Here’s what’s being done about those West Seattle Bridge potholes …

11:21 AM: Megan sent that photo on Tuesday, saying, “This sadly just happened to me after hitting one of the many potholes on the eastbound West Seattle viaduct. Beware drivers!” The potholes also had been mentioned in comment discussion earlier in the day, so we asked the SDOT communications team about repair plans. Here’s the reply from spokesperson Ethan Bergerson:

The large pothole in the left eastbound lane of the West Seattle Bridge between the 1st Ave S and 4th Ave S offramps was reported to us earlier this week.

Our maintenance crews put in a temporary repair yesterday, and we are planning to return today to complete additional work today. We’ve been scheduling our work midday in order to minimize the impact to traffic flow during peak times.

People can report potholes by calling 206-684-ROAD, emailing 684-ROAD@seattle.gov, or by using the Find It, Fix It app. In 2019, we filled about 18,000 potholes on Seattle streets. With the exception of the period during and shortly after last year’s snowstorms, we responded to 90% of requests to fill potholes within 3 business days and also filled many potholes before they were reported to us.

While we are always doing the best we can to respond to potholes quickly, we need the public to understand the challenges we face and why potholes will continue to appear throughout the winter. Freezing weather causes significant damage to our roads and we typically experience a spike in pothole reports after it snows. As the snow melted earlier this month, water found its way into cracks in the pavements. Then, when the temperatures dropped and the trapped water re-froze the expanding ice forced apart fissures in the pavement, literally tearing the road apart from the inside. It can sometimes take a few weeks for the damage to show itself as heavy trucks and buses drive over these fissures, breaking off pieces of pavement to form larger holes.

Winter weather poses continual challenges even when it’s not freezing because asphalt doesn’t bind as well to the surrounding pavement when it’s too cold or wet. So many of the potholes we fill now will likely need to be repaired again in the coming months. If additional snowstorms are forecasted, maintenance crews will need to shift their focus from potholes to preparing the roads for snow and ice, which can slow progress.

You can see the pothole-report map here. P.S. It’s not just potholes – SDOT is where to send reports of other road problems, too – here’s the info. But if it’s urgent, like a tree blocking a road right now or other immediate hazard, 206-386-1218.

1:48 PM:
Added above, two photos provided by SDOT.

49 Replies to "Here's what's being done about those West Seattle Bridge potholes ..."

  • ScottAmick January 29, 2020 (11:31 am)

    I get potholes in normal roads but WOW there have been some terrible potholes in this bridge structure for the past year or so.  They’ve been fixed a couple times.   The text from SDOT above seems like it’s just for generic potholes on grade/dirt.  Just seems like it shouldn’t be that hard to fix what seem like holes in the elevated deck. 

  • YouDontGnomeMe January 29, 2020 (11:46 am)

    Very unfortunate that this happened, but it’s good to know they are attempting to fix the pothole. Hopefully they get more than a temporary fix completed.I also have to say, that tire looks like it was driven on quite extensively after it blew out? A pothole may blow a hole in the sidewall, but for it to be separating from the rest of the tire takes quite some effort.  

    • hj January 29, 2020 (12:05 pm)

      It looks like a run-flat tire. They’re designed to fail like that so that at least there’s something still around the rim to keep driving on until the car can get safely out of the way. 

      • Megan January 29, 2020 (11:04 pm)

        Actually, it’s not! I checked with the dealership after seeing your comment here and it’s just a regular tire. Apparently, though, it’s designed to keep the tread together to allow for the tire to remain between the road and the rim. Thank goodness! 

        • Brian Strandberg January 30, 2020 (5:17 am)

          Send a bill for the tired to the Seattle DOT.  Some agencies take those seriously.  WSDOT has paid out before can’t speak for SDOT 

        • seattlescientist February 2, 2020 (3:17 pm)

          I hit the pothole on 01/28. my driver side tire was slashed and the rim was cracked. the car is in the shop right now… it is expensive. plus I had to get a rental car…I filed a claim to the city, not sure if I get reimbursed but it is worth the try. if you want to do the same here is the link:https://live.origamirisk.com/Origami/IncidentEntry/Welcome

    • Etip January 29, 2020 (12:44 pm)

      They have to get off the bridge. Hardly ideal to drive on a flat tire, but given the traffic (both stopping it and for safety) one needs to get off up to Spokane and (?) 14th to have a safe place to pull over. 

  • Brian January 29, 2020 (12:03 pm)

    There’s a bunch of huge potholes all along Fauntleroy since the snow melted. It’s particularly bad between Fairmount Springs Elementary and Edmunds.

    • WSB January 29, 2020 (1:10 pm)

      If you haven’t already, please report them (see link above). They do get addressed. Like one on NB California by Myrtle that I thought was going to send us to the repair shop after hitting it twice. Even though it appeared on the map that someone else had just reported it, I added a report too, and a day later it was far less of a tooth-rattling ride.

  • zark00 January 29, 2020 (12:07 pm)

    That viaduct is awfully new for how much it seems to be falling apart.  They clearly botched something in that widening project. The standing water that collects in the center from around 4th to the I5 merge is nuts – it’s like they completely forgot to add drainage.  The widening project was done 8 years ago, at that time the road was completely resurfaced, and already it’s a mess of huge potholes and chunks of cement on the roadway. 

    • WSB January 29, 2020 (1:22 pm)

      The westbound side is new, not the eastbound side. But they have had problems with the eastbound-side resurfacing dating back even to pre-completion, as shown in our archived coverage.
      https://westseattleblog.com/2012/08/spokane-st-viaduct-why-some-of-its-new-surface-is-getting-cut-up/
      Don’t know if that’s the same spot, though.

    • KM January 29, 2020 (1:53 pm)

      I wonder about the drainage every time I drive that section. How was this not addressed at the same time as the resurfacing and widening? It was a huge problem before the redo–experiencing that temporary 0% visibility when an oncoming car would hit a puddle on their side of the roadway was awful–but it seems like a huge misstep as there are still some really bad issues with standing water that now only partially blind oncoming traffic. I don’t like to rag on SDOT as a hobby, but this really seems like a huge oversight.

    • CandrewB January 29, 2020 (5:34 pm)

      The standing water always killed me. That road flooded from wet season one. How do you not account for drainage in the PNW?

  • Etip January 29, 2020 (12:31 pm)

    I hit one as well yesterday and blew out both tires on the driver’s side. The guy at Discount Tire said he had a couple people come in yesterday with blow outs from the West Seattle bridge

  • Will January 29, 2020 (12:33 pm)

    Seattle has far far less freeze/thaw cycles than a lot of the country.  It fact it rarely happens. The potholes here are everywhere and quite bad.  People have to serve all over to avoid them.  I appreciate the claim they are doing what they can but come on. It doesn’t have to be this way. I’m not going to rant but I’m seriously sick of it and wish they’d do something.  It’s not safe and really bad for vehicles. 

  • Andy January 29, 2020 (1:21 pm)

    This has been an ongoing issue since they expand and resurface the bridge. At what point will they implement a longer term fix? This is a waste of tax payer dollars constantly patching up these potholes that appear weeks after a repair.

  • Jon Wright January 29, 2020 (1:44 pm)

    The one thing I would like to know is what sort of proactive monitoring does SDOT do? It seems like that stretch of road between I-5 and 35th ought to get a daily inspection. And I’m guessing as a layperson an SDOT employee who knows something about roads could maybe identify problem spots before they turn into ginormous potholes? And if those spots were identified before total failure, they could be fixed before they turned into big problems for drivers? Does SDOT do anything like that? Is that a reasonable ask of SDOT? It just seems SDOT’s strategy for addressing problems on major thoroughfares shouldn’t be to rely on Find It, Fix It.

    • Azimuth January 29, 2020 (6:22 pm)

      Jon Wright, I’ve wondered the same thing.

  • AMD January 29, 2020 (1:50 pm)

    EB Roxbury has gotten really bad again.  There’s a pothole near 24th that’s so deep you can’t see the bottom even when you’re on top of it.  Luckily there’s a center lane, because we all use that to navigate the road while waiting for a fix.

  • Brayton January 29, 2020 (2:02 pm)

    I hope the people with tire damage are sending a bill to the city. Potholes are one thing, but potholes on a bridge give me concern about what’s going on underneath to allow it to happen. Is there a structural deficiency in the area, or one that’s forming due to water penetration and ice damage? 

  • Jort January 29, 2020 (2:30 pm)

    Does the city have any data about how many car drivers have suffered death or serious injury from a pothole? Because I have lots of data about how car drivers are killing or seriously injuring hundreds of people every year here.

    • Mark Schletty January 29, 2020 (6:47 pm)

      Jort— I’m at a complete loss as how to respond to your ludicrous comment.

    • Lagartija Nick January 30, 2020 (9:37 am)

      Hey Jort, I generally agree with your comments but this is a huge non-sequitor and unnecessarily antagonistic.

      • Jort January 30, 2020 (12:57 pm)

        Perhaps, but anytime “potholes” enter a discussion, everybody is ready to write hundreds of comments about how the city “isn’t doing its job.” Hundreds of fellow Seattleites are seriously injured and we reached a 10-year high in fatalities last year, and people shrug it off with an “oh well.” I don’t think fixing potholes and saving human lives necessarily need to be in conflict with each other, but I certainly wish people cared a little bit more about the actual damage and destruction that vehicles do to people, instead of what roads to do vehicles.

  • Lola January 29, 2020 (2:39 pm)

    Those are nasty looking,  I thought the one just before the 1st Ave So. Bridge was bad as I always hit it when I went to change lanes after the bus lane ends.  They finally fixed that one.  Sorry your tires are shredded, that looks awful.I remember reading an article about when this part of the bridge was built and how a contractor had won the contract for doing the cement on the bridge only he was subbing it out to another contractor and making money in the deal.  Maybe sub par concrete was being used since the original guy was not doing it?

  • cjboffoli January 29, 2020 (2:39 pm)

    I’d love to have someone at SDOT address the broader question of why this elevated roadway (completed in 2012) was designed and built with inadequate drainage which seems to be  causing continual problems with potholes – not to mention puddles with potential to cause hydroplaning – on those inside lanes.  

  • Railroaded January 29, 2020 (2:57 pm)

    Those low profile tires don’t handle potholes well at all.

  • Cement January 29, 2020 (3:07 pm)

    A contractor friend of mine said today’s concrete is WAY inferior to concrete of old. It’s made to set much faster but that makes it weaker and much more failure prone. Good concrete can be done but doubtful there wouldn’t be a lot of complaining about the wait for it to cure. 

  • coffeedude January 29, 2020 (3:13 pm)

    In my opinion, SDOT is very poorly run.  They might be fixing pot holes fast (per the stats in the story) but they are doing nothing to fix timing of lights in Seattle and that is a huge issue.  And I do not understand why we cannot move to all way walks.  7/8th of rush hour traffic problems downtown are because of walkers running the do not walk sign that then clogs traffic more.  Also, is there any update for 26th between Roxbury and Barton?  It is getting worse.

    • Bill on Duwamish Head January 29, 2020 (4:14 pm)

      I agree with you emphatically regarding all way walks. It is amazing how the few I know of: Junction, 1st and University, 1st and Pike. Not only does it help speed up traffic, all way walks move more pedestrians and cyclists per cycle, and every one is more safe and sane. Do you know of any advocate groups actually supporting this, or is it just a few of us random bloggers who point out the benefits? 

    • Steve January 29, 2020 (5:45 pm)

      People driving automobiles are the reason for automobile traffic, not people walking. If your light timing panacea was adopted, don’t you think all of the new empty space created would just clog back up again with personal autos? Traffic in urban environments is not fixable. Single occupancy, private auto travel during peak times is inherently inefficient and won’t be solved. I wish the government would devote fewer resources on making as many automobiles go “zoom zoom” in short periods as possible. Back to the topic at hand: please toll single occupancy vehicles on the West Seattle Bridge during peak hours to pay for repairs. 

      • Anonymous Coward January 30, 2020 (9:07 am)

        I think the all-way walks would be worth adopting for pedestrian safety alone.  Lowering the speed limit isn’t going to reduce the number of people run over in the crosswalks by turning drivers who aren’t paying attention.

  • Keven Ruf January 29, 2020 (3:26 pm)

    Most of the potholes I encounter on California and Fauntleroy of are in patches in the pavement done by contractors hooking new construction to the sewer lines that run under the road. They should do a better job and should be held accountable when they fail. 

  • Mike January 29, 2020 (3:37 pm)

    The biggest sources of stress on our roadways are trucks, which have steadily increased in size and weight over the years.  The truck traffic out of the Port is very heavy on the WS bridges and the viaduct.  Trucks serving our markets are bigger than they used to be, and are even commonly seen off-arterial in our neighborhoods.  And the construction boom means lots of tandem rigs hauling rock and soil, and lots of cement rigs.  This truck traffic really beats up the roads.  And  the big reticulated buses do their share.  

    • Will January 29, 2020 (9:05 pm)

      Buses tear up the roads like trucks do. Both are part of the problem.  Obviously we can’t eliminate either so the roads need to be designed and built accordingly.There’s no excuse for the state of the roads in this very mild climate. 

  • Mike January 29, 2020 (3:38 pm)

    The drainage and pooling of water is the real issue, why don’t we have the contractor “Merlino” come back and fix the slop they screwed up and the water should not be pooling in the middle. It should have never been signed off on, more tax dollars wasted

  • TJ January 29, 2020 (4:11 pm)

    The cold weather excuse is a cover for a department that just can’t do it’s job. I was in Kansas City for almost 2 weeks last January and potholes didn’t seem to be a problem there. And they are dealing with a lot colder temoerarures than here. If you constantly think throwing money at these levies they throw at us for roads is the answer, then you are part of the problem 

    • TreeHouse January 29, 2020 (5:29 pm)

      TJ, you are so right! Funding road improvements IS the problem! Let’s slash the budgets and await magical fixes to the road. Once they don’t happen, we can continue to complain about how bad government is and slash the road budgets even further! MAKE OUR ROADS GREAT AGAIN! 

      • Will January 29, 2020 (9:08 pm)

        TJ is absolutely right about the climate. 

      • Confused... January 29, 2020 (11:24 pm)

        The proposed city budget was $6.5 Billion for this year.The largest in the city’s history.  What exactly was slashed? Maybe I’m just dense, but that figure seems large enough to pay for pothole repair among plenty of other things. 

      • wscommuter January 29, 2020 (11:38 pm)

        Treehouse … for the win.  

  • KC January 29, 2020 (9:01 pm)

    Go back in the archives.  East bound is the old structure west bound is all newEast bound was a problem when it was skimmed and floated. I seem to remember a problem with this area shortly after the new skimming work was done I bet there was a 48 warranty and now we are at 49 months this should not be happening and the original contractor should be held accountable  this is not a maintenance this is bad design and save a buck now and take it in the shorts laterthanks Scott Kubly and the whole SDOT Dept job well done!!!

  • DM January 30, 2020 (7:54 am)

    Regarding the pot holes in the photo, semi trucks have been picking away at the cracks and imperfections in those two spots ever since the widening and resurfacing project completed a few years ago. Within 1 month, the western-most pothole needed a call from me to SDOT and even the police to report small boulders being ripped out of the cement by semi trucks and impeding the roadway. I also had to commute this pathway for every day. The weather is not the sole cause for starting or worsening those potholes. there were imperfections day 1 with the cement, and semi trucks who ride heavily on that lane, eat away at every imperfection until there are cracks, pebbles, rocks, boulders ripped out.I mostly got tired of having no replies to my inquiries when complaining the cement seems to be too thin after resurfacing, and this section is cracking the most. I know before the resurfacing project the cement just wore down to the rebar around those spots. Perhaps that part of the viaduct flexes more under extreme tonnage?

  • Sandi January 30, 2020 (8:27 am)

    This is not the fault of the contractor, but rather the fault of SDOT!!
    It is no surprise that this is happening. Years ago when this project was in work, SDOT specified the concrete topping mix that should be used. PCL was the contractor who did all the widening and repair work on the bridge deck. Per what the Project Manager told my husband at the time, PCL told SDOT that they were using the wrong concrete mix and warned that it was going to break apart over time. SDOT refused to modify the concrete mix per the advice of the contractor. PCL documented their position on this, in the event that SDOT would try to blame/sue PCL for the concrete breaking apart in the future. It’s been happening for years. It likely will continue until the entire bridge deck will need to be resurfaced at the added expense of the public. 

    • dsa January 30, 2020 (8:06 pm)

      Sandi, what you say here is totally believable.  It was obvious something had been done wrong when they made the first patches repair.  The wrong mix, and likely surface prep are likely causes.  

  • David F. January 30, 2020 (8:55 am)

    Only recently using the viaduct, and reading thru the comments,  wondering if the reason for the rather thin resurface EB is the weight limit for the structure is being approached?  In addition to the articulated hybrid buses being overweight when loaded,  the garbage trucks are also overweight when loaded.

  • Seattle Probs January 30, 2020 (10:03 am)

    Sorry to the driver! Tires are expensive:( Seattle has horrible roads, and there are potholes everywhere. I’ve driven in the midwest, south and east coast. No one has roads this bad.

  • SDOTFAILURE January 30, 2020 (5:02 pm)

    More SDOT incompetence. Shocking.By the way, the repaving of Avalon is absolutely awful and the crosswalk/lane markings have already faded.

    • WSB January 30, 2020 (7:31 pm)

      The crosswalk/lane/etc.markings are temporary; as reported multiple times here, the permament striping/paint/etc. will be applied next spring.

Sorry, comment time is over.