Home › Forums › West Seattle Rants & Raves › California and Fauntleroy Bus Bulb woes
- This topic is empty.
-
AuthorPosts
-
March 5, 2013 at 4:48 am #606676
nicknMemberSunday I drove north at the intersection of Fauntleroy and California and was stuck behind a handicap mobility van pulled into the bus stop to load a passenger. Despite the precision Transit estimates that the bus bulb design only blocks the street for an average of 2 minutes this took 17 minutes or more. The bus had flashing red lights so I waited. A couple dozen people behind me drove around me and over the double yellow lines to use the oncoming left turn lane. A pedestrian chided me for “rudeness” in not doing the same. Ironically, a Rapid Ride C bus driver stuck behind me politely asked the same. In the zeal to punish people for driving, the city has created an efficient means of cogging busses.
To all I pointed out it was illegal and dangerous, since cars were using the left turn lane in the other direction at a fair speed and double yellow lines and flashing red bus lights mean don’t pass. I pointed out the safety curb on the west bound lane as an example that you’re not supposed to drive on the wrong side of the road.
I’m sure that after there’s an accident or two they’ll put up one of their camouflage grey safety curbs to force people to wait in the mess. Some better solutions would be to extend the bus stop north so that It uses the parking spa ace in front of the stop as a place where the Vans can park and load without blocking the single lane if they need 15 or 20 minutes to load. A less happy solution for regular buses would be to shorten the south bound left turn lane and put a northbound bypass around the stupid bus bulb. That reduces flow on the south but would keep the north from choking up completely. Perhaps the genius who designed the bulb can be placed out there with a traffic control sign to control alternating use of the middle lane.
March 5, 2013 at 4:21 pm #785486
ricoMemberYou actually waited for 17 minutes, what a ridiculuous arrangement we now have in place.
People will begin taking matters in their own hands if the govt. is going to screw it up for so many people.
For example, consider the new Alaska Way lane situation between 35th and California, that has caused all sorts of delays while travelling west (waiting for numerous light changes in the one silly driving lane. Personally I have had it with this one in the late afternoon, and have now decided to risk a ticket and will use the mostly empty bus lane to avoid waiting for 2 – 3 light cycles.
I suggest we all do the same if we want to keep a road system usefull for all.
March 5, 2013 at 4:32 pm #785487
kayoParticipantI am sure glad I don’t have to go through that intersection very often. Sounds awful! Rico, I went through the Alaska Junction bus lane area this weekend on a not busy morning and saw many drivers using the bus lane to go straight instead of turning. It just makes the lanes seem stupid and unsafe when people do not follow the rules. The other place this happens is at the intersection of Delridge and Andover. When heading north on Delridge toward the bridge at the light, the right lane is turn only except for busses. Most people are not following this rule and the few of us who do then have to merge back in quickly in order to get on the bridge. I don’t think the city has enough traffic enforcement to force people to follow the new lane configurations. I agree we need to help speed up rapid transit, but it sure seems to have made things less safe for everyone else. It is a scrambled mess. People are just not following the rules at all. It is not working because of that.
March 5, 2013 at 4:49 pm #785488
ricoMemberOddly I am generaly a total rule follower, but if the city is going to poke us in the eye like this and expect sheepish responses (like waiting for several light cycles even though there is plently of taxpayer provided pavement)then unfortunately my normal rule following ways can’t take it anymore.
Also, I used to be a bus commuter until I had children pick-up needs not achievalble by bus. These needs are going away and I was getting ready to get back on the bus, but have decided to stubbornly refuse to do so as a way to avoid encouraging more of this infrastructure theft.
March 5, 2013 at 4:51 pm #785489
dhgParticipantThe City has decided that a cheap and easy traffic solution is to paint lines on the road. No expensive heads up signs, just paint that tells you that you are already in the wrong as you are expected to weave down Alaska. SDOT is composed of fools. Same for Metro. The short curb they’ve just installed at the Morgan junction is nothing but a road hazard. It is already scuffed. It is far too short to prevent people from using the left turn lane as a way around a stopped bus.
March 5, 2013 at 4:57 pm #785490
TanDLParticipantIs the same thing happening all over the City? I heard something about Ballard being unhappy but wonder about the rest of the city. West Seattle seems to have an indordinate number of extreme traffic clogging “improvements” in place suddenly: Alaska St, Fauntleroy Junction, Delridge, Westwood Village.
The vans and buses stopping on California at the Fauntleroy Junction will continue to take extra time to load because there are several handicapped people living in the housing right behind the bus stop. They can’t just run up and jump on the bus or van in 2 minutes or less.
March 5, 2013 at 5:13 pm #785491
SueParticipantI believe the only bus that you can’t pass with red flashing lights is a school bus. I would’ve absolutely passed that van/bus, slowly and carefully (since I’m entering potentially oncoming traffic). I generally believe in following laws, but there’s a point where it’s just ridiculous. Like this situation.
March 5, 2013 at 6:04 pm #785492
anonymeParticipantI agree with dhg. WDOT/SDOT and Metro are all incompetent. Combine them, and you have a recipe for disaster; the proof is in our traffic pudding. The amount of OUR money that has been spent to make traffic (and bus service) much, much worse is unbelievable.
As for nickn’s original comment, I don’t know why the van was using the bulb/bus stop for a pickup. Those vans take an inordinate amount of time, and can pick up anywhere. Holding up traffic for that amount of time – including other buses – is inexcusable, and should result in a citation. It also seems like these vans could be run much more efficiently.
March 5, 2013 at 7:08 pm #785493
RobindianneParticipant@Kayo, I’m a rule follower too. Makes one less decision I need to make in my day. And I hate making decisions.
Going north from Delridge onto the WS bridge the bus line sign states 6 to 9am only. At first I avoided that lane as well, until I read the time on the sign.
Re: bus bulbs – I hate hate hate them. We should have just enforced the laws about letting busses into traffic. I doubt that costs as much as the construction of the bulbs?
March 5, 2013 at 7:41 pm #785494
lindaParticipantWish I could find the reference but I know I recall the Transit vans are NOT supposed to use that bus bulb. They are supposed to pull forward where they can load their passengers without impeding the regular buses or the Rapid Ride. Guess the Metro Transit van driver in this case hadn’t gotten the message from Metro.
Seems like this information came out shortly after these bus bulbs were installed.
March 5, 2013 at 8:40 pm #785495
anonymeParticipantRobindianne brings up a good point. Enforcement is the real answer to many of these (and other)issues – speeding, failure to yield (to buses, pedestrians, whatever). I would much rather my tax dollars went to employing some extra cops than to some moron in a Metro or Seattle.gov office who thinks nothing of throwing away millions on one hare-brained project after another.
March 5, 2013 at 8:51 pm #785496
bsmommaParticipantIt had to have been longer than 17 minutes! My sister and I saw the bus/van pull up just before we entered Starbucks. We got our drinks, and made our way through the maze of cars in 2 crosswalks and walked up to 42nd…….and the bus was still there. Traffic was backed up and around the bend past Alki Tours! As well as all other directions. If that turn lane gets backed up (going South on Cal), you can’t go around. The thing I don’t get is there is a regular curb just after this bulb but for some reason is No Parking. The handicap busses should ABSOLUTELY be able to utilize that space. There’s plenty of room. If any emergency vehicles needed to get through in either direction at that intersection would have been stuck. What a disaster!!
March 5, 2013 at 8:53 pm #785497
bsmommaParticipant@Linda This same thing happens on Barton at the Daystar Retirement. And there’s an Island there so you can’t go around legally or not.
March 5, 2013 at 9:16 pm #785498
MBParticipant@Robindianne, 6-9am, really?! Best news I’ve heard all day (sad, I know)…I use that intersection and cross the bridge sometimes multiple times per day. Thanks for the info!
March 6, 2013 at 2:23 am #785499
kayoParticipantThanks Robindianne! I was looking at the signage, but did not see anything about a time frame. It is not clearly marked, but that makes more sense that it is only like that in the morning. Will now join everyone else in the bus lane since I do not drive in those peak hours.
March 10, 2013 at 9:20 am #785500
adidasguyParticipantThey spend all their money on these bus bulbs then complain they don’t have money to run the buses and cut schedules. Something is wrong here.
March 10, 2013 at 7:20 pm #785501
nicknMemberWell there isn’t money for buses or library staffing without additional appropriations. On the other hand a few hundred million for a private partnership to have a third arena for basketball, that’s readily available without an citizen vote on the subject.
April 5, 2013 at 10:26 am #785502
lizfairMemberI was born and raised in West Seattle, and they have completely screwed things up around here as far as traffic goes. The first mistake was cutting Fauntleroy from two lanes down to one and bike lane. And now these bus only dedicated lanes? I pay my taxes, and if a car is the only means of transportation that I can use, why am I being almost punished for it? They are making it more and more difficult to get around by car, trying to force us out of them. Which would be fine if this city had even a somewhat effective and efficient transportation system in place. But it does not. And yes, let’s build another stadium and create even more problems with the traffic around here. I think we should go back to just a two lane draw bridge to get to West Seattle. Maybe then no one would want to live here anymore and things would go back the way they were when I was a kid.
April 5, 2013 at 10:35 am #785503
lizfairMemberI was born and raised in West Seattle, and they have completely screwed things up around here as far as traffic goes. The first mistake was cutting Fauntleroy from two lanes down to one and bike lane. And now these bus only dedicated lanes? I pay my taxes, and if a car is the only means of transportation that I can use, why am I being almost punished for it? They are making it more and more difficult to get around by car, trying to force us out of them. Which would be fine if this city had even a somewhat effective and efficient transportation system in place. But it does not. And yes, let’s build another stadium and create even more problems with the traffic around here. I think we should go back to just a two lane draw bridge to get to West Seattle. Maybe then no one would want to live here anymore and things would go back the way they were when I was a kid.
April 5, 2013 at 3:17 pm #785504
jamjetsParticipantIt truly is seriously hosed up. The current configuration backs up traffic into the intersection with almost every bus. When the WSB posted that curbing was being put in to prevent cars from going around, I thought it was being located at that area of California. I was dumbfounded to find the curbing was installed on the Starbucks side instead…
April 5, 2013 at 3:58 pm #785505
katmanParticipantlizfair,,,,, I grewup here too and once upon a time (within last 2years) you could take the bus #22 from Gatewood to Ballard. Now to just get downtown, you transfer 2 or 3 times just to get to the city buildings where these inept decisions are made and called improvements. Sorry Ballard I’ll just walk to Lincoln Park instead of taking 6 buses to get to the Ballard Locks
April 5, 2013 at 5:47 pm #785506
tom kelleyParticipantDoes the solution lie in the next election?
April 6, 2013 at 4:47 am #785507
nicknMemberYou mean a catchy slogan like “Vote McGinn out before he eliminates the rest of the car traffic lanes”?
I do note that they’re planning to eliminate the #22 and 21x as part of their basic cuts now that they made it much less useful for people going downtown. It’s hard to tell if this is a given, or just the scare tactics before an additional appropriation to tax homeowners for bus funding. As much as I do like public transportation, the time spent behind the bus did have me contemplate that not voting for bus funding next time would alleviate the bus bulb problem.
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.