Cops focus on West Seattle Bridge bus lane amid Viadoom
Jan 24, 2019, 5:43 AM | Updated: 6:29 pm
Traffic on the West Seattle Bridge. (WSDOT)
(WSDOT)
We’re now roughly halfway through the closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct (SR 99) in Seattle. It seems that after a relatively easy first week of commutes, traffic got worse this week amid rain and multiple collisions.
RELATED: Seattle ridership numbers spike during first week of Viadoom
A new development during Thursday morning’s commute was the addition of a traffic cop on the West Seattle Bridge, at least, unlike the usual traffic cops that monitor the route.
“We got some SPD out there working to keep that open for transit,” said KIRO Radio Traffic Reporter Chris Sullivan.
Sullivan says that there is commonly a traffic cop on a motorcycle stationed at the bridge. They pull over drivers who use the bus-only lane. Anecdotally, Sullivan says that he has observed a lot more drivers using the bus-only lane during Viadoom. The West Seattle Bridge has been among the worst chokepoints during the closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
On Thursday, however, the motorcycle cop was replaced by a patrol car. An officer was physically walking alongside traffic and pointing to drivers violating the bus-only lane, instructing them to get over.
The evening commute was about as quiet as it’s been during Viadoom, with your standard backups and congestion, thanks in large part to dry weather.
Below are updates from the Thursday commute, including reports from Sullivan and Tracy Taylor.
—
6:15 p.m.
Current Traffic Conditions (6 PM):
🔴Heavy NB/SB on I-5 into downtown.
🔴Heavy EB on West Seattle Bridge between SR-99 and I-5.
🔴Heavy EB Mercer St between Dexter and I-5.
🔴Heavy SB on 1st Ave S in SODO.
🔴Heavy on major roads in downtown.
🔶Moderate on city bridges.— seattledot (@seattledot) January 25, 2019
—
5:45 p.m.
The Corson/Michigan exit is officially back open.
#Seattle: All clear on the southbound I-5 off-ramp to Corson/Michigan! pic.twitter.com/5pNXZAVnlD
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 25, 2019
Meanwhile, a garage fire in Issaquah has crew on scene now.
#HappeningNow @kiro7chopper is above a garage fire in the 27000 blk of 162nd Pl SE in #Issaquah. @IAFF2878 crews working to extinguish the fire. pic.twitter.com/ECPMzek8k2
— KIRO 7 Brooke (@KIRO7Brooke) January 25, 2019
—
5:15 p.m.
Seattle surface streets are getting crowded as we move into the middle hours of the evening commute.
Current Traffic Conditions (5 PM):
🔴Heavy NB/SB on I-5 into downtown.
🔴Heavy EB on West Seattle Bridge between SR-99 and I-5.
🔴Heavy EB Mercer St between Dexter and I-5.
🔴Heavy SB on 1st Ave S in SODO.
🔴Heavy on major roads downtown.
🔶Moderate on city bridges.— seattledot (@seattledot) January 25, 2019
Meanwhile, a brush fire near Airport Way S. on the hillside under the freeway has the Corson Avenue/Michigan Street exit blocked.
#Seattle: Here's an update from Seattle Fire. The southbound I-5 off-ramp to Corson Avenue/Michigan Street remains closed: https://t.co/S1oaZsQ2X9
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 25, 2019
—
4:45 p.m.
Heads up for drivers on northbound I-5 near exit 210, as an accident has traffic backing up significantly.
Seeing this now! thanks for the heads up! https://t.co/AXl7VJqV7e
— TracyTaylorTraffic (@TracyTTraffic) January 25, 2019
Here's the crash NB 5 at 236th pic.twitter.com/zhd4kGOGI5
— TracyTaylorTraffic (@TracyTTraffic) January 25, 2019
—
4:30 p.m.
This commute is progressing nicely! Right now the only notable delays are on SB I-5 between Federal Way and Tacoma. Whatever you're doing, we need ya to keep it up for the rest of tonight and through next week as we #Realign99.
Oh, and maybe knock on wood while you're at it. pic.twitter.com/TH6xrpR5Ym
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 25, 2019
—
4:15 p.m.
Current Traffic Conditions (4 PM):
🔴Heavy NB/SB on I-5 into downtown.
🔴Heavy EB on West Seattle Bridge between SR-99 and I-5.
🔴Heavy EB Mercer St between Dexter and I-5.
🔶Moderate SB on 1st Ave S in SODO.
🔶Moderate on city bridges.
🔶Moderate on major roads downtown.— seattledot (@seattledot) January 25, 2019
—
4:00 p.m.
Our biggest delay at the moment is in the south end. Federal Way to Tacoma will take you 42 minutes via southbound I-5—that's 22 minutes longer than normal. Other travel times around the region are hovering around their average! https://t.co/kOpKtlMgAq pic.twitter.com/cCjsMx4Wxw
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
—
3:45 p.m.
On the I-5 northbound on-ramp from Iowa St there is a disabled vehicle partially blocking the ramp.
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
—
3:15 p.m.
Looks like travel times are fairly manageable to start the afternoon commute!
Travel times look good as we jump into the Thursday afternoon/evening commute. Let's keep 'em that way with a safe drive home! https://t.co/kOpKtlMgAq pic.twitter.com/fhTkKWiuB6
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
—
3:00 p.m.
We are firing up on the roads already this afternoon. Couple of wrecks in downtown and one on the east side. Hopefully we can stay dry! I've got your back! And some cake.. =) Traffic every 10 min on the 3's with @CandyMikeTodd on @KIRORadio #viadoom#seattlesqueeze pic.twitter.com/KCSa4Yq1AN
— TracyTaylorTraffic (@TracyTTraffic) January 24, 2019
—
9:40 a.m.
Update 9:38 AM : On the I-5 southbound on-ramp from Boylston Ave there is a collision partially blocking the ramp.
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
Two left lanes blocked now, aid is on scene pic.twitter.com/icd9cAEZ8p
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
9:15 a.m.
Travel times remain 10-20 minutes higher than average. Keep track of your drive here ➡️https://t.co/Bt704aAWEs
And consider all your options (🚗🚐🚴♀️⛴️🚶♀️💻🏠) before you head out the door:https://t.co/3whgMWtmri pic.twitter.com/eub3AeBvtw— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
8:55 a.m.
The northbound I-5 drive into Seattle is slow with heavy traffic starting at Boeing Field. It’s 50 minutes between Southcenter and downtown Seattle.
It’s 30 minutes from Bellevue to Seattle on the I-90 and SR520 floating bridges across Lake Washington.
8:45 a.m.
More efficient than an electric vehicle, #WSP in action, clearing the collison on WB I-90 at Rainier! #NationalComplimentDay #thankyou pic.twitter.com/5q0ejiBd7L
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
8:20 a.m.
Traffic police have been posted on the West Seattle Bridge today. I looks like they are monitoring the bus-only lane. Sullivan noticed a few cars jumping in the bus only lane during other Viadoom commutes.
Federal Way into Seattle is an hour and five minutes.
Westbound I-90 across Lake Washington is slow. It’s about 30 minutes to drive from Bellevue to Seattle.
7:55 a.m.
Two right lanes of southbound I-5 are blocked following a collision in Tacoma. A backup has extended to seven miles with a minimum 30 minute delay. Slowing starts in Fife and continues to the Tacoma Mall area. Northbound I-5 ahead of the crash is also slow and backed up.
It remains a crawl on I-5 northbound into Seattle, starting at Boeing Field. The drive from Federal Way to Seattle is an hour.
The drive from the north into Seattle is slammed. It takes an hour and 15 minutes to get from Everett to Seattle.
7:45 a.m.
Stalled bus on Stewart St at 4th Ave blocking WB left lane. Use caution. pic.twitter.com/8q8mAmDz18
— SDOT Traffic (@SDOTtraffic) January 24, 2019
7:30 a.m.
Current Traffic Conditions (7 AM):
🔴Heavy NB I-5 into downtown
🔴Heavy EB W Seattle Bridge
🔴Heavy EB on Mercer St
🔴Heavy NB on 1st Ave S in SODO
🔴Heavy NB along 1st Ave S Bridge
🔶Moderate SB I-5 into downtown
🔶Moderate NB on 4th Ave S in SODO
✅Light on Downtown roads— seattledot (@seattledot) January 24, 2019
The Sb 5 backup in Tacoma has extended to six miles, from 54th in Fife to 38th by Mall. 167 Sb thru Puyallup to WB 512 is good option, but 512 is filling in.
— KIRO Radio Traffic (@KIROTraffic) January 24, 2019
7:20 a.m.
On SB I-5 just south of 44th Ave W, a disabled vehicle is blocking the left lane. Looks like #WSP is there to assist. (Also still waiting for color TV here, too 📺) pic.twitter.com/n6qMx1wly1
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) January 24, 2019
7:10 a.m.
“It is a pretty bad drive out there without a lot of significant crashes left on the road,” Sullivan said. “I think we have a few more people every day going back to their old habits, which is not a good thing.”
The Southcenter to Seattle drive is “grinding,” Sullivan reports, at 40 minutes. As usual, the slowdown starts at Boeing Field and crawls into downtown.
Southbound I-5 is slow from Lynnwood into Seattle. It’s about an hour and five minute drive.
“I wish I could find a reason for it,” Sullivan said. “Drivers are telling me it’s drizzling in that area. That’s the primary reason they can determine why it’s so slow from Lynnwood and through Shoreline.”
The three mile backup from the 1st Avenue Bridge (SR509) is still causing problems after two crashes near the bridge. The West Seattle Bridge is still slammed from Delridge Way over to I-5.
7 a.m.
And that’s $10 in the ETL.
— KIRO Radio Traffic (@KIROTraffic) January 24, 2019
6:33 a.m.
The SR509 bridge (1st Avenue South Bridge) has been used by some drivers avoiding the chokepoint at the West Seattle Bridge, but a pair of collisions Thursday morning has snarled that commute. The backup is 3.5 miles. Sullivan recommends using another route.
The West Seattle Bridge is backed up to Admiral Way.
6:15 a.m.
A lot more slowing is happening on northbound I-5 into Seattle. It’s an hour drive from Federal Way to Seattle, 30 of those minutes are from Southcenter.
“That last a stretch is Alaskan Way Viaduct diversion,” Sullivan said. “We are looking at a 15 minute delay over what that should be if we had the viaduct in operation.”
The collision in the northbound lanes of the 1st Avenue South Bridge has been cleared. But right after that, another collision happened in the backup behind the bridge. Now the two left lanes are blocked again, for a different collision. That is causing a two mile back up behind the bridge.
Just north of that scene, the West Seattle Bridge has slowed with heavy traffic starting at Delridge Way.
5:55 a.m.
The 1st Avenue South Bridge in South Seattle has two lanes blocked in the northbound direction. SR509 is backing up as a result. This is a connection over the Duwamish River into Seattle. The other connection is the West Seattle Bridge which has become one of the worst chokepoints in the region during the closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
Federal Way to Seattle is now about 40 minutes, with slowing at Boeing Field.
“All in all, we’re not in bad shape, so far,” Sullivan said.
5:30 p.m.
Federal Way to Seattle is starting to slow. It’s 35 minutes on northbound I-5 from Federal Way to Seattle, and 20 of those minutes are from Southcenter into downtown.
Driving south from Everett to Seattle/Bellevue takes 35 minutes.
There’s a collisions blocking a left lane of northbound I-5 in Tacoma, around the Tacoma Dome. There’s a 1.5 mile backup behind that.
Heads up NB I5 in Tacoma. pic.twitter.com/7Fd9RGswnz
— WSDOT Tacoma Traffic (@wsdot_tacoma) January 24, 2019
