UPDATE: Rescue response for crash on westbound West Seattle Bridge

10:08 AM: SFD and SPD are responding to what’s described as a “rollover” crash near the west end of the westbound West Weattle Bridge, with one person trapped, updates to come. The entire westbound bridge is blocked at the scene, and they’re diverting westbound traffic onto the Admiral Way exit.

10:15 AM: Police describe the crash location as “near the statues.” SFD says they’ve gotten the person out of the vehicle and that they’re “in stable condition.”

10:20 AM: The westbound lanes are reopening.

11:16 AM: We drove the eastbound bridge to verify the crash location. The vehicle already was being towed; all the activity was indeed at the pullout by Walking on Logs.

2:25 PM: SFD tells WSB that the driver is a 62-year-old woman who did not require hospitalization.

GLH September 13, 2026 (10:11 am)

Is this in the spot?

WSB September 13, 2026 (10:22 am)

There are no cameras in the area and I have not seen a photo. The descriptions from responders SOUND LIKE it’s that general area.
K to the F September 13, 2026 (8:11 pm)

Update the counter! https://curvycrashes.com/
- RH September 13, 2026 (10:07 pm)
  
  Bravo!
- MewTwo September 14, 2026 (12:30 pm)
  
  Are drivers here seriously this clueless? It’s a simple, gentle curve, how are people still managing to crash on it?

Actualperson September 13, 2026 (10:17 am)

Could this be at the famous half repaved curve that SDOT won’t finish repaving?

Confirmed September 13, 2026 (10:32 am)

Just drove by – it’s The Spot.

Neighbor September 13, 2026 (10:36 am)

Yep, one of the first rainy days after a dry summer. Everything is slick.

Junction Lady September 13, 2026 (10:59 am)

Just drove past this and one car is on its side! Very alarming to see!

Kyle September 13, 2026 (11:23 am)

Does Vision Zero not apply here?

Nikki Lauda September 13, 2026 (4:21 pm)

Which part, reducing # of lanes to one, speed bumps, four-way stops, no-turn-on-red, or 25 mph speed limit? While they all serve well for making the traffic stalled and miserable, unfortunately there are still parts of Seattle thoroughfares where cars can reach speeds of up to 40 or even 50 mph to the chagrin of the anti-car crusaders, oops I meant life savers.
- Kyle September 13, 2026 (6:25 pm)
  
  I think you miss my point. Most of the vision zero projects are about theoretical crashes on streets where there are none. Here is one that would require just basic repaving and grooving like wsdot did for the 99 tunnel just last year, but SDOT ignores it. They pick and choose what vehicle crashes to care about. If vision zero was really about making roads safer and using data, there would be a safety project to repair this stretch of road by now.
  - Derp September 13, 2026 (8:12 pm)
    
    Don’t you think that if there was a real problem, that there would be wrecks there all day. Not just one or one there. People need to slow down.
    - WSzombie September 13, 2026 (10:51 pm)
      
      Name one 50 foot long stretch of road in Seattle that gets more single-car accidents than that corner. I’ll wait.

B September 13, 2026 (11:36 am)

Great way to welcome people by having a hazardous roadway adjacent to the “Welcome to West Seattle” sign!

Melissa September 13, 2026 (11:59 am)

It’s The Spot. The spot that comes just after the place where we are all supposed to slow down to 30 mph. Almost no one does and then they’re shocked, I tell you, shocked when they crash. C’mon people, can we stop blaming the road and start driving like the laws of physics apply to us? Please?

The King September 13, 2026 (12:26 pm)

I’ve been driving that section since the 80’s. It wasn’t like this until they decided to create 8 different surfaces within that corner by grinding certain sections and leaving others. They’ve made it worse and their arrogance won’t allow them to own up to it.
- B September 13, 2026 (12:51 pm)
  
  I agree. Although in addition to the road surface, I believe the dips also play a large part in this. Someone please explain this to me. Did people suddenly start speeding coincidentally at the same time the road was changed?
  - k September 13, 2026 (2:44 pm)
    
    And only speed in this one spot on this one curve?
Jan September 13, 2026 (9:59 pm)

Which I’m sure this 62 year old driver was doing, speeding recklessly around that curve where accidents happen in exactly the same spot every time.
WSzombie September 13, 2026 (10:52 pm)

That’s not a 30 mph speed limit in that section. It’s “advised”.

Dave September 13, 2026 (12:28 pm)

Someone is going to die in this spot before SDOT cuts the aggregate down and eliminates the dip that unloads the rear tires in the curve. This is entrenched mindsets at the city refusing to budge.

SS September 13, 2026 (12:43 pm)

10000000%
Anne September 13, 2026 (12:56 pm)

In the meantime SLOW DOWN!
- Vision Zero September 13, 2026 (9:56 pm)
  
  And with this history of incidents, the City is going to lose a massive lawsuit that we all get to pay for. There’s no question this “spot” is a problem and that the problem exists only since the bridge reopened and SDOT did work in the area. And let’s be clear, the statistics on “vision zero” are terrible. More accidents and deaths than before it started. Doing more of what isn’t working will not help. When you put an already over-burdened road system under more pressure it breaks in ways unexpected. That’s what’s happening now and it’s a policy decision that is to blame.

BDR September 13, 2026 (1:09 pm)

Guess the signs installed by SDOT were of zero help to this KNOWN road hazard. The city will be on the hook for some big $$$ when someone is seriously hurt from the city refusing fix the road surface on this part of the bridge. It has been well documented about the dangers of that spot. And that SOT refuses to take any actions to the road surface. I kinda want to make a giant score card titled ‘Another one bites the pavement’. Or ‘Spin out Corner’ With a mark for every flipped car, the truck that went off the bridge there and every other spin out that closed 1 or more lanes of traffic because of the road there. A visual like this maybe more helpful than the yellow signs with the back car and squiggly line behind it that SDOT installed, last time WS made a fuss about their inaction. Has anyone else noticed all the chunks of concrete missing near all entrances and exits on the bridge? I am surprised there are so many given how much work that has been done to the bridge.

nothend September 13, 2026 (3:24 pm)

I believe there used to be two “caution slippery when wet 30 mph” signs before you got to the spot, one went missing a month or two ago. I did mention this in the find it, fix it app # 26-00216584 but sdot labeled it closed the same day it was reported. This is the missing sign:
- Pookie September 14, 2026 (10:19 am)
  
  Yep, I’ve never seen cars go the speed limit over the bridge, pretty sure “The Spot” can be navigated without disaster by simply slowing down…
WSzombie September 13, 2026 (10:56 pm)

You act like everyone driving to West Seattle reads 10 years of the WSB before coming here. Sure, if you’ve lived here since before COVID, you should probably know better. But coming here for work, visit friends, look for an apartment, buy a house, go shopping, tale the ferry, etc., you’re probably not going to know about the section of road the city knowingly ignores repairing.

Azimuth September 13, 2026 (1:22 pm)

People do drive too fast but it’s a clear design flaw SDOT refuses to address: the changes in surfaces, the road bounces at those surface changes, and it’s a curve. Add some water and some speed, and voila… CRASH!

Gitgud September 13, 2026 (1:53 pm)

For those that fantasize about some sort of “justice” where SDOT is sued: it ain’t ever going to happen. The responsibility will always rest with the driver to operate their vehicle based on the conditions. Speed limits aren’t some contact that the city is signing with where you no longer have to think for yourself. Crashing (or sliding at all) on the WS Bridge is a skill issue, and it’s a prime example of the failure of this mode of transportation where everyone is expected to have some base level of competency driving.

B September 13, 2026 (3:13 pm)

I wonder about that. It’s the driver’s responsibility to operate the vehicle safely for the road conditions, but that’s assuming that the road conditions are obvious. At this curve there are hazards that are not obvious, namely the change in the traction surface, and the dips in the road. In a way, the road is more or less sabotaged at this curve. Not on purpose of course, but that’s the effect of the poor installation.
- Jethro Marx September 13, 2026 (5:33 pm)
  
  You more or less are listing skills drivers must have to operate a vehicle safely. Hazards are not always obvious and one must be able to respond to nonobvious dips in the road, random mammals running into the road, etc. If someone cannot negotiate this bit of road safely it is worth considering whether they ought to be given a license.
  - B September 14, 2026 (1:31 am)
    
    Non-obvious dips in the road which are located in the middle of a curve and appear to contribute to accidents would normally be repaired to help prevent more accidents. You normally wouldn’t see dips like these left unrepaired because they create an extreme hazard. It’s like saying ‘you should have expected the sinkhole before you drove into it’.
  - K September 14, 2026 (2:35 am)
    
    Nearly all of the crashed vehicles are the same body type and center of gravity, so there is some physics involved. If the driver cannot foresee the obstacle and cannot override physics to negotiate the obstacle once it is encountered, there is no reasonable expectation that they can avoid it.
    - Jethro Marx September 14, 2026 (9:01 am)
      
      Physics is a tricky subject, but here’s an easy question: would 100% of these crashes be prevented by reducing the vehicle speed? Draw a free body diagram if needed, but any answer other than yes calls one’s physics knowledge into question. The bitter truth: most people don’t know physics even when they confidently assure us they do. Many, perhaps most, adults are not good enough at driving to do it safely and should not be licensed.
    - B September 14, 2026 (11:13 am)
      
      I’m not an expert in physics but I did take upper division courses in it in college years ago. There are many variables in every accident and speed is just one of them. Of course there would be very few accidents if everyone drove 2 mph through the curve, but that would be ridiculous. Fix the common sense physical issues instead.
nothend September 13, 2026 (3:46 pm)

– 6.5 million to the family of Jackson Ravis for a known dangerous intersection – 9.5 million to Aviv Litov for a poorly designed bike lane intersection

Mike B September 13, 2026 (1:57 pm)

A few months ago I witnessed a SUV ride the barrier and crash at the curve. It happened right in front of me as I was going EB. I had to swerve to avoid being hit by debris, and the barrier as it was moving into the EB lanes. This morning I saw the police response with the crashed car resting on it’s passenger side in the grass at the pullout. Thank you to the first responders and to the folks in nicely painted car that was stopped to help.My question here is that cars that crash at “the curve” had to have safety negotiated the other curves getting to the SSV before ending up crashed. The curve most similar to the WS curve crash spot is the of/on ramp from NB I5 to WB SSV/WSB. Given the same car, drivers and condition, why don’t we see more crashes there, or at the four other curves that access WB SSV/WSB for that matter?

Dave September 13, 2026 (3:53 pm)

1. The pavement goes from grooved concrete to smooth aggregate2. The dip right after this bounces the car and the rear end lifts and spins out. 3. Other approaches to exits don’t have these conditions4. More people now drive crossover and SUV vehicles. High center of gravity5. People buy tires for longevity, not rain traction. 80k warranty tires are hard as stones. 6. Not everyone is from here and this is on a ferry route. A fellow coming to buy a car part from me crashed at this spot. He had no idea of the conditions. 7. Slowing down, yes, but this is still an engineering defect the city is not going to address. Anyone who has worked in a large organization knows the mindset at play here.

Eastbound driver September 13, 2026 (3:22 pm)

Not sure how car did this to flip on its side into the blackberries. Unless drove off road then flipped. The crash barriers at Admiral exit had also been smashed. Thank you to speckled green car with a white dog that stopped to help.

Carole September 13, 2026 (3:34 pm)

One person crashed today. No one else did. It’s not the road’s fault. There is nothing wrong with its surfaces. Based on all of the above comments, everyone should have had this incursion. And they did not.I hope she is okay. Pay attention on all curves. It’s not that hard to do.

Joe September 13, 2026 (5:38 pm)

It almost sounds like you don’t want them to fix the road here.
Lorrie September 13, 2026 (5:49 pm)

Carole— exactly right!
RH September 13, 2026 (9:47 pm)

Carole, it IS “the road’s fault,” for reasons others have described above (inconsistent road surface, dips in the gradient, slippery aggregate), and the reason everyone hasn’t spun out at this spot is because of two factors: tire condition and vehicle height. Tires without great traction on wet aggregate pavement and cars with a high center of gravity, i.e. trucks and SUVs, are the only vehicles that lose control here. I’ve been following reports of these crashes for years, and was a passenger in a near-crash myself, and in every case the vehicle involved has been a truck or SUV. I don’t think excessive speed is even a factor, necessarily, although in some cases it probably has contributed.
- Carole September 14, 2026 (9:45 am)
  
  Sedans most certainly have have lost control and crashed here. Do not blame the road, RH.

Notmyphoto September 13, 2026 (4:41 pm)

V September 13, 2026 (4:55 pm)

Im wondering which lane the majority of these happen in , the inner or outer lane and aren’t there investigations done to check skid marks etc to know if speed was responsible

WSzombie September 13, 2026 (11:00 pm)

Left lane nearest the jersey barrier. Accidents happen in both lanes, but the undulations in the left lane are more severe.

aa September 13, 2026 (6:11 pm)

The hardest part for me is when I’m trying to drive cautiously through these curves and some beast of a truck is driving too close behind me. If they think it will make me speed up it won’t because now I’m distracted and likely to slow down.

Jerf September 14, 2026 (11:45 am)

I hope you’re not in the left lane. The left lane is for passing. If someone is tailgating you and you’re in the left lane, please move over.
- aa September 14, 2026 (12:20 pm)
  
  No need to instruct me I know the rules and I follow them. I even use my turn signal.
- Carole September 14, 2026 (12:43 pm)
  
  Telling anyone to change lanes on a curve such as this one is unwelcomed.
- E September 14, 2026 (1:16 pm)
  
  Keep right to pass only applies to roads with a posted speed limit of 55MPH or higher.

bolo September 13, 2026 (6:38 pm)

I happened to drive today. All around the city. Surface streets, West Seattle Bridge, 99, I-5, bridges, tunnels, new pavement, old pavement, mostly wet slick pavement. Saw far too many drivers taking far too many reckless chances; abrupt lane changes without signals, speeding, tailgating, etc. Something bad was bound to happen– the odds favored it.

Pookie September 14, 2026 (10:23 am)

The comments did not disappoint. I had no idea so many engineers lived in West Seattle… We have all driven over the bridge like it’s a freeway (I rarely see vehicles going under 60mph), then taking that turn at about 50mph. On the motorcycle it’s a great rip, in a car: foolish.

Carole September 14, 2026 (10:34 am)

Slow down on curves, esp when wet. Do not exceed the speed limit. DO NOT TAILGATE! This is not the Daytona 500.

B September 14, 2026 (11:11 am)

I’m not an expert in physics but I did take upper division courses in it in college years ago. There are many variables in every accident and speed is just one of them. Of course there would be very few accidents if everyone drove 2 mph through the curve, but that would be ridiculous. Fix the common sense physical issues instead.

Sorry, comment time is over.