(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
6:21 AM: Good morning! We start with today’s alerts:

SW ORCHARD PAVING: Today’s the day Seattle Public Utilities‘ ongoing project at Orchard/Delridge expects to start repaving work, which means lane closures starting as early as 7:30 am on the westbound side.

BEACH DRIVE/LINCOLN PARK BICYCLIST ALERT: We’ve been sharing traffic alerts related to the Murray CSO Control Project for a long time – and there’s a new one this morning, specifically for bicycle riders using the south end of Beach Drive and the connecting Lincoln Park trail:

King County wants you to know about uneven road conditions along the 7000 block of Beach Dr. SW, just north of the trail into Lincoln Park. Due to a King County sewer project the road next to Lowman Beach Park could have loose gravel, pavement cuts, uneven surfaces, and steel plates on it for the next three months. To protect public safety, a number of vehicle and pedestrian restrictions are now in effect. Flaggers directing traffic around the site will ask bicyclists to walk their bikes through the area during work hours. Car access is limited to local and emergency access only. Pedestrians are being directed to the western sidewalk around the work area. This work is part of a King County project to build an underground storage tank that will keep sewage and stormwater out of Puget Sound during storms. Thank you for your patience during construction – and stay safe! For more information, please contact the 24-hour construction hotline: 206-205-9186.

And our almost-every-week Traffic Throwback Thursday feature:

ALONG CHARLESTOWN: Before that big blue water tank, Charlestown/40th was home to a collection of storage tanks. The photo, dated 1923, is from the Seattle Municipal Archives. Click it to open the page with a full-size view.

8:18 AM: From SDOT, a bridge alert:

8:37 AM: SDOT says that stall has now “cleared the roadway.”

8:48 AM: Next traffic alert that might affect the outbound commute – a crash on northbound I-5 at Seneca.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Welcome to Wednesday. We start with a two-part road-work alert related to ongoing utility projects:

2 UPCOMING PAVING PROJECTS: One rescheduled, one newly announced:

Seattle Public Utilities is continuing sewer improvements at two different sites in the Delridge neighborhood: near Delridge Way SW and SW Orchard Street and on SW Barton Place and SW Barton Street.

As previously announced, SPU’s contractor will grind, pave, and stripe SW Orchard Street. This work is now expected to occur between Thursday, August 13 and Wednesday, August 19. The work will require the closure of the westbound lane on SW Orchard Street (east of Delridge Way SW). The westbound lane will be closed between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. and will be opened to traffic during non-work hours. During the closure, all westbound traffic will be diverted to the eastbound lane with the assistance of a traffic flagger.

In addition, SPU’s contractor will pave 22nd Avenue SW between SW Barton Place and SW Barton Street on August 17-18, from 7:30 a.m. until as late as 6 p.m. This work will require intermittent lane restrictions on SW Barton Place where it intersects 22nd Avenue SW, and on SW Barton Street between 21st Avenue SW and 23rd Avenue SW. During the work, flaggers will be at both sites to maintain two-way traffic.

And some transit news:

WATER TAXI RIDER? In case you missed it … here’s our update on the new West Seattle water taxi, M/V Doc Maynard, expected to go into service this fall.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:40 AM: Good morning! Another more-or-less-quiet commute so far. Might be 90 degrees one more time today. One road-work alert:

BEACH DRIVE PAVING: SDOT plans to resume repaving Beach Drive in the 61st SW vicinity today – here’s the alert on that.

Looking ahead to later this month:

99 CLOSURE NORTH OF THE BATTERY ST. TUNNEL: From Friday night, August 21st, through Monday morning, August 24th, Highway 99 will be closed both ways from the BSTunnel to Valley St. (lower Queen Anne), so if you’re heading NB that weekend, you’ll have to exit at Western – details here.

8:22 AM: If you take East Marginal Way S. toward downtown – be forewarned, two of the three northbound lanes are blocked by a crash at S. Orcas.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:46 AM: Damp roads are the commute headline so far this morning – be careful. No new road-work alerts for today.

9:13 AM UPDATE: And now, at least where we are, the sun’s out.

ADVANCE ALERT FOR TUESDAY: SDOT plans to continue repaving a section of Beach Drive tomorrow – details here.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Again this morning, nothing out of the ordinary in the commute. One road-work alert:

BEACH DRIVE PAVING: As noted here last night, SDOT is starting the paving project between Spokane and Orleans today, one day later than first announced – details here.

THIS WEEKEND: No road-closing special events in West Seattle, but here’s the citywide alert list from SDOT.

While the repaving work in the 1300 to 1700 blocks of Alki Avenue SW has wrapped up (we drove through this evening to verify, about eight hours after taking the photo above), the Beach Drive work that was supposed to start has instead slid back a bit. SDOT says it’ll start tomorrow:

Seattle Department of Transportation crews will pave Beach Drive Southwest between Southwest Spokane Street and Southwest Orleans Street, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, on Friday, Aug. 7 and again on Tuesday, Aug. 11. During this time, the street will be closed to through traffic but open for local access. People may enter and exit driveways, but they may need to wait at times for up to 15 minutes. On-street parking will be restricted in the work area. Due to equipment issues, the schedule for this paving project has been changed from its original schedule for Aug.6-Aug.7.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
We start the morning with a new road-work alert:

SW ORCHARD AT DELRIDGE, STARTING TOMORROW: From Seattle Public Utilities:

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is continuing sewer improvements near Delridge Way SW and SW Orchard Street. Work hours are 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Saturdays. Between Thursday, August 6 and Tuesday, August 11, SPU crews will grind, pave, and stripe SW Orchard Street. This work will require the closure of the westbound lane on SW Orchard Street (east of Delridge Way SW). The westbound lane will be opened to traffic during non-work hours. During the closure, all westbound traffic will be diverted to the eastbound lane with the assistance of a traffic flagger.

Another ongoing utility-related project:

MURRAY CSO CONTROL PROJECT WORK BY LOWMAN BEACH: If you use Beach Drive in the area, keep this alert in mind.

And scheduled to continue today:

ALKI AVENUE PAVING: Lane closures are expected between 7 am and 7 pm for the SDOT paving project announced for Alki SW between the 1300 and 1700 blocks.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Quiet commute so far.

METRO SURVEY: Less than a week left to answer the survey to help Metro shape its long-range plans – find it here.

ALKI AVENUE PAVING: Today’s the day SDOT says paving work will start on a stretch of Alki Avenue – we’ve confirmed since the announcement that the nonexistent streets referred to in the announcement translate to, between the 1300 and 1700 blocks.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: How will the city fix the policies, or lack of them, that play into slow clearing of incidents such as the fish-truck crash (9 hours) and West Marginal crash (5 hours)? 90 changes are recommended – from more traffic cameras to free towing on chokepoint roadways. Here’s our full report.

12:24 PM: 2-car crash reported on the eastbound bridge at 4th Avenue South. SFD closed out of the scene fairly quickly so we don’t know how serious it is – no cameras in that area.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:08 AM: If you take 4th Avenue South into downtown, note that a crash at Massachusetts, just south of the stadium zone, is closing part of the northbound roadway. No other problems right now on the outbound routes from here.

VASHON FERRY-DOCK WORK: Cheryl reminds us that the big earthquake-safety project at the main Vashon Island ferry dock got under way at the end of last week, and that means big changes for traffic (and waiting) in the area. Before you go to or through Vashon, read about the project here. The work is expected to continue into December.

7:51 AM: The 4th Avenue situation isn’t cleared up yet, according to this SDOT tweet:

11:16 PM: What was a ‘heavy rescue’ callout is being scaled back as Seattle Fire crews arrive at the scene of a crash on the eastbound high bridge. No major injuries reported so far.

11:45 PM: Just passed the scene, headed westbound from an errand. It’s in the left eastbound lane just before the 99 overpass. A tow truck is on scene, so this should clear soon.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:22 AM: As we head into the heart of the commute, a crash on the bridge by 1st Avenue South is blocking one lane eastbound and backing up traffic. Coincidentally, this afternoon, city leaders are planning a media briefing about strategies for clearing road problems. Today also will bring another I-90 bridge closure for the Blue Angels’ practice show:

I-90 CLOSURE: The bridge will close 11:50 am-2:40 pm. Details here.

7:34 AM: SDOT says the bridge crash has cleared and all lanes are now open.

10 AM: If you’re headed for the South Park Bridge, note that a hazmat response in the area is complicating traffic on the SP side:

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
No trouble outbound this morning but this is the two-closure day for the I-90 bridge across Lake Washington while the Blue Angels practice:

I-90 CLOSURES: 9:45 am-noon and 1:15 pm-2:40 pm, the bridge will close, and that has spillover effects on other routes, including I-5 northbound approaching the 90 exit. Details here.

8:26 AM: Just got a call from someone who says a vehicle with a flat tire is partly blocking the ramp from the eastbound West Seattle Bridge to northbound 99.

11:43 AM: Thanks to the texter who called our attention to the low-bridge problem. No ETA yet.

NOON UPDATE: SDOT says the low bridge is working again.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:31 AM: As we start today’s traffic watch, crews are headed to a crash reported at Austin/Holden, which the map shows as at the top of the Highland Park Way hill. Separate story possible, depending on what we find at the scene. Updates here in the meantime.

7:44 AM: Our crew is at the intersection (photo above). Two cars; traffic is getting around in all directions, but slowly. Medics are checking out two people.

(Photo courtesy @slightlynorth via Twitter)
7:52 AM: No one will need to be taken to the hospital, we’re told at the scene. At some point tow trucks will be brought in to clear the damaged vehicles, so this will still be slow going for a while.

8:14 AM: Seattle Fire has cleared the scene but police are still there, awaiting the tow trucks, and have asked dispatchers to find out how much longer they’ll be waiting.

8:50 AM: No update from that scene – we’ll have to go back for a look later (no traffic cameras in the area). Meantime, in comments, trouble on the bridge. And from Washington State Ferries, official word is now in that the long-planned Vashon dock project starts Friday morning, which means effects along the route:

Starting at 7:30 a.m., Friday, July 31, construction to seismically upgrade the 60-year-old Vashon ferry dock will begin. During construction, vehicles will not be allowed to wait on the dock. Southworth-bound vehicles will stage in the right lane of 103rd Ave. SW, the left lane will remain open to one-way through traffic. Fauntleroy-bound vehicles will be staged on Vashon Highway SW. Motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians will be able to wait for ferries at the terminal building. Motorcycles heading to Southworth or Fauntleroy may access the dock from 103rd Ave. SW. Flaggers stationed at the terminal entrance will direct traffic and assist ADA customers with drop-off and pick-up.

For more on this, see the WSF bulletins.

9:05 AM: Thanks to the texter who just told us the Highland Park Way/Holden crash scene is now completely clear.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Good morning!

ALERTS: SDOT plans work on Klickitat Way today through Thursday … At the Fauntleroy ferry dock, more overnight pavement repairs are planned.

THURSDAY-SUNDAY I-90 REMINDER: Every day this week, we’re reminding you about the Thursday-Sunday I-90 bridge closures during Blue Angels practices/performances – two on Thursday and one per day Friday-Sunday.

9:09 AM: If you haven’t left yet, don’t head for northbound I-5 – a crash is blocking two lanes just north of the exit from the West Seattle Bridge.

9:24 AM: Per WSDOT (and “Happy Tuesday” in comments), the scene is clear.

Just in from SDOT:

Crews from the Seattle Department of Transportation will close the left southbound lane on Klickitat Way Southwest between Spokane Street and 11th Avenue Southwest for landscape maintenance. The left lane will be closed from 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. each day from Tuesday, July 28 until Thursday, July 30. Some delays are possible; drive carefully.

Not sure about that location? Here’s a map.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
So far, no incidents this Friday morning.

SATURDAY NIGHT VIADUCT CLOSURE: Here’s the latest from WSDOT – the northbound Alaskan Way Viaduct will close 6-9 pm tomorrow night for the Seafair Pirate Run.

SATURDAY TRANSIT ALERTS: For the run and the Seafair Torchlight Parade downtown, road closures will affect transit service mid-afternoon through late evening.

CITYWIDE WEEKEND NOTES: Here’s SDOT‘s roundup of events that might affect traffic, including a mention of the Alki Art Fair on Saturday/Sunday – no road closures; shuttle-bus service is available.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
Nothing out of the ordinary so far in today’s outbound commute.

SATURDAY NIGHT VIADUCT CLOSURE: According to Metro’s alert for Saturday night’s Seafair Pirate Run and Torchlight Parade downtown, the northbound Alaskan Way Viaduct will be closed for about an hour – time approximate but the race runs approximately 6:30-7:30 pm – and the southbound side won’t be affected at all. Remember that the parade itself spans the length of downtown, Seattle Center to the International District, mostly on 4th Avenue, and that will result in closures for most of the evening.

ADDED 8:05 AM – TRAFFIC THROWBACK THURSDAY: From the Seattle Municipal Archives, dated August 1916, a streetcar scene, identified only as Donald Street:

Click the photo to go to its page on the SMA site. We believe this is North Admiral, as maps show Donald St. only in the Hamilton Viewpoint vicinity.

(Four WS-relevant views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
So far, nothing major happening in the outbound commute. Looking ahead:

SATURDAY NIGHT VIADUCT CLOSURE: Exact times haven’t been announced yet, but the Alaskan Way Viaduct will be closed for a few hours Saturday in connection with the Seafair Pirate Run (6:30 pm); that precedes the Seafair Torchlight Parade, which brings surface-street closures through downtown until late evening, particularly the parade route itself on 4th Avenue from Seattle Center to the International District.

ALKI ART FAIR SATURDAY/SUNDAY: Watch for a preview here later today. No street closures, but the beach will be busy, and there is a transportation note – free shuttle bus; details on the festival website’s home page.

7:40 AM: The bridge is “almost at a standstill,” notes one bus rider; no incidents that we’re seeing/hearing about.