ROAD WORK, TRANSIT, TRAFFIC: Monday 9/21 notes

6:12 AM: It’s Monday, the 182nd morning without the West Seattle Bridge.

TRANSIT

Metro – Today is the first weekday since the “service change” – check here to see if your route was affected. Meantime, a reminder – fare collection resumes October 1st.

Water Taxi – Fares for this service also will resume October 1st. No recent service change; still on weekday-only schedule, and continuing that TFN.

ROAD WORK

*Delridge project: Weather permitting, the postponed SW Oregon closure is set to start this Friday. Meanwhile, here’s the work plan for the week ahead.

CHECK THE TRAFFIC BEFORE YOU GO

Here’s the 5-way intersection camera (Spokane/West Marginal/Delridge/Chelan):

Here’s the restricted-daytime-access (open to all 9 pm-5 am) low bridge:

The main detour route across the Duwamish River is the 1st Avenue South Bridge (map) . Here’s that camera:

The other major bridge across the river is the South Park Bridge (map). Here’s that camera:

Going through South Park? Don’t speed.

Check the @SDOTBridges Twitter feed for info about any of those bridges opening for marine traffic.

You can see all local traffic cams here; locally relevant cameras are also shown on this WSB page.

Trouble on the roads/paths/water? Let us know – text (but not if you’re driving!) 206-293-6302.

anonyme September 21, 2020 (6:57 am)

I had the misfortune of being forced onto a Metro bus (RR C line) yesterday. I had scheduled an Access van and they were overbooked, so they tried to put me in a Yellow Cab. These are your/our tax dollars being wasted folks – instead of providing skeletal service in the form of an hourly shuttle, large numbers of people are being crammed onto exorbitantly expensive paratransit and private cabs. Which also brings up the additional issue of medically compromised seniors being put into filthy, contaminated taxis in intimate proximity to a driver who may or may not follow coronavirus ‘guidelines’. It’s a dangerous situation even if they do. I declined the cab and hobbled the half mile to a bus stop. No one on the bus followed distancing requirments. Everyone ignored the signs on the seats and sat where they pleased; I had four people sitting within 3 feet of where I sat, plus the passed out drug addict slumped between the seats two rows back. On the return trip, two people got on without masks. Not a peep from the driver, per usual. I asked one of them to put on his mask, and he reluctantly complied. Both buses were quite dirty, which contradicts Metro’s already questionable claims about sanitizing. I only go out to the Farmer’s Market once every two weeks due to their senior food program, but it looks like even that may no longer be possible. Metro is an expensive, poorly managed, dangerous mess.

payattention September 21, 2020 (7:03 am)

News story over the weekend on the ports demand that when term. 5 opens they get priority on the low bridge. Comment: last Friday i was riding my bike across the low bridge at @ 9:30am. Westbound was FULL of semi’s and busses(stuck). Noticed a spd motorcycle headed west in e bound lane(only way to get past). As the economy opens and term 5 comes online it’s only going to get WORSE. Past story in WSB called out car’s blocking emergency vehicles path across the bridge-rightly so. What will the response be from SDOT and people when emergency vehicles are STUCK behind “authorized” vehicles?? It will happen.

payattention September 21, 2020 (7:07 am)

WSB. Does SDOT have any plan’s to add cameras between the 1st s. bridge and I5?

WSB September 21, 2020 (10:49 am)

There are already some cameras in that area.

sam-c September 21, 2020 (10:54 am)

I got an email from METRO mentioning that there is a civic event blocking the low bridge… is that really happening?

WSB September 21, 2020 (11:00 am)

There was BRIEFLY a protest on SW Spokane east of the low bridge – so briefly that as I was about to publish a traffic alert, SDOT tweeted that it was cleared, so I canceled it. The Metro alert is currently WRONG – I have been checking all the video cameras and traffic on the low bridge IS FLOWING both ways. Don’t know what the march was about or whether they went onto Harbor Island or back eastward.
- sam-c September 21, 2020 (11:33 am)
  
  Ok, thanks for the update
AMD September 21, 2020 (11:35 am)

Metro’s text alerts tend to have a pretty serious delay in coming out, so I always find it helpful to double-check WSB or traffics cameras if I have somewhere to go. The issue is almost always over or nearly cleared by the time I get the text.
Chemist September 21, 2020 (11:42 am)

It looks like there was a morning march demonstration just east of the swing bridge for about 17 minutes and the truck backup it created was pretty intense. SDOT’s camera server appeared to crash so I had trouble tracking how long it took for truck traffic to flow.Future_Crystals Instagram video of the civic event
- WSB September 21, 2020 (12:54 pm)
  
  The Morning March was supposed to be meeting today in the CD so I guess they changed plans OR traveled a long way.

flimflam September 21, 2020 (4:08 pm)

huh, block all traffic on the bridge to protest, huh? what if an ambulance needed to get through?

West side steve September 21, 2020 (7:15 pm)

Any news on if they’ll put up a camera to ticket cars on the lower bridge? Feel like we could pay for a new bridge in a week with that in place

WSB September 21, 2020 (7:29 pm)

Yes, we’ve reported several times that it’s expected to go up this fall, exact date not yet announced. Some legislation is required and that’s just gone to the council.

Sorry, comment time is over.