The post outlines a whole bunch of impending improvements and changes in the area, while some of them will take place right in our own backyard.

Further south, SDOT is preparing to implement a series of safety improvements centered around the Aurora Bridge.  New signage will be installed warning drivers to expect merging traffic prior the Fremont Way and Halladay Street entrances.  This project will include improved directional signage to the Queen Anne neighborhood and minor tree trimming to improve the visibility of these signs.  Channelization improvements will be implemented concurrently on southbound Aurora at the Fremont Way and Raye Street entrances to Aurora.  At Fremont Way, a solid white lane line will replace the existing dashed lane line and extend 200 feet south of the point where the two roadways become one.  Since it is illegal to cross a solid white lane line, this new configuration will allow drivers entering Aurora to get up to speed before making lane changes.  At Raye Street, a new edge line will be installed to provide drivers with better sight lines when entering Aurora.  Coupled with the recently completed improvements at Halladay Street (for drivers entering and exiting northbound 99), the roadway around the Aurora Bridge will certainly funtion better.

I know the current set-up can cause some uneasiness when it comes to merging traffic heading onto the bridge so it sounds like these changes could help.

Read more about SDOT’s Action Plan here.

This cancellation is being made in order to accommodate the many nearby events taking place this weekend which are expected to draw large crowds. The cancellation of this weekend’s scheduled closure will likely result in an extra weekend closure possibly in October.

The next planned full weekend closure of the I-5 Mercer Street on and off ramps is scheduled to take place from 11 p.m. on Friday, September 9 to 5 a.m. on Monday, September 12. From SDOT:

Additional full weekend closures in September may be announced—further notification will be provided as dates are finalized.

Detour route maps are available on the project website at: www.seattle.gov/Transportation/ppmp_mercer.htm. Detour routes shown will be signed on roadways and may be heavily used, particularly Denny Way both eastbound and westbound.

During these closures, the I-5 on-ramp at University Street will be concurrently closed to provide more efficient traffic flow around the closed Mercer Street exit lane. Fairview Avenue N will also be closed between Mercer Street and Valley Street and Mercer Street will be closed to through traffic between Westlake Avenue N and Fairview Avenue N. All detour routes will be clearly marked.

Travelers are encouraged to carpool and use alternate modes of transportation. Transit

information can be found at:

• King County Metro at www.kingcounty.gov/metro, or by calling 206-553-3000
• Sound Transit at www.soundtransit.org
• Community Transit at www.commtrans.org

These recurring weekend closures are part of ongoing work on the Mercer Corridor Project. More information on the project here.

Once completed the bridge will provide a safe crossing over the east side of Elliott Ave W at Thomas Street and the nearby railroad tracks, to Myrtle Edwards Park.

Crews kicked off construction on the east side of Elliott Avenue West, adjusting the construction schedule to accommodate Hempfest’s 20th anniversary festival at Myrtle Edwards this past weekend. Crews will commence construction at Myrtle Edwards beginning after next Monday, August 29.

We got a first look at what the bridge will look like in August of last year. In the same month Seattle City Council unanimously voted to remove spending restrictions on the project, giving SDOT the green light to move forward with the plans. The final project design was completed in January.

SDOT estimates that construction will last anywhere from 10 to 12 months. During that time residents can expect intermittent street closures, traffic detours, reduced parking areas and temporary relocation of the existing bike path at Myrtle Edwards Park. Here’s a little more information from SDOT on what to expect during construction:

During construction pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers should expect the following:

• 3rd Ave West from W. Harrison St. to Elliott Ave W will be closed to through traffic. Local traffic and access to parking garages and lots will be accommodated.
• W Thomas St between Elliott Ave W and 3rd Ave W will be closed to through traffic.  Local traffic and access to parking garages and lots will be accommodated.
• Removal of parking along 3rd Ave W and a portion of W Thomas St both east and west of Elliott Ave W for the duration of the construction project.
• Temporary lane closures on Elliott Avenue West outside the hours of 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• Temporary sidewalk closures, parking restrictions and pedestrian detours.
• Noise and vibration during certain construction activities.
• Shaft construction is expected to be completed on the east half of the bridge sometime in mid-September at which time equipment will be mobilized to the west of Elliot Ave.

The W Thomas Street Overpass Project is being funded by the Park Levy I and II, Puget Sound Regional Council Grant Funds, King County Grant Funds, and private donations. The total project cost expected to be approximately $10 million. Initial work on the bicycle/pedestrian overpass project began in 2003.

For more information on the project and construction updates, see SDOT’s W Thomas Street Overpass Project website.

This comes as great news for Seattle bicycle commuters, who have been waiting for this project to conclude for over a decade. The first phase of work, which extended the paved bike path from the south shore of the Fremont Bridge to 6th Ave W was completed in 1996. The first half of Phase 2, extending the trail further to 11th Ave W, concluded over a year ago, in March of 2010. Before SDOT could move forward with the final phase of the project, however, a number of roadblocks had to be overcome, including the relocation of a private utility line and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks. First a construction schedule had to be agreed upon with BNSF Railway. The rail line then had to install 1,600 feet of railroad track, pave the 13th Ave W and W Blewett Way intersection, and build three new railroad crossings on BNSF right-of-way before construction on the final stretch of the Ship Canal Trail could even begin.

* Photo courtesy of SDOT

SDOT says BNSF is expected to complete its railroad track realignment work this month, after which the city can extend the final leg of the trail, from 11th Ave W to Emerson Street near Fishermen’s Terminal, eliminating what it calls a “critical gap” in the city’s urban trails system.

Once Phase 2 is completely, the 3/4 mile of new trail will connect Redmond to Downtown Seattle by almost entirely dedicated bike paths, and complete the Queen Anne Bicycle Beltway, a cycling path that encircles Queen Anne hill (and is also part of the Queen Anne Neighborhood Plan). From SDOT:

The Ship Canal Trail will connect the Elliott Bay Trail and the Interbay and Magnolia neighborhoods to bicycle routes at the Fremont Bridge, including the Interurban route on Fremont Avenue North, the Burke-Gilman Trail, and the Dexter Avenue route, and will make bike riding in the south canal area more comfortable for all levels of bicyclists.

Construction of the trail is funded through the city’s Bridging the Gap Levy, a 9-year, $365 million campaign to propel the city’s transportation effort forward through maintenance and improvement.

For more information on this project contact LeAnne Nelson at (206) 684-3897 or visit the the project website.

Yesterday, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn took to his blog and challenged the Seattle City Council to “be bold” and consider funding such a project.

For the distances served — neighborhood to neighborhood — it looks like the right choice for a number of corridors in Seattle. That includes Ballard to downtown via Fremont, the University District to downtown via Eastlake, and linking those to Seattle’s two initial streetcar lines to South Lake Union, the International District/Chinatown and Capitol Hill. Other cities have already demonstrated the promise of this approach, like Portland with its MAX system.

McGinn went to say that, even if the council didn’t want to act on the initiative, he “will not stop working to fulfill my commitment to expand rail in Seattle… So that the Seattle Transit Master Plan does not become a pretty plan gathering dust on a shelf. And so that Seattle will realize its transit future.”

Currently, the city council is working on approving a $60 car tab fee that would help save many King County Metro bus routes as well as provide some much-needed maintenance to Seattle’s roadways. But if they want to think big, like Mayor McGinn would like them to, they might discuss much grander plans soon. Here’s what Mayor McGinn had to say about the proposed car tab fee:

The committee recommended an $80 VLF. Much of it goes to catching up on deferred maintenance, which I support. 49% percent goes to implement the Transit Master Plan, to catch up on our deferred transit needs. As a permanent funding source, this could fund the following in the next ten years: planning and alternatives analysis for all five high capacity corridors in the Transit Master Plan, planning and construction for connecting the two streetcar lines through downtown, speed and reliability improvements on half of all non-high capacity transit corridors, and substantial upgrades to our electric trolley bus infrastructure. Over the next twenty years, we could make good on the Transit Master Plan’s stated need to accommodate substantially more travelers on each of the high capacity corridors the Plan identified.

But here is the problem. The City Council is only considering a VLF for a limited amount of time, after which it expires. For this amount of money, all you can do is study a single corridor. You cannot finance long term infrastructure with a short term financing plan. You cannot get in the queue for federal, regional, or state funds because there will be no source of funds for us to put up our local match. The Transit Master Plan will join the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plans as nice plans, without serious funding.

It is here that Mayor McGinn calls for “boldness” within the City Council to set up an ongoing VLF that would become “a steady source of revenue that can be borrowed against to build rail that will serve us for decades.” He’d like to see Seattle take a feather out of the hat of many other cities and leaders nationwide that already have, or are currently investing in massive transit programs, including Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is working to accomplish 30 years’ worth of transit projects in 10 years’ time with funding from an ongoing VLF. Read Mayor McGinn’s full post here. Read more about Seattle’s Transit Master Plan here.

Detour signs will be posted around the area, but if you’d like to look up the detour routes beforehand, you may download them both here:

Access from I-5 Detour Map
Access to I-5 Detour Map

In addition to these two closures, WSDOT will be concurrently closing all lanes on SR 520 from 11:00 p.m. Friday, August 26, to 5:00 a.m. Monday, August 29, between Montlake Boulevard and I-405 in Bellevue. (SR 520 from I-5 to Montlake Boulevard will remain open to traffic). Details on this closure and detour maps can be viewed here.

SDOT will also be implementing a number of other nighttime lane closures related to the Mercer Corridor Project throughout the month:

• Beginning as early as Monday, August 1, northbound Westlake Avenue N will be closed overnight between Mercer Street and Valley Street. Northbound traffic, including King County Metro bus routes, will be detoured to Terry Avenue N from 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. for approximately one week. Southbound traffic will remain on Westlake Avenue N. For King County Metro bus information, please visit Metro Online at www.kingcounty.gov/metro and check the “Alerts Center.”
• Beginning as early as Monday, August 8, nighttime lane closures will occur intermittently on Mercer Street at both Boren Avenue N and Terry Avenue N to accommodate water main installations lasting approximately three weeks. Up to three lanes of Mercer Street will be closed overnight, and Boren Avenue N and Terry Avenue N will have intermittent closures to through traffic between Republican Street and Mercer Street. Work hours are expected to be 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.

See a map of all of SDOT’s ongoing and upcoming construction projects citywide here.

After adjusting the city’s paid parking rates neighborhood by neighborhood across town (and decreasing rates in Uptown), the Seattle Department of Transportation wants to hear what you have to say about the city’s on-street paid parking system. SDOT is conducting an online survey about paid parking, as part of a project to make paid parking more available downtown and in certain neighborhoods.

You can find the survey here (I just did it, and it took less than 10 minutes).

By the way, SDOT has a parking map that lists every paid, permit, carpool, time limited, no parking and unrestricted zone, as well as parking garages and lots. You can zoom in by address, intersection, major landmark, or neighborhood.

Crews will begin paving work at 7 a.m. on Wednesday on the west side of McGraw Street, moving south as work progresses. Work should conclude by 5 p.m. each day. From SDOT:

Shortly after paving is complete, temporary traffic markings and striping will be applied.

During working hours one lane in each direction will be maintained.  There may be times when traffic will be reduced to one lane for both directions with flaggers at either end.  Parking and loading zone restrictions will be in place near the work zone and its approaches. Pedestrian access will be maintained.

Also on July 27, Dexter Way North between State Route 99 and Dexter Avenue North will be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This project is funded by the “Bridging the Gap” transportation levy approved by Seattle voters in November 2006.

To learn more about the Dexter repaving project, check out SDOT’s project website.

• Join in one of the historic Olmsted walks on Saturday with an all-day 12-13 mile walk from Ballard (leaving from Aster Coffee at 5615 24th Ave. NW at 8:30 a.m.) to Queen Anne by way of Discovery Park, Magnolia Blvd, Kinnear Park, and Queen Anne Blvd. Details here.
• Pick your own lavender on Saturday and Sunday at the Interbay P-Patch’s U-Pick Lavender Sale. Swing by the garden, at 2451 15th Ave W, between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. either day. Cost is $3 for a small bunch and $5 for a large.
• Listen to some fun and quirky tunes by musical due “Team Andrew,” who will be swinging by El Diablo at 4 p.m. on Sunday to share their music, and meet with fans during the Seattle stop of their International Tour. Check out their “surreal hip hop” in this music video.

If you venture out of Queen Anne this weekend, keep in mind that traffic is going to be tight both coming and going due to the SDOT’s Mercer Street I-5 on and off ramp closure all weekend long. There are also quite a few special events taking place around town this weekend, including the Capitol Hill Block Party, Chinatown and West Seattle Parades, the Roosevelt Bull Moose Festival, the Swedish SummeRun, various Seafair related events, and quite a few more. Many of these events will mean lane closures, and all will cause higher traffic congestion, so watch out. Download SDOT’s full weekend traffic advisory here (.pdf).