown traffic was especially difficult, with a Mariners home game and the start of the Bite of Seattle, and what seemed like a lot more traffic downtown. We continue to monitor and work to get our buses through that traffic as best we can, which can reach gridlock conditions at times due to construction, viaduct demolition, and the Seattle Squeeze.

Having Alaskan Way and 2-way Columbia Street completed will allow our buses to shift there instead, but that is still several months away. For West Seattle riders who must travel during peak times, the service on the street can unfortunately face traffic delays, but we also have options worth considering, including the Water Taxi and Ride2 and water taxi shuttles, and Link/Route 50.

The reference to Alaskan Way/2-way Columbia Street is a reminder of what we’ve pointed out in comment discussions, that buses are not on their permanent route – this map (PDF) shows the future “pathways.” Meantime, one WSB reader, Charlie, CC’d us on a note to City Councilmember Lisa Herbold‘s office about the bus frustration. While buses are a county service, the city has had increasing involvement by funding added service. Charlie pointed out the WSB discussion and ideas for easing the jam. Herbold staffer Newell Aldrich CC’d us on the reply, which notes they’ve raised concerns previously and are asking new SDOT director Sam Zimbabwe to address the suggestions. They also shared an SDOT reply from previous correspondence two months ago explaining various reasons why the department feels a bus-only lane on 1st wouldn’t be feasible.

85 Replies to "FOLLOWUP: Will/can anything be done about West Seattle-bound afternoon jams?"

  • Paul July 22, 2019 (4:11 pm)

    I zipped right home near the Charlestown Water tower (via Alki Beach to linger and lounge) on friday on my Ebike, just like everyday. No traffic woes as I cruised by traffic stuck all the way up Jackson to 6th ave. No sweat, no strain as I pedaled along with my battery and motor taking on the lion’s share of the effort. I know it’s not a solution for everyone but if you haven’t tried one of these bikes and there’s the slightest chance it could solve some transportation issues for you, then you should go test ride one. Stu at Alki Bike and Board knows them inside out and can show you the ropes.just say’n

    • old timer July 22, 2019 (5:39 pm)

      @ Paul – how much does this effortless Ebike “zip” cost you every day?

      • Tsurly July 22, 2019 (6:27 pm)

        Ebikes start new around $1,500. Far less than you would spend on gas and insurance for even a beater car over a year.

      • Paul July 22, 2019 (7:23 pm)

        @old timer. I not sure exactly what you’re asking but to charge the battery costs less than a dollar, I charge about every other day, more often in the winter as temperature affects the overall range. It does cost me calories which I certainly need to spend. What it doesnt’ cost me is gas, insurance and substantial maintenance costs. Redoing my drive train components which I do once a year or a bit more is about $50

      • Delridger July 22, 2019 (8:48 pm)

        You’d be unlikely to find a battery bigger than 48 V and 15 amp-hours, and a battery that big could easily go from anywhere in West Seattle to downtown and back, probably twice, on a full charge. A battery that size would take 0.72 killowatt hours to fully charge. At 11.2 cents per killowatt hour, that’s 8.1 cents per charge. Sources: amp-hour to KwH converter: https://www.inchcalculator.com/ah-to-kwh-calculator/energy prices from bureau of labor statistics: https://www.bls.gov/regions/west/news-release/averageenergyprices_seattle.htm

    • Mike July 22, 2019 (8:09 pm)

      I teleport to work.  No electricity needed, no gas, no traffic, just pure mutant power.

      • Talmerian July 23, 2019 (12:28 am)

        Teleportation is good, but the amount of pasta you need to eat to sustain the carbs necessary for daily teleportation has got to be expensive art the Pink Door!

    • SNT July 23, 2019 (11:45 am)

      I’m a full time disabled employee and I cannot ride a bike. SO…. should I just go back on Disability?

      • SNT2 July 27, 2019 (10:16 am)

        I know it’s not a solution for everyone but if you haven’t tried one of these bikes and there’s the slightest chance it could solve some transportation issues for you, then you should go test ride one.”

  • J July 22, 2019 (4:24 pm)

    Thank you so much for asking them about this! Unfortunately, it wasn’t just friday, and that’s what they don’t seem to recognize. The delays and backups are happening multiple days a week. And while the water taxi is great for some, it is not efficient if your end point is south delridge, for instance. I emailed the mayor’s office today asking if they’d consider adding a traffic control officer at 1st and Columbia. I shared my google maps travel times over the past week as an example. I take the C, 21, or 120 and the bus rides have averaged 70 minutes (getting on at 3rd and Virginia and off near westwood) thanks again for continued coverage. 

  • newnative July 22, 2019 (4:44 pm)

    There are several factors in the jams, however I have noticed that are incredibly worsened by cars who continue to “block the box”. Traffic all over downtown gets completely choked and no one can get through. People lose their tempers, honking, cutting each other off, switching lanes, blocking roads trying to make illegal turns. It’s crazy. 

    • shawn July 22, 2019 (5:16 pm)

      Indeed. If they posted 2-3 traffic cops along 1st for a few hours each afternoon, it would do wonders for bus reliability.  Red paint is the correct long term solution, but in the mean time just getting these single-occupant personal vehicles to wait their turn and yield to the busses would not be a bad place to start

      • DK July 23, 2019 (7:25 am)

        The problem with the traffic cops is even they don’t favor the buses and allow cars to take more priority than buses. Its ridiculous.

    • ARPigeonPoint July 23, 2019 (1:04 pm)

      It’s the worst! The buses do it, too.  I’m starting to take pics when the buses move through when the light is yellow or red and effectively block the box (because they definitely did NOT have time to make that intersection).  I believe they’re talking about cameras to help control it, but will that affect buses?  Also, I have to go south on 5th and everyone seems to think that they HAVE to turn left on Spring to get to the freeway (they do not) so people suddenly stop in the middle lane with their turn signals on and sit there in their “all about me” world, causing massive backups behind them along with causing people (and buses) who legitimately had enough time to be driving through the intersection to suddenly get stuck IN the intersection.

      • KM July 23, 2019 (2:10 pm)

        The state legislature declined to pass a bill last session allowing for some cameras in Seattle only to move forward (it was fairly watered down). So unfortunately, nothing in the process for the cameras…yet. 

      • Ness A July 27, 2019 (11:35 am)

        The reason buses do it is because cars will fill up the lane they need to get to turning right, so their choices are either block traffic through one cycle or sit there for 5, 6 or even more traffic cycles for enough space to be available in the lane on the other side of the intersection. So it’s a problem being caused by cars themselves.

  • SittinginTraffic July 22, 2019 (4:48 pm)

    If they’re not going to do anything to address the problem, can they at least be better at communicating when they expect an “especially difficult commute”? I received a text, an hour into my Friday standstill, noting that the traffic was due to “congestion”. If they have the communication channels in place and they can anticipate a particularly bad commute, why can’t they at least help people plan their day better?

  • Eric1 July 22, 2019 (4:48 pm)

    Wow.  I don’t think I could come up with a more wordy platitude for: This isn’t Metro’s fault. Our geniuses planned this months ago. Requiring us to think and adopt adaptive management is too difficult. We don’t look at calendars and assume that Seattle rains every day so nobody attends outdoor festivals.  But by all means if you are unlucky enough to be the one or two people who have a job in Freattle,  use our smaller than normal boat and lone short bus as a replacement to the 20 or so articulated buses stuck in traffic.   But hey, in two months we’ll change the routes and overlook something else important.   

  • DaPuffin July 22, 2019 (4:51 pm)

    Those options are not really helpful for those of us who live in Arbor Heights.  Over two hours on the 21x on Friday.  😖

    • B.W July 22, 2019 (5:05 pm)

      That’s because you all haven’t taken advantage of the seldom used bicycle lanes. Jump on a bike and breeze through the evil car traffic .

      • Gene July 22, 2019 (5:59 pm)

        For those that can physically be on s bike- hey go for it -but there are hundreds if not thousands of commuters  for whom bikes are not an option.

        • sam-c July 23, 2019 (5:38 am)

          My kid hates zipping through traffic on her bike.  Heck, she’s still trying to learn how to stop.  Can you just leave a 6 year old at home while you go to work? Asking for a friend, lol. Would make things so much easier without day care pick ups and drop offs.

          • Tsurly July 23, 2019 (8:31 am)

            I manage to get my kid to and from daycare everyday on a bike, often with grocery store stops/errands in the evening, while also working a demanding consulting job. It’s not hat hard.

          • sam-c July 23, 2019 (12:31 pm)

            Good for you Tsurly.  My health doesn’t allow me to pull more than myself and a bike.  E bikes aren’t in my budget   But whatever, it wouldn’t be a true comment thread without smug bike-riders.

          • ARPigeonPoint July 23, 2019 (1:23 pm)

            Tsurly, have you ever considered saying something like, “if anyone is interested in starting a bike commute, here are some helpful links to get you started [insert links]” instead of the inevitable “I’m better than you” post?

          • Tsurly July 23, 2019 (2:39 pm)

            Myself and others have offered up many suggestions like that in the past, some still do. I’m at the point where I’m sick of hearing the same complaints over and over again when there are other viable options available. We live on a peninsula within a major metropolitan area, bad traffic is unavoidable. There are two options: Be adults and make lifestyle changes to adapt to it, or continue in your ways and be miserable.

          • TSurly July 23, 2019 (1:46 pm)

            Those of us that commute everyday/transports kids/run errands etc. by bike everyday are physically able to do it because  we do it everyday. There is nothing smug about it. We work hard and put the effort in, and our reward is avoiding a vast majority of traffic congestion. I would never make any assumptions about any specific individuals health, but I suspect alot of folks don’t bike commute not because cause they are incapable, but because they don’t want to put in the effort. Driving about 3500 miles per year, i spend about $2K on gas and insurance (no car payment). I cannot imagine what that cost would be if I drove downtown 5 days per week, probably not in my budget.

          • Nolan July 23, 2019 (1:59 pm)

            If you also don’t have a car, I can buy the argument that an e-bike isn’t in your budget.

  • Steve July 22, 2019 (5:06 pm)

    Another reason to leave Seattle…the city/Metro/county don’t care.  And their ‘fix’ of Columbia St and a new Alaska Way is still in the design stage, people…not ‘months away’ like their lie stated.

    • bus rider July 22, 2019 (6:06 pm)

      This afternoon’s commute through Pioneer Square was much better, about 15 minutes.

    • Lee July 22, 2019 (6:13 pm)

      That’s not correct. The two-way Columbia Street busway will be built after the viaduct demolition is complete, and the timeline for opening that is 9-12 months after the closure of the viaduct – so, later this year to Spring 2020, depending on progress. I believe you’re thinking of the full redesign of the Alaskan Way surface street, which will take several years to complete. But, there will be a temporary Alaskan Way open during that time (just as it’s open now), and once the Columbia Street busway opens these jams should ease up pretty considerably. It’s right where the WS buses try to turn left onto 1st that all of this mess starts, and ends when you get to Dearborn. The busway will allow the buses to avoid 1st altogether, and I’m optimistic that will make things a lot better.

  • Melissa July 22, 2019 (5:08 pm)

    Is anyone else having trouble with the 125 bus being super unreliable in the evening?   One bus away always says it is coming in 2 minutes, while you wait for 20 minutes.  You finally give up as all the other bus routes have multiple of theirs go by and hop on a 120.  If bus service was more reliable, maybe more people would ride mass transit and traffic would not be so bad.

    • AMD July 22, 2019 (5:59 pm)

      Yes.  I used to primarily take the 125 and now I don’t take it at all (I’m lucky that the 120 is an option for me).  It’s always been a struggle to get One Bus Away to figure out where it is, but that has gotten worse and now the bus doesn’t even come all the way into downtown like it used to.  Not worth the frustration.

    • Seriously? July 23, 2019 (5:45 am)

      @Melissa, you’d have better results using divination to predict when the bus will show up than using One Bus Away. Worst. Bus. App. Ever. 

    • newnative July 23, 2019 (8:49 am)

      I uninstalled One Bus Away for the last time a while ago. I now use that sms text thingy. Text message 625-50, then you text the stop number, it will give you a list of buses that will be stopping there next. It’s not perfect but it’s a lot more accurate than One Bus Away. 

  • Busway July 22, 2019 (5:09 pm)

    Cities already have easy to implement solutions to these problems.Busways.Roads, overpasses, underpasses, tunnels specifically for and only for buses.Any of the south bound roads: 1st Ave, Occidental Ave, 3rd, or 4th ave would make a great busway. Changing 4th ave to a busway would solve the problem of sounder pedestrian traffic almost being run over every morning by traffic running the red light on 4th ave while people crowd the weller st bridge trying to cross to the light-rail and buses.It’d also ease foot traffic congestion at centurylink field and t mobile park. If 4th ave absolutely has to be preserved for cars farther down toward business and costco the busway could align to 3rd or cross the tracks and reclaim occidental ave.The idea of a busway is that it has priority just for buses. It uses underpasses and overpasses completely to NOT have any level crossings that cars could turn onto the busway.Let it feed into 509 and price adding a buslane into the new 509 extension. When complete this could actually be the fastest way for buses to get to lower parts of 5 such as federal way while not sitting in any traffic.Look what busways did for Brisbane Australia.

  • Chas Redmond July 22, 2019 (5:11 pm)

    Since the system is operated by the county, everyone should actually be complaining directly to Dow Constatine and not to Metro or any city council members – repeat – Dow Constantine. He’s also responsible for the failure of West Point to contain sewage.

    • Peter July 23, 2019 (8:22 am)

      Sounds like you’re trying to recruit people to help grind your personal ax against an individual. That’s just encouraging harassment. 

      • Ron Swanson July 23, 2019 (10:57 am)

        Complaining to the “individual” elected to oversee the public agency in question?  You’ve got a strange definition of harassment.

    • Brian July 23, 2019 (11:40 am)

      Ummmm…check your facts, dude.  Metro is THE bus agency.  The head of Metro does report to Dow Constantine.

  • Ktrapp July 22, 2019 (5:14 pm)

    As a 21x user, I’m curious as to why they added the stop on 1st Ave, just north of the stadiums.  It wasn’t on the route before, and it appears, won’t be on the permanent route.  Without that stop, the bus could go an alternate route.  The “regular” 21 continues down 3rd, and past the stadiums on the East side, bypassing the mess at Pioneer Square.  I took one on Friday and got home significantly faster than had I taken a 21x.  And that’s with all the extra stops that route makes.

    • KM July 22, 2019 (5:56 pm)

      They added after the reroute, so it wasn’t a cause of it being routed to 1st. Once they committed to using 1st despite the uproar and issues, they threw 21x riders a bone so those who had a destination of Pioneer Square could board/deboard there. Since the bus was stuck in traffic already, I haven’t seen it cause any additional delays. 

    • GovernmentBeGone July 23, 2019 (7:27 pm)

      That’s easy to answer!  Our very own Council member Lisa Herboldt petitioned Metro to make the 1st and King stop a regular stop for ALL Metro buses to/from West Seattle.  She was very proud of that and WSB ran a post in the blog about it after the tunnel opened in February.  Suggest you complain about poor bus service on Metro’s site and let Lisa know that you would like her to ask Metro for a reversal of her request.

    • meanmistermustard July 27, 2019 (1:14 pm)

      With all the traffic changes, the route through downtown is now interminable with even a little traffic, especially getting onto 3rd, even when 2nd and 3rd are bus only.  It allows riders to get onto and off of the bus as soon as it crosses the water.  As a result, you can walk steps to the streetcar, and take that to anywhere you want, often out of traffic, including about 30 seconds to the International District station.  It takes some learning, but now I almost always board and disembark at the new stops.  As a bonus, I know whether a bus is full or I should wait 3 minutes without a risk that the next stop will add passengers, as there are no more stops left before crossing.  I don’t want to give away secrets, but I found the new stops very helpful as a rule.  I was grumpy at first that some buses which used the busway during transition switched to street routes, but I’m mostly convinced they made good choices.  Seattle has the best transit of anywhere I have ever lived, at least at the moment, within the US, at least.  Ten years ago I would have given it to NYC but that’s pretty apocalyptic right now and never as generous as Seattle is with the comfort of the ride, excluding the times at superpeak levels.

  • Jim Walker July 22, 2019 (5:22 pm)

    My best advice short of commuting by bicycle would be to grab an uber bike downtown and ride it to the Triangle,  have a couple happy hour pints with Brian and hop on your West Seattle bus of choice.

  • Congestion Shmention July 22, 2019 (5:27 pm)

    WSB, thank you for the follow up on last Friday’s  article.  I commute from UW to White Center.  Riding my bike isn’t an option for me because (another big gripe) the UW station often has broken escalators.  So as a bike rider you have to fight your way in one of only two elevators.  I also have a physically demanding job, so the last thing I want to do is ride a bike home.  Also in last week’s article it said that the Water Taxi was also experiencing back ups.  I too get annoyed, when I’m finally of the bus, walking home after sitting in traffic and getting a Metro text alert telling me, “Metro buses are experiencing significant delays because of congestion.”  DUHHHH!

  • Sarah July 22, 2019 (5:44 pm)

    Well, now it is Monday and the busses taking that route down 1st are currently all 20+ minutes late. So I guess Friday was special but not THAT special, eh? Metro knows this is dumb, it is obvious, they just want to keep the stop on 1st for some reason. 

  • Richard Maloney July 22, 2019 (5:54 pm)

    We’ve been in West Seattle since 1982.  For most of the time since then the place has been navagable.No longer. The impracticality of commuting in our region has changed our lives immensely.  Working at home helps.  There are myriad, creative transportation options.  Regardless, it’s only going to get worse. 

  • Joe Z July 22, 2019 (6:05 pm)

    The “we can’t do anything” excuse is BS. We all know it because they showed us during “Viadoom” what proper transit priority looks like. The bus commutes to/from West Seattle during that time were the best that they have ever been. 20 minutes every single time + enough buses to prevent overcrowding. Why they stopped running down the SODO busway before they finished construction is a complete mystery. Personally I switched to driving or biking…sorry for adding to the mass of cars driving but it appears to be what the city wants us to do. I live 1 block from a C-line stop. Incentives to ride the bus start and end with lip service. 

    • Lee July 22, 2019 (7:32 pm)

      The southbound routing during the viaduct closure was via East Marginal, not the busway, and it was awful. It required buses to use the low bridge and get stuck behind any boat that needed to cross (and the boats have the right of way under federal law). People seem to forget that the few weeks the viaduct was closed saw a lot of people commuting very early in the morning to avoid the squeeze, staying at home, or being snowed in. Total traffic volume was far, far lower than normal those six weeks, which is a far better explanation for the quicker bus rides some people had than this fantasy about some perfect route that won’t be impacted by the construction.

    • Peter July 23, 2019 (8:13 am)

      Thousands of people chose to take vacation days or work reduced schedules. That’s not a strategy for congestion relief. SDOT and Metro can’t dictate that there be thousands fewer commuters from West Seattle. 

  • Vincent July 22, 2019 (6:16 pm)

    Mayor Jenny demands parking on first!Did everyone forget the tone deaf responses during viadoom? The answer then was, it’s done when is done deal with it. Nothing has changed and Herbold also silent.

    • TreeHouse July 23, 2019 (7:23 am)

      Mayor Durkan’s track record has been to throw all improvements in alternative transportation to the curb and prioritize cars and parking. I completely regret voting for her. 

      • Darryll July 23, 2019 (6:21 pm)

        Here here! She needs to go. 

  • MJ July 22, 2019 (6:21 pm)

    SB 1st Avenue thru Pioneer Square is a huge bottleneck.  SDoT should restrict LT’s where no dedicated pocket exists.  One LT vehicle can jam up a whole lane for an entire signal cycle green time.  This could be done via a few signs, the City restricts Let’s at numerous intersections throughout the City

    • Linda Cox July 22, 2019 (10:45 pm)

      Hey…. What is an LT vehicle?   …… Not everyone reading this post knows!  

      • sam-c July 23, 2019 (5:34 am)

        From the context, I am guessing, ‘Left-Turning’

        • KBear July 23, 2019 (9:08 am)

          “Lazy Typing”.

  • Roms July 22, 2019 (6:37 pm)

    That’s funny: Metro just posted an announcement that they’ve dropped the stop on 35th/Avalon for Southbound buses, meaning that, once in WS: You cannot connect at all from the 55 to the 21 anymore; The connection from the 21X to the 21 is only possible at or after Morgan; You cannot connect at all from the C to the 21X. I guess they just don’t care… Unless the 55 and 21X stop at the temporary stop at the end of Avalon, before 35th? But that’s not mentioned.

    • WSB July 22, 2019 (6:43 pm)

      Unfortunately that alert came in too late for me to follow up with Metro until tomorrow.

    • AJ July 22, 2019 (7:47 pm)

      The closest stop is on Avalon, just east of 35th: https://metro.kingcounty.gov/alerts/pdf/bus-stop-closure-22830-35sw_sw-avalon722-ufn.pdf

      • Roms July 22, 2019 (10:01 pm)

        The 21X and 55 don’t use Avalon when Southbound, so that doesn’t work, unless Metro reroutes them through the construction zone below the viaduct. Let’s see what Metro says.

        • AJ July 27, 2019 (1:11 pm)

          @Roms – My bad, I was thinking of the 21, not the 21X. Did you get an official answer? I think I saw on another post that the 21X stopped on 35th just north of Alaska, but they weren’t sure if it was an official stop. 

    • Lee July 22, 2019 (8:41 pm)

      The full alert says all those buses will stop on Avalon just east of 35th, so I think the transfer point will just move half a block to that temporary stop. Hopefully.Full announcement here (PDF warning): https://metro.kingcounty.gov/alerts/pdf/bus-stop-closure-22830-35sw_sw-avalon722-ufn.pdf

  • Roms July 22, 2019 (7:22 pm)

    I’ve decided to write an email a day to Dow Constantine, Jenny Durkan, and Lisa Herbold, until I hear a decent answer from them, and see an actual fix to this nightmare. Hopefully, with enough persons doing that, we might be listened to, and finally get what we pay for, that is, a less useless bus service?

    • Peter July 23, 2019 (8:16 am)

      Haranguing elected officials on a daily basis will result in your emails being automatically routed to a … special … email box for just such people. 

  • J242 July 22, 2019 (8:25 pm)

    Before moving to Austin, I was commuting from Delridge & Thistle out to Redmond (MS) frequently. If I couldn’t get to I90 by 7am, I would wait until 10am to leave. lol I know that solution doesn’t work for everyone but I’m telling you, beating the rush was always the best option for me. I could get a lot more work done before everyone else got into the office and heading home around 2:30/3pm always had way less traffic as well. Other tricks, never take I5 South from I90 in the afternoon! Take the stadiums/1st ave exit to the WSB. On the way to the eastside, avoid I5, Viaduct, 405 (Bellevue Way is often faster), etc. Take Marginal all the way to the stadiums and boom, you’re on 90! Take BW to 4th then hop on 405 for a couple hundred yards to 520, nice and easy :) Had this commute for 8+ years and it was almost always the easiest, fastest, least packed route. 

    • Out for a walk July 22, 2019 (10:49 pm)

      I have used the same routes.  So….why are you telling everyone? Now it won’t work!

  • Dan Keller July 22, 2019 (9:19 pm)

    Sadly, the Rapid Ride C is no longer rapid.

  • Dan Keller July 22, 2019 (9:21 pm)

    Sadly, the Rapid Ride C, is no longer rapid.

  • Infantry72 July 22, 2019 (9:27 pm)

     Maybe you folks should stop complaining about the commute, and just move closer to your job, or move to somewhere more traffic convenient.  Ironic how people feel entitled to maintain their prescribed certain commute time. 1st world problems.  

    • ARPigeonPoint July 23, 2019 (2:41 pm)

      Some people don’t have flexible schedules and live only 5 miles from work, but thanks for playing our game.

  • Denise July 22, 2019 (10:39 pm)

    Follow ROMS advice.  Good idea 

  • RB July 23, 2019 (12:32 am)

    Would your employers allow you to temporarily work from home like they did in January? I understand that’s not an option for everyone but it did help in January. 

    • AMD July 23, 2019 (5:45 am)

      They would have to let you do that for six months to get through the crunch before the new bus route is available.  That’s a much bigger ask than 6 weeks.

  • RICHARD SCHWARTZ July 23, 2019 (7:36 am)

    E-bike, walk, swim, blah, blah, blah.  What no one in this city wants to face up to is that our “leaders” have decided we need to be a “world class” city (i.e., BIG).  Promote the city, recruit endless new businesses to come here = increased population = transportation problems, cost of living problems, etc., etc.  DUH.  Ambitious people (like our political and chamber of commerce leaders over the past few decades) can never recognize when they have a good thing going.  Sorry folks but the train has left the station.  If you think it’s cool to have ten restaurants on every block then you are probably a happy camper.  If you value living a mellow life then you’re out of luck.   Seattle has become just another megatropolis – dime a dozen.  Rather sad how humans can so blindly screw things up.

    • Jon Wright July 23, 2019 (9:26 am)

      I’m sure Detroit and other dying Rust Belt cities aren’t so enthusiastic about “mellow.”

    • Peter July 23, 2019 (10:50 am)

      Seattle has been a big city for longer than either of us has been alive. If you object so much to cities, why did you choose to live here in the first place?

    • KM July 23, 2019 (11:04 am)

      I always wonder when I read similar comments, do people who complain about people moving here/increased density have biological children of their own? Or are their own offspring okay, while the n00bs (especially those awful Californians and tech bros) ruin the quality of life?

  • H K Brown July 23, 2019 (8:29 am)

    Thanks to the STUPID VOTERS West Seattle has no Manarail.

  • dfdfd July 23, 2019 (10:25 am)

    The city needs to fix the Dearborn exit off 99 immediately! So dumb to make drivers and buses switch lanes at the last minute. Then you either have cars trying to merge with buses in that 100 ft stretch to get in the left lane, or people just cheat and stay in the bus lane. Creates an insane bottle neck. They also made 5th a mess by taking buses out of tunnel and creating an opposite direction bus lane. People trying to turn left by the Amazon Go store get a flashing yellow light, competing with pedestrians and buses, which means barely any cars can move. Another unnecessary bottleneck.

  • Time I will never get back July 23, 2019 (10:03 pm)

    The C-Line I was on tonight did a reroute and did not go through Pioneer Square. It was refreshingly fast. Anything new from Metro? Anyone else experience a reroute today on the C-Line?

  • daPuffin July 25, 2019 (1:24 pm)

    The responses from people on these threads that don’t take into consideration that

    • some people are not fully physically able to bicycle or walk long distances;
    • might not be willing to sell their houses or go to a higher rent district to be closer to their jobs; or
    • may not be allowed by their employer to work from home

     really astound and dismay me.   I thought/wished people in this area were better than that.Disappointing..      

  • RossB July 27, 2019 (3:48 pm)

    “They also shared an SDOT reply from previous correspondence two months
    ago explaining various reasons why the department feels a bus-only lane
    on 1st wouldn’t be feasible.”Wait, what? They say a bus-only lane isn’t feasible, yet they push for a streetcar on First Avenue. The streetcar would run in transit-only lanes, yet we can’t do the same thing for buses?

  • robert August 2, 2019 (6:33 pm)

    As usual, SDOT was self serving, lame excuses and stupid suggestions, ya right, me ride a bike at 70 years of age, in traffic….more blah blah blah. It all started when they built the stadiums, whomever approved that should have been tied to a bus. Worst place to have them. I left Seattle 7 years ago, so glad I did, between poor rapid transit planning and traffic, who needs to deal with it. I am sorry for commuters who have to get to work. I keep hearing about buses not stopping or not running, everywhere I worked if you were late too many times you would be terminated. Not very encouraging.  Seattle officials once again ignore the problems… nothing has changed in 20 years, still small town thinking, small town minds and stupid mentality not to make immediate adjustments to a very dire situation just alot of excuses… at the expense of the citizens wanting to use (un)rapid transit. 

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