Had plenty of time to write this comment on my 120 bus as it crawls through the cloverleaf from the bridge to 99. I can tell you, my bus commute is not faster, just a different choke point since the bus lane was added. Would love some data from our leaders on if adding the bus lane has decreased bus times by 10, 15 minutes or not. It’s sad that these changes, which affect a large portion of the city, seem to be done on a whim with little notice and scant data. Alas, probably best to just grit it out now and wait to see what problems tolling brings before they start monkeying around again.
Actual rain today, and soon (November 9th) 99 tunnel starts tolling. I suspect it will work well by year’s end.
Can I ask why you think tolling will help traffic? The bus lane is causing traffic to back up on the bridge and WS roads. I’m truly curious why this would get any better once tolling starts. If anything it will get worse as more people have to transfer in and out of the bus lane.
It’s not called rush hour for nothing. Thank your lucky stars your commutes don’t take you through the Holland Tunnel. 9-5 work days make life on the roads horrible—get used to it our get your hours changed.
Yeah…except our commute wasn’t anywhere near as painful before the bus lane was reinstalled. I think it’s a tough pill to swallow when a month or so ago it was a rather smooth drive into downtown, and now it’s a nightmare.
Not just the cloverleaf. Buses (I’m on a 57) are inching down admiral way which for cars is backed up to Belvidere(!). It’s 815am. Seriously. Just get rid of this bus lane. Keep the emails to government going. Even if you’ve emailed before.
What the heck happened with the lower bridge?! If it was open during the commute I’m extremely pissed, and if someone had a wreck that closed it….well, also angry. What a mess.
I am guessing the lower bridge was up around 8:05. It usually backs everything up like the slow crawl that was this morning. Delridge was really slow this morning too, 30 mins for about 10 blocks.
SDOT Twitter indicates the lower bridge was up from 7:50 to 8:02 – that was the backup.
It was backed up LONG before the bridge opened. I was in that mess, finally made it to the lower bridge, and then it closed.
Going to reassert that the double whites lines on the new 99N merge needs those vertical plastic dividers. These mouthbreathers are still stopping right away and trying to merge across the lines, blocking busses trying to use the bus lane. I’m not sure if they are illiterate, or if they just think they are above the law. Either way it has to stop. A motorcycle cop being present would also help.
Agreed!! This morning at 7 I was stuck behind cars who were immediately merging over. I drove a good 2000 ft on a free and clear lane and legally merged in before the bus lane started. Was horrified to see NO ONE behind me doing the same.
Cars on Andover were stacked all the way up the hill and around the corners (I don’t know how far back) due to the Delridge to bridge backup. What a mess.
Yeah, that was crazy. But Delridge/ Andover always seem to get even more backed up when the low bridge opens for marine traffic.
I took a pic of the backup on Andover at 7:43. The bridge didn’t close until 7:50. I’ve lived on the hill for four years and never saw backups like this until they re-added in the extra length to the bus lane.
It’s a mess still. The “leadership” in this city has no clue. Nothing has changed. Shame on them.
Hopefully the construction on 35th going up the hill from the old KFC will be done soon. That has created a lot of extra time on my Fauntleroy commute all the way to the WS bridge. It can take me 30 minutes from Lincoln Park to the WS bridge just sitting by LA Fitness/Rudy’s ,etc and that entire way. I can’t even imagine the 99 bus lane mess. Frustrating for sure!
On my commute in this morning I was one of the few that drove the NB99 merge lane to the very end. Most waited until the end of the double white line and then immediately waited with signal on for a space to open and then moved. However, the root cause of the slowness is the missing lane, not the merge. Taking 3 lanes down to 2 lanes (33% capacity reduction) of a major artery into downtown will cause ripple effect delays. It’s basic really. Sam Z made a poor choice and now a single person’s ego and unwillingness to undo a mistake is impacting the residents of our portion of the city. No data provided on why or it’s impact, no empathy to those affected throughout WS, just the city staying the course and keep the lane. What about making it an exit only downtown lane where drivers can merge out when they want, or not? What about an HOV lane? What about looking over at SB99 and seeing that it has no bus lane and traffic flows out of downtown easily every day at rush hour – just like NB99 used to a few months ago. There are options, but the city is hoping the citizens will just get tired of complaining and accept “this is just the way it is”. Keep emailing the city, Sam Z, anyone that helps govern to let them know there has to be a better decision for bus riders, cars, bikes and everyone else.
Worst part of my 30 minute door-to-door bicycle commute today: I had to wear a rain jacket :(
I’ve been caught in a couple random rain showers already but this was a known rain event. I thought it was going to be a hard bike into work but it was okay. Maybe its the temp or i’m getting immune to the rain. I knew I made the correct decision when I saw the 56 roll into town with standing room only and condensation dripping down on the window.
Just drive the bus lane.. then all traffic would flow and buses move faster!Trying to teach the average Seattle driver how to merge is a fool’s game..Take back our roads.Does anybody know how to get ahold of the fool sam z..???
If the bus is getting stuck on Admiral the obvious solution is to add a bus lane there also. Ideally the buses should be fully separated from cars and immune to traffic jams like today (which was clearly caused by the rain).
I travel from WS to SeaTac daily via West Marginal. Since the tunnel opened it was taking about 25 minutes. Traffic down Admiral Way was greatly improved and flowed smoothly. It has definitely increased since the bus lane on 99 was reinstated. Back to the old slog down Admiral Way. Today my commute took 50 minutes, an all time record. Admiral way was backed up past the view point. Then, the right lane under the bridge was stopped solid due to the lower bridge being open which meant a 21 bus in the left lane under the bridge could not get over to go to the stop near the fire station or continue up the ramp to the upper bridge and everyone sat not moving for a good 10 minutes or more. This affects bus riders as well as those in cars. Commute times are higher. Period. Is there any data to support the bus lane improving travel times for anyone? Bus commuters that I’ve talked to are just as frustrated. Also, opening the lower bridge during high volume times just makes a huge mess of things. I know this has been discussed before, but there has got to be a compromise that can be made to help out the thousands of people trying to get to work.
Sorry, comment time is over.
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