(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:06 AM: Rain showers are the only commute complication as this morning gets going.

6:59 AM: Via Twitter, Dave just reported a crash on the eastbound bridge. It’s not on the 911 log. But in a comment here, Kimberley has a few more details – “There’s a fender bender in the right lane just before the crest of the bridge.”

7:44 AM: Don’t let the camera fool you – the crash scene(s – commenters report 2) are BEFORE the view you see on the cam. Very slow going.

8:35 AM: West Seattle Bridge is better, we’re told, but 509 (1st Avenue South) is backed up. Nothing on the 911 log – so either it’s a fender-bender/stall, or spillover from earlier WS Bridge problems.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:59 AM: Nothing out of the ordinary so far this morning.

9:27 AM: JL reports in comments that the 35th/Avalon traffic light is malfunctioning – flashing red all ways. We’ll check in later to see if it’s fixed.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
We start off with a transit-alert reminder from Metro:

Beginning (today) from the start of service until Friday, December 21 at the end of service, Routes 22 & 120 will be rerouted off of 26th Av SW between SW Barton St and SW Roxbury St, due to construction. During this time, route 22 and route 120 will travel instead via 30th Av SW in both directions to their regular routes.

And a ferry-alert reminder from Washington State Ferries, which has three boats out for repair:

Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth: This route will be on a two boat schedule with the 124-car Issaquah and the 87-car Tillikum. This service will be supplemented with unscheduled sailings by the 34-car Hiyu.

5:15 PM: Two traffic alerts in via e-mail – one, a mattress on the left side of the eastbound West Seattle Bridge (thanks to Damiana for that tip); two, East Marginal Way southbound blocked by truck trouble just before the 1st Avenue South Bridge (thanks to Jamie).

10:21 PM: Another traffic alert – one-car crash at east end of eastbound West Seattle Bridge has police closing the Columbian Way and northbound I-5 exits. Might be a while – scanner traffic also has mentioned some damage at the “gore point” as well as a small oil spill from the crash.

10:56 PM: Scanner traffic says everything’s open again.

9:35 PM: Seattle Police are blocking southbound Delridge at Findlay because of a crash at Delridge/Juneau. According to scanner traffic, a car hit a parked car – and the driver is reported to have left the scene. No word of any injuries, so far – a Seattle Fire engine was responding but has just been canceled since “the patient fled on foot” – possibly into a nearby apartment complex.

10:57 PM UPDATE: Adding a photo. We saw three damaged vehicles at the scene – one being towed, two parked along the street. We will check back soon to verify whether the southbound side of Delridge has reopened.

(REMINDER – each day, the traffic/transit update is the primary place we add traffic notes if it’s not a major incident, and the place we appreciate your reports/comments too – every weekday, you’ll find it linked atop the WSB sidebar)

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
Good morning! Embarking on Friday morning traffic watch. Nothing to report so far. One note: The extended grace period for the city’s 4 school-zone traffic cams is about to expire – as of Monday, the official tickets begin.

9:04 AM: Thanks to the texter (206-293-6302 any time – add it to your phone contacts just in case! thanks!) who reports a crash on Sylvan Way near Forest Lawn (WSB sponsor) – the 911 log has a fire callout to Sylvan Heights Drive/Sylvan Way. We’re going to go check it out. (added) Thanks to @HommeSea for the tweet with photo:

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
Starting off quiet again today. Let us know (when you can call or text safely) if you see anything others need to know about – whether it’s on the roads here in West Seattle or on the routes used to get to and from here.

10:35 AM UPDATE: The bridge cam looks more like 8 am right now – there’s a backup on northbound 99, which has been reported to us as various things including construction work and large vehicles stalling. Absent official info right now, we’ll just warn you of the backup.

4:53 PM: Breaking this out from the daily transit/traffic tracker again today since it’s a major intersection – the California/Fauntleroy traffic signal in Morgan Junction is having trouble again (thanks to everybody who tipped us on this). Police are again helping direct traffic. We’ll keep an eye out for when it gets fixed; let us know if you see it working again before we’ve reported an update.

6:35 PM UPDATE: As commenters have noted, it’s fixed – just came through on our way back from the School Board work session. We’ll ask SDOT tomorrow if it’s been looked at for a chronic problem.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:59 AM: The weather’s quieted down, and nothing out of the ordinary is reported on the roads from/through/to West Seattle so far this morning. For ferry riders: In case you missed the final update last night, the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route IS back to three boats.

8:25 AM: One commenter mentions a construction backup on Avalon – so if you haven’t left yet, you might consider another route, if you can. Since it’s not raining, we have the feeling we’ll see lots of road work today, since multiple projects are still going.

2:45 PM: Metro is warning that Route 21 is being rerouted southbound at 35th and Barton. It’s construction work, says spokesperson Jeff Switzer.

EVENING NOTE: The bus reroute is over. And the Fauntleroy/California signal is broken again.

(iPhone video from a short time ago, not too long of a delay headed southbound)
4:44 PM: In case you haven’t already seen this on the daily transit/traffic tracker – California/Fauntleroy is on a four-way stop system, with police directing traffic, because of signal trouble. We’d suggest avoiding if you can.

Also regarding a ferry alert from earlier – Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth is still on a two-boat schedule because the third is out with mechanical trouble. As of right now, WSF says there’s a 90-minute wait at Fauntleroy.

5:32 PM UPDATE: Both situations still in effect – just checked for a firsthand look.

6:48 PM UPDATE: Good news for California/Fauntleroy – signal’s back in operation. No update from WSF yet on a third boat; VesselWatch still shows only two boats on the run.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
7:12 AM: Windy and wet but no other trouble so far this morning – take extra care and time. A “special weather statement” remains in effect, warning of slides now that yet more heavy rain has fallen on already-saturated ground.

12:27 PM UPDATE: The Klahowya is out so Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth ferries are on a two-boat schedule TFN.

4:01 PM: Trouble reported with the California-Fauntleroy signal. Avoid the intersection.

LATE-NIGHT NOTE: Both the signal and the ferry are fixed.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:52 AM: Watch out for standing water! That’s the big commute advice this morning. And a reminder for those who travel to/through the Fauntleroy ferry-dock area – today is the scheduled start of at least two weeks with the north tollbooth and lane closed, as announced last week.

7:02 AM UPDATE: If you get on northbound 509/99 from just east of West Seattle, WSDOT reports a crash is partly blocking the ramp from Cloverdale.

7:26 AM UPDATE: That problem is easing. This next one may not affect you since it’s south of the West Seattle Bridge, but it’s a picture you have to see to believe …

8:07 AM NOTE: Reminder that Jacobsen Road is expected to have tree-cutting crews at work starting today, per this announcement from Seattle Parks last week.

You’re going to want to avoid the northbound 1st Avenue South Bridge tomorrow morning. An alert from WSDOT:

Two lanes on the northbound 1st Avenue S. Bridge will close Saturday morning, Dec. 1, while crews repair the metal grating on the bridge deck.

Washington State Department of Transportation bridge crews will close the two right lanes from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The exit to S. Michigan Street will remain open. The work may also require some short-term openings of the bridge drawspan.

During the lane closures, crews will weld steel plates to the bridge deck to cover small cracks and holes that periodically occur on the bridge.

You can check the bridge cam on the WSB Traffic page if you have to head that way and wonder how traffic’s going.

2:07 PM: We’re in The Junction, where we happened onto a crash scene at California and Alaska, tying up the outside lane on northbound California at Alaska. The police response is more sizable than you might expect from a not-major rear-ender, because there’s a possibility, police tell us, that one of the cars was involved in an earlier crash. One man was hurt and was put into a private ambulance, but didn’t appear to have major injuries.

2:21 PM: The scene is mostly clear now, except for police and one of the vehicles.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
No road woes as the commute ramps up, but rain’s returning.

LOOKING AHEAD: If you use the Fauntleroy ferry dock, or travel the stretch of Fauntleroy Way north of it, note that it’ll be down to one tollbooth starting Monday, for about two weeks, because of the pump-station project north of the dock – as reported here. Here’s a recent aerial view of the project and dock, from West Seattle photographer/pilot Long Bach Nguyen:

The north tollbooth/lane is what’s closing, closest to the pump-station work. Washington State Ferries says the project will be discussed during a public meeting for the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route Monday night in Port Orchard, along with “proposed service reductions on some routes, new ferry construction, liquefied natural gas as a potential fuel for the fleet, and route-specific issues.” Meeting details and documents are here.

10:28 AM UPDATE: Crash on the eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct has led to the backup you’re seeing on the bridge cam right now.

As the county’s Barton Pump Station Upgrade Project north of the Fauntleroy ferry dock continues, there are occasional alerts about potentially major traffic effects. Here’s one that just came in via the Washington State Ferries e-mail-alert system:

Beginning Monday through Friday, December 3 to December 14, the north entrance lane and tollbooth at Fauntleroy will be closed due to the Barton Pump Station Upgrade Project. WSF recommends purchasing tickets online or at kiosks as pre-ticketed vehicles will be directed around the booths as needed to fill the dock and vessels. Please plan ahead and expect possible delays.

You can find details on the pump-station project here.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:55 AM: No major incidents so far. One note for on-peninsula driving – Mayor McGinn has announced that the grace (warnings only) period is extended for the city’s four speed cameras in school zones, including the one on Fauntleroy Way near Gatewood Elementary, till December 10th. His news release from yesterday (read it here) says the cameras already have led to almost 6,000 warnings.

ADDED 9:21 AM: Suggestion for West Seattle bus riders, via Twitter:

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
Another quiet start to the commute. However – if you can see the moon to the west – note that a “subtle” type of eclipse is under way right now; here’s an explanation.

7:10 AM: The moon’s finally going out of range. Still dry outside, but rain is expected to start before this afternoon.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
Especially if you’re just plugging back in after the long holiday weekend, three notes:

‘BIKE BOX’ IN PLACE ON ANDOVER WEST OF DELRIDGE: Here’s our Sunday afternoon report about the just-installed road feature.

GATEWOOD SPEED CAM TO START TICKETING: Today’s the day the grace period for the camera in the school zone on Fauntleroy near Gatewood Elementary is officially over, per the city.

ROAD WORK TO RESUME: Today is also the day the county is to resume work in Westwood related to the Route 120 bus line.

ADDED 10:30 AM: Emergency crews are responding to an incident that’s on the 911 log as “Northbound I-5 at Spokane,” so if you’re experiencing eastbound bridge, or I-5 in the area, slowness, that might be it.

ADDED 2:44 PM: The above-mentioned road work in Westwood is now pushed back another two weeks.

ADDED 4:51 PM: Metro will be out in four West Seattle locations to talk with bus riders – details here.

5:36 PM: If you’re headed down 1st through SODO to get to the West Seattle Bridge – Jana reports a crash – so it might be slower going than usual.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
The day after Thanksgiving isn’t a day off for everybody, so we’re publishing a traffic/transit tracker. Here are today’s transit notes:

-Metro is on a “reduced weekday” schedule
-No Water Taxi until Monday
-Sound Transit Express buses are on a regular weekday schedule

Remember that the Macy’s Holiday Parade is happening downtown starting at 9 am, so there are street closures on and near its route (which the Macy’s website says starts “at 7th and Pine, then travel(s) west down Pine St. to 5th Avenue, south on 5th Avenue to University Street, west on University to 4th Avenue, and then north on 4th to Macy’s doorstep”).

And if you are going to a neighborhood with pay stations/meters for street parking – today is NOT a “free parking day,” so be sure to pay!

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
More rain overnight. And it’s windy right now – a short-term burst of nasty weather, says the National Weather Service. But that’s it for problems, at the moment. BUS ALERT: Metro will be on its Sunday schedule tomorrow (Thanksgiving Day) and “reduced weekday” schedule for Friday.

7:04 AM NOTE: In case you work to the south (or have other business there this morning), we should note there’s a power outage right now in parts of Burien, Boulevard Park, and Seatac. See the boundaries on the Seattle City Light website.

1:56 PM: If you are heading toward Ballard, note that a crash has blocked all northbound lanes of the Ballard Bridge, so you’ll want to take an alternate route, maybe through Fremont, or westbound from Wallingford/U District off I-5.

(Live view from the only WS Bridge camera currently in operation; see other cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
No rain this morning – though more is on the way later today – so the morning commute might not be so bad. Please let us know if you encounter any holdover standing-water trouble spots – and thank you for the many updates and photos shared during yesterday’s storminess (text or voice, 206-293-6302 any time, or all the other ways listed here).