(SDOT camera image)

Discussions of the hole that shut down the state-owned ramp from the West Seattle Bridge to Highway 99 (reopening tomorrow) have swerved into concerns about the condition of the city-owned Spokane Street Viaduct. (That’s the formal name for the east half of the West Seattle Bridge, from Highway 99 to I-5.) Those concerns also came up during the 2 1/2-year repair closure of the west half of the West Seattle Bridge. The eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct, not part of the repair project, did close for work including pothole repairs multiple times during those 2 1/2 years, and SDOT did deck scanning for a more extensive assessment. Then in July of last year, the city announced it had received a $5 million federal grant to resurface the entire eastbound side of the SSV. At the time of that announcement, SDOT told us that resurfacing would happen in “the next few years.” So we asked last week where that plan stands, and got this answer today from SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson with a somewhat speedier timeline: “We are currently in the design phase of this project, and anticipate starting construction as soon as next year. The construction work will address the frequent overlay issues that we have been encountering on the eastbound lanes of the Spokane St Viaduct.” The eastbound lanes are on the original 1940s-built SSV structure; the westbound side was built a decade-plus ago to widen it

(WSB photo, Wednesday)

2:52 PM: Six days after that hole forced the Washington State Department of Transportation to close its ramp connecting the eastbound West Seattle Bridge to northbound State Highway 99, here’s the latest:

As reported over the weekend, crews poured concrete on Saturday, and now it’s curing. WSDOT spokesperson James Poling explained why the schedule remains the same as announced last week (which would reopen the ramp by this Saturday): “The concrete curing process requires our offsite materials lab breaking test concrete cylinders from the pour at certain time benchmarks (24 hours after pour, 48 hours after pour, etc.). Once a test cylinder reaches a strength to safely reopen traffic, the bridge ramp will reopen. The timetable remains the same at this time as our crews await a test cylinder to pass that strength benchmark.”

Meantime, since there was initially much public confusion over who’s accountable for the ramp, and some commenters said they had filed ramp-pothole reports with the city, we asked the Seattle Department of Transportation if they’d received such reports about the state-owned ramp and what happened to them. Spokesperson Ethan Bergerson replied, “When the public reports a pothole which is outside the city limits or not on SDOT’s right-of-way, it will be routed to the correct transportation agency. Over the past few months, we notified WSDOT of several public reports of potholes in this location.” We’ll follow up on that, as WSDOT had said previously they weren’t aware of the hole – at least at the magnitude that forced last Tuesday’s closure.

4:28 PM UPDATE: Just got another update – the ramp concrete “has cured more quickly” than expected, and the ramp will be open by 5 am tomorrow (Tuesday).

(WSDOT photos)

The Washington State Department of Transportation says its crew made more progress today toward repairing and reopening the ramp between the West Seattle Bridge and northbound Highway 99. It’s been closed since Tuesday night, when a 5′ x 4′ hole in the 64-year-old ramp caused tire blowouts for at least five drivers. WSDOT’s latest update: “Today we’ve poured concrete. It usually takes a few days for this type of concrete to cure properly in order to safely reopen the ramp.”

We’ll find out on Monday if that’s altered the schedule – originally announced as 10 days, which would mean reopening by next Saturday. In the meantime, your options for getting to Highway 99 are the 1st Avenue South Bridge or via the 1st Avenue exit on the eastbound bridge, leading you into SODO, where you can get onto 99.

That map from SDOT shows where work is expected to start soon for pedestrian improvements at Roxbury/Olson [map], which have been in the works for at least three years. The city has sent notices to people in the area, but it’s a busy corridor, so many others who use it need to know too. From the SDOT advisory:

This work will include:

-A new pedestrian signal on the northwest side of the intersection
-Shifting the crosswalks across SW Roxbury St so they’re better aligned
-Curb bulbs that extend the sidewalk corners for people walking on the south side of the intersection
-Curb ramps for improved ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility

Once work begins, it is expected to last six months, SDOT says, with work hours primarily 9 am-3 pm on weekdays. They’ll have flaggers to help with lane closures. Here’s the full construction notice.

(WSB photos, noontime today)

When we went over today for another look under the damaged ramp to Highway 99, we arrived just as that crew was ascending to the ramp’s underside. It’s been two days now since a 5′ x 4′ hole in the ramp took out tires on at least five vehicles before WSDOT ordered it closed. It’s a state-owned structure, as is Highway 99, to which the ramp leads from an exit on the eastbound West Seattle Bridge. WSDOT spokesperson James Poling tells WSB that repairs remain on schedule – that’s the schedule announced yesterday, 10 days, which would mean the work is expected to be done by May 13th. He says the lift we photographed carries workers 38 feet up from ground to ramp. So what exactly is happening now? Poling replied, “Most of the concrete removal is now complete. The next repair step is building forms underneath the deck and sealing the space between the girder webs. This will take about 36-48 hours.”

As we reported yesterday, the ramp was built in 1959 and last inspected in August 2022. It remained open to traffic during the West Seattle Bridge’s two and a half-year closure, still accessible via a ramp from surface Spokane Street, except for a week-plus closure to repair a deck hole about 100 feet from this one.

P.S. We found more information about the ramp via this inventory map – including its official name, E-N Ramp, and confirmation that its inspection schedule is every two years

Last week we heard from Taylor about a malfunction with the flashing beacon signal for the crosswalk on California at Genesee. They reported it to SDOT, and it got fixed. But now we’ve heard from Jesse that it’s broken again: “Just a heads up, the pedestrian crossing signal at California and Genesee isn’t working. I’ve reported it to the city, but if people want to cross they should probably go a block either way to do so safely.” (Besides the Find It Fix It app, you can report transportation-related trouble via 206-684-ROAD or, after hours, 206-386-1218.)

After last weekend’s work, SDOT says it’s “nearly” done installing the 2-way protected bike lane along an almost-half-mile stretch of West Marginal Way SW north of the Duwamish Longhouse – jersey barriers are up and lane markings are painted. We drove alongside it this afternoon for a closer look:

Reminder signage is in place at driveways not only on the bike-lane side but also on the northbound side of West Marginal, where the pre-existing Duwamish Trail crosses. It’s been more than two years since SDOT proposed the bike lane, eventually deciding to hold off on installation until after the West Seattle Bridge reopened last September.

(SDOT photo of Green Lake bike lane like the one to be built on West Marginal)

Another “construction starting soon” notice just in – this time, for the permanent protected bicycle lane on West Marginal Way SW. It’s a two-way lane that will run just under half a mile on the west side of the street between the bridge and the Duwamish Longhouse. (The temporary bike lane installed during the low-bridge closure is still in place there.) Along with building the permanent lane, SDOT will be “updating all 17 Duwamish Trail / driveway crossings on the east side of the corridor with signs and pavement markings.” All this is expected to start in early April – weather permitting, SDOT hopes to finish the bike-lane construction over the first two weekends of the month. Here’s the construction notice, which notes: “Construction will be on weekends for the bike lane and on both weekday and weekends for the Duwamish Trail driveway crossing treatments. Trail detours in short sections will be noted on signs. Please dismount bikes and walk around wet paint near driveways.”

BACKSTORY: SDOT first unveiled the bike lane as an option in January 2021. Various rounds of discussion ensued (including a February meeting at which attendees were invited to begin with a “moment of meditation and reflection”). Then the department told the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force in July 2021 that it would go ahead with the plan. Here’s the design they showed then:

SDOT promised at the time that construction wouldn’t start until after the reopening of the West Seattle Bridge (which has now been back in service for 6 months, following its 2 1/2-year closure). The department says the change will add a few seconds at most to travel times. Other changes will follow as part of the corridor safety project, as noted on its webpage.

You’ve probably heard by now that SDOT is out with its promised review of Vision Zero, as ordered by director Greg Spotts shortly after he took over the department. Tomorrow, he is scheduled to lead two briefings on the report – 9:30 am at the City Council’s Transportation and Public Utilities Committee meeting, 5 pm at the Move Seattle Levy Oversight Committee meeting. And SDOT is seeking community feedback on the review.

After it was released, we read the entire report to look for West Seattle-specific mentions. While it’s largely devoid of those, it does feature several maps showing problem spots here and elsewhere, so we’ll start with those. First, locations of fatal and serious-injury incidents, by mode:

Here are high-collision locations:

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