Safety for West Marginal Way SW

With Duwamish Valley Safe Streets, we support SDOT’s proposal to add a two-way protected bike lane on West Marginal Way SW from West Marginal Place SW to the  crosswalk at the north end of the Duwamish Trail.

This will fill in the missing link in the Duwamish Trail, a regional bike route leading to the Alki Trail, West Seattle Junction, South Park, Georgetown, Green River Trail, SODO, Downtown Seattle, and the Mountains to Sound Trail. The route serves marginalized and underserved communities in the Duwamish Valley. This route is critical for all bike traffic between northern West Seattle and Greater Seattle at times when the Spokane Street Bridge is closed to bike traffic for inspections and repairs.

Map of SDOT options for West Marginal Way SW revisions for Duwamish Trail connection.

Cross section drawing of SDOT option 2 for West Marginal Way SW bike lane for Duwamish Trail connection.

 

 

A significant benefit of the protected bike lane will be to improve traffic safety for all road users by slowing down speeding southbound traffic on West Marginal Way SW.

Crashes are frequent and severe. Median speeds were in the mid-40’s and did not come down after speed limits were lowered to 30.  Now speed radar signs are up, resulting in only about a 5 mph reduction. There is no congestion problem southbound due to lane capacity. There is a speeding and reckless driving problem, causing crashes and making it treacherous to cross on foot. Traffic congestion only occurs at the south end at the Highland Park Way intersection, where the backup from the First Avenue South Bridge begins. Along most of West Marginal Way SW, frantic drivers are rushing to get into the traffic jam as fast as they can. To hurry up and wait. Making more of the north end consistently one lane will allow drivers who travel at or near the speed limit to control the speed of all traffic, without any effect on throughput across the bridges. The bridges are the choke points, not the street.

photo of three people crossing West Marginal Way Southwest on foot at the Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center

For the short distance between the Duwamish Trail crossing and the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center, we support SDOT’s option to allow parking in the curb lane north of the new signal and crosswalk. This will eliminate the current illegal use of the sidewalk area for parking that blocks pedestrian access.

Map of SDOT option for West Marginal Way SW curb lane revisions from Duwamish Trail crossing to SW Alaska Street.

Photo of car parked on dirt path on west side of West Marginal Way Southwest where there is no street parking and no paved sidewalk.

Port of Seattle and Seattle Freight Advisory Board members are concerned about losing a traffic lane and about truck maneuvering at drives. We support their goals for good, efficient truck routes including on West Marginal Way SW. Our members and our neighbors are employed by these industries, and we all depend on them. We support SFAB’s request to maintain traffic lane width meeting standards for this Major Truck Street. However, we think the concerns about the PBL are not justified. Some industrial users also want lower traffic speeds, to help them get in and out of their driveways safely. Making the southbound direction continuously one lane from the Chelan intersection to the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center will eliminate the Freight Board’s concerns about traffic merging from two lanes to one approaching SW Alaska Street.  If it turns out we are mistaken and SFAB’s fears are realized, the PBL would be easily reversible. If it turns out we are correct, this would help tame a free-for-all speedway into a street that prioritizes freight for industries and the seaport, but also safely accommodates people on bikes and walking as well as people driving personal cars and trucks.

Building a sidewalk where it is missing on the west side will provide a safer, more comfortable walking route from the nearest bus stops on SW Spokane St and on Delridge Way SW to the industrial employers and the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center. However, sidewalks are not a safe substitute for protected bike lanes in the roadway, due to narrow width and poor sightlines at driveways where buildings are built to the property line at the street. Some have suggested cutting all the street trees to widen the sidewalk to the curb. Cutting more than two dozen healthy street trees would be contrary to City policy and would put cyclists just inches away from the most reckless drivers passing traffic on the right at speeds often exceeding 50 mph, making the route less safe.

photo on West Marginal Way at Duwamish Trail crossing with SDOT, Port of Seattle and community group representatives talking.We appreciate the proactive effort from SDOT to improve safety and mobility on West Marginal Way SW. We also appreciate the ongoing community outreach and engagement to make this work responsive to the needs of all people traveling on this important corridor.

Reconnect West Seattle – 10% by bike

 

 

We are happy to see that the City recognizes the role biking can play to mitigate impacts of the West Seattle high-rise bridge closure by creating an aggressive but realistic bike mode share goal. To get acheive the goal of 10% of trips across the bridge at peak hour by bike,  it will be necessary to make biking routes safe, comfortable and efficient.

But…

SDOT’s proposed funding and scope of projects to improve biking is insufficient. It will take fully funding the spot improvements list we provided in April.  While we appreciate the inclusion of many of our suggestions in the Reconnect Seattle Survey, we are disappointed to see that the City intends to implement only a handful of spot improvement projects, spending less than $1M [up to 10 projects at less than $100,000 each.] This is woefully inadequate to attract the numbers of new bikers and sustain their comittment to cycling for the years of the bridge project.

And…

Paint and post improvements need to be complemented with programmatic support. The City must act to support people from a range of backgrounds so that people of all ages, abilities, languages, ethnicities, genders and races can equally rely on biking as a safe, affordable and sustainable way of getting around during the bridge closure.

See our latest proposals to the City, 200812 reconnect WS – bike mode shift , made in collaboration with Duwamish Valley Safe Streets, Seattle Neighborhood Greenways, Cascade Bicycle Club, and endorsed by 350 Seattle, Transit Riders Union, The Urbanist, Feet First and Lime.

photo of woman riding bike on trail approaching Spokane Street Bridge. Semi truck and high bridge in backrou