Tomorrow will mark one week since mechanical trouble closed the West Seattle low bridge to road and path users. Tonight, some updates, starting with a map for the bicycle detour:

“This is a long detour,” SDOT acknowledges in this post about options for getting around while the low bridge is out of service, adding “We have been working this week to clear recent windstorm debris from the route, install detour route signs, and review the asphalt condition to see if spot improvements can be made to support riders.” Also of note, SDOT says, “Should the closure extend much beyond two weeks, we’ll consider other options for enhancing travel without a car.” (Back during an emergency low-bridge closure in 2018, a shuttle was implemented.)

So how long might the closure last? Still no estimate. SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson told WSB today, “Crews have been in the bridge every day since the recent incident, working to create a repair plan and timeline. We haven’t finished our analysis yet, but this is a high priority and we are working to fix the bridge as fast as we can.” SDOT also has published a recap of work that had already been done on the bridge, and what was planned – including this photo of work back in October:

Most of the low-bridge work was part of the same contract under which Kraemer North America repaired the high bridge. Looking into our archives, this July report projected that much of the low-bridge work was at the time expected to be done by year’s end.

(SDOT camera image, looking west from east end of low bridge)

SDOT is finally commenting on what’s wrong with the West Seattle low bridge (Spokane Street Swing Bridge), four days after it was closed. According to SDOT, the bridge won’t reopen for at least two weeks because crews need “to repair mechanical issues that intensified after a power outage during the ice storm on December 23.” They’re still working on a “repair plan and schedule.” Here’s their explanation of what’s wrong:

The problem initially appeared to be associated with a computer issue that occurred while the bridge was powering back up after a power outage. Once the computer issue was resolved, engineers found previously identified minor issues with the hydraulic system that moves the bridge had intensified.

SDOT completes regular inspections of the Low Bridge and had existing plans to repair these aging components in 2023. However, after the power outage, it was discovered that previously manageable small-scale issues had escalated into more severe problems. Until these components are fixed, the bridge cannot be reliably moved without risking more severe long-term damage.

SDOT engineers are working as quickly as possible to analyze repair options. While there is not yet an estimate for how long bridge repair will take, SDOT expects the closure to last for at least two weeks.

Based on the evaluation results, additional Low Bridge closures for repairs may be needed in 2023, along with closures associated with planned capital improvements to the bridge next year.

In the meantime, the low bridge is being kept open for maritime traffic, but closed to vehicle, bicycle, and foot traffic. The bridge is 30 years old.

(Added image: Our inbox screen, filled with less than half-hour’s worth of Metro alerts since we published this story)

One week has passed since we first reported December 6th that Metro had taken 126 of its 1,500 buses out of service because of a steering “defect” discovered by drivers. (We reported the specific buses involved in this followup.) Metro was working with the manufacturer, New Flyer, to fix the defect. We asked Metro spokesperson Jeff Switzer how many have been returned to service so far: “We returned 3 affected New Flyer coaches to service using 3 new steering columns that were delivered by bus manufacturer New Flyer. We’re working closely with New Flyer on replacement parts and don’t yet have a timeline available.” In the meantime, trip cancellations, and in some cases temporary route suspensions, continue; the north West Seattle routes such as 56 and 57 have been particularly hard-hit. We asked Switzer why those routes and not some others with low ridership, for example, the 22. Here’s his explanation:

Routes 56 and 57 operate out of Central Base, where bus availability is temporarily limited; route 22 operates from South Base, which has more available buses. Routes 56 and 57 do have higher ridership than Route 22, but the majority of Route 56 and 57 riders have reasonable service alternatives. Route 56 riders are served by Route 50 and Route 128 connections to the C Line, or Route 775 to the West Seattle Water Taxi. Route 57 riders are served by Route 128 and the C Line, but there is a service gap in the Genesee Hill area south of SW Admiral Way and west of California Avenue Southwest. According to our ridership data, that route segment serves an average of 6-7 weekday riders. Route 22 is a lower ridership route, but also has limited service alternatives. The route provides unique connections to Chief Sealth High School and Southwest Community Center, and serves an equity priority community.

Metro says it’s currently operating 96 percent of its schedule, up from 90% shortly after the problem was disclosed.

A reader asked about this, and then we noticed it ourselves: Almost three months after the West Seattle Bridge reopened, the travel-time display on SDOT‘s overhead message boards still shows times for getting to the 1st Avenue South Bridge. Last week we asked SDOT why. Spokesperson Mariam Ali looked into it and sent this reply tonight:

We recently moved the Travelers Web Map to a more modern server. During this process the routes shown on our dynamic message signs were frozen so as to not further complicate the move. This work is complete. We are presently evaluating all dynamic message signs to see where routes should be modified or added. We expect to roll out new routes on the West Seattle Dynamic Message Signs and other locations the end of Q1 2023, if not sooner.

You can see what’s showing on the message boards around the city by going to the aforementioned Travelers Map and clicking “map controls” on the left side of the screen, then choosing “Travel Times”; the dropdown for Southwest will show you the Fauntleroy and 35th boards’ message for the 1st Avenue South Bridge.

3:02 PM: In the wake of the removal of 126 buses from service – as first reported here last night – Metro has just announced it’s suspending some routes for the rest of today. They’re not all in West Seattle, but we’re publishing the full list in case others affect you off-peninsula: 9, 15, 17, 18, 29, 55, 56, 57, 64, 111, 114, 121, 125, 162, 177, 214, 301, 304 & 330. However, Metro adds this caveat, “Due to the fluid nature of the situation, a small number of trips may run on routes that are temporarily suspended.” Meantime, we’re still awaiting answers to some follow-up questions about the bus-removal situation.

4 PM UPDATE: Just got some answers, from Metro spokesperson Jeff Switzer. Regarding which buses specifically:

Out of 1,500 total buses, the New Flyer models affected include 39 of the Xcelsior 6200 articulated (60-ft) coaches in our fleet and 64 of the Xcelsior 8200 articulated (60-ft) coaches in our fleet. Those coaches have been temporarily pulled from service. We want to emphasize all of the coaches on the road have been inspected and confirmed safe. Additionally, there are a few other identified buses: two 3700 (35-ft) coaches, six 4300 trolleys, six 8000 articulated (60-ft) coaches, three 8100 articulated (60-ft) coaches and six 9600 articulated (60-ft) coaches.

Regarding how they’re deciding which trips to cancel/routes to suspend:

Per our usual practice, we’re prioritizing service on high-ridership trips, the first and last trips of the day, school trips and trips late at night. In some places peak commuter routes are being fully cancelled, and Metro is in process of developing information to provide on alternative routes for those customers.

Regarding how the repairs will be made:

This problem was only recently identified and we’re working closely with the manufacture to determine the best approach. The expectation is that some or all of the work will be done at our bases with the equipment supplied by New Flyer. There is no timeline yet for when the work will be completed.

(WSB photos)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Sizable turnout tonight at Alki Bathhouse for SDOT‘s open house to show its “early design” for turning the west ends of Beach Drive and Alki Avenue into a permanent “Healthy Street“ and Neighborhood Greenway. The stretch around Alki Point has had “Stay Healthy Street”/”Keep Moving Street” status since early in the pandemic, declaring the street closed to vehicle through-traffic, but aside from the “Street Closed” signs at either end, it’s been largely unchanged. Now that the city has decided to permanently change the street, the question is how. What they showed at tonight’s open house included added traffic-calming features to narrow the street, such as paint-and-post curb bulbs and a traffic circle. One display tonight showed this array of possibilities:

(See above as PDF)

The other three showed these actual early-design concepts (in the first one, the “cul-de-sac” effect would involve moving the Alki Avenue street-closed sign a bit further west, to where the bike lane ends now, and narrowing the road entrance to one lane):

(see above as PDF)

(see above as PDF)

(see above as PDF)

On the displays as well as on a long paper rendering of the street, attendees were invited to leave post-it-note comments:

Some of the suggestions we read included “more speed bumps” and residential parking permits.

Sheets of paper for longer comments were available too, and periodic reminders to fill them out were shouted over the din. We listened in on some of the conversations; many attendees identified themselves as residents in the Healthy Street area. One attendee talking with SDOT’s Healthy Streets program manager Summer Jawson expressed concern about equitable access to the area; Jawson stressed that they planned to include additional accessible parking spaces, and that none of the current parking would be removed.

ADDED THURSDAY AFTERNOON: SDOT spokesperson Ethan Bergerson sent us a clarification on Jawson’s parking comment, saying she was speaking “in reference to specific areas near intersections where we planned to install painted curb extensions … clarifying that this would not remove legal parking spaces because it is already illegal to park within 30 feet of these intersections (or in the intersection itself). We do anticipate removing parking in a few specific locations to make room for drivers to turn around at the cul-de-sac and to support some of the traffic calming and public space enhancements along the waterfront. One of our next steps on the project will be to complete a parking analysis to map out specific parking changes.”

WHAT’S NEXT? An online open house is planned at noon next Tuesday (November 15); the link is supposed to be posted any day now on the project website. Now that the “early design” has gone public, you also are invited to send comments to AlkiKeepMovingStreet@seattle.gov by December 9.

(SDOT photo)

Long-awaited improvements on a major route for bicyclists between West Seattle and downtown are closer to reality with this SDOT announcement today, one year after they announced the project was fully funded:

We’ve reached a final design for the north segment of the East Marginal Way Corridor Improvement Project. The project is now advertised for construction contractors to bid on! The community has long awaited this project and we share in the excitement of reaching this major milestone. We appreciate community members’ patience, support, and commitment as the design was developed and informed by public input.

The project will serve people biking, walking, rolling, and driving, and improve safety and mobility along this busy freight corridor. We’ll reconstruct pavement, rebuild and improve signals, build a protected bike lane, and more. Construction of the North Segment, which runs between S Spokane St and S Atlantic St, will begin in 2023.

We encourage you to visit the project website to learn more about key features, benefits, and phased construction plans. You can also learn more about the North Segment of the project. …

After we hire a contractor, we’ll go through a materials procurement period to purchase items that can have a long lead time. This time frame is dependent on the supply chain, which has seen significant delays since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Once the contractor is on board and we have a better sense of how long materials procurement will take, we’ll set a construction start date and share more detailed information about what you can expect during construction.

Construction will disrupt traffic along East Marginal Way S. We’ll maintain freight truck access to the Port of Seattle terminals along East Marginal Way S but anticipate detouring all non-Port of Seattle vehicle traffic in the North Segment project area. We will maintain a way for people biking and walking to use East Marginal Way S, but the route will shift to avoid active construction areas. We’ll have mitigation and detour plans in place to minimize the effects where possible.

The project – estimated last year at $43 million – will be paid for with local, state, and federal funding. SDOT says it’s still looking for funding to cover sections of East Marginal south of the West Seattle Bridge.