Mayor Murray: Seattle ‘has lots of bridges with lots of unmet needs’

The Washington State Department of Transportation has announced that Seattle’s Aurora Bridge is safe to cross in the wake of Thursday’s fatal collision.

But while the bridge wasn’t damaged by the collision, lingering concern remains over the safety of the bridge overall.

Related: Four killed, 51 injured in Aurora Bridge collision

“The governor and I spoke last night,” Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said Friday morning. “We will figure out how and if we need to make changes to the bridge. If the bridge was an issue or not. Obviously, the state and this city have lots of bridges with lots of unmet needs, and we will certainly look at this one.”

Murray noted that the National Transportation Safety Board that is conducting an investigation into the collision will consider if the bridge played any role in the tragedy.

The Aurora Bridge, officially titled the George Washington Memorial Bridge, connects Seattle’s northern neighborhoods with the downtown area. It’s a major arterial carrying a considerable portion of Seattle’s traffic through the city. The bridge, opened in 1932, spans 2,945 feet where the Fremont Canal meets Lake Union. But the 1932 standards may fail to meet modern traffic needs.

Lane widths across the country vary from 9-15 feet. Most freeway lanes are about 12 feet wide. Most lanes of Aurora Avenue are about 10 feet wide. The lanes on the bridge are only 9.5 feet wide, according to KIRO Traffic Reporter Chris Sullivan.

It didn’t take Thursday’s incident to raise concerns over the bridge and it’s layout. Locals and the state have been aware of issues with the bridge for years.

A 2002 study performed by the Washington State Department of Transportation concluded that State Route 99 along Aurora Avenue as the “third worst high-accident corridor in the state.” That study stated that “the lanes are so narrow that buses and other large vehicles sometimes straddle two lanes while traveling the bridge. The combination of narrow lanes, lack of a median barrier, and driver actions (speeding, following too close, etc.) creates the risk for sideswipes, rear-end and head-on traffic accidents.”

The study proposed that the bridge be improved by widening the lanes up to 11.5 feet, and adding a median barrier. To achieve the improvements, current sidewalks would be taken away and the space given to vehicle traffic. The sidewalks would be moved and suspended under the bridge deck.

KING 5’s Russ Walker reported in 2003 that widening the bridge’s lanes, and adding a median, would come with a $29 million price tag.

Marty Spiegel, who was on a citizen committee involved in the 2002 study, told KING 5 something needs to be done about the roadway.

“It’s a dangerous, dangerous roadway … and it’s more dangerous now,” he said Thursday.