White Center Now: The blog about White Center

The Seattle Transportation Department has just announced it has gone ahead with the one-day-delayed plan to switch the detour direction during repaving in South Delridge:

Delridge Way SW Phase 5 Detour Reversed: Northbound now detoured

Northbound traffic on Delridge Way SW is now detoured at SW Roxbury Street. The change reverses the direction of the previous detour in phase five, between SW Roxbury and SW Henderson streets. The detour went into effect this afternoon and will remain until project completion, expected the end of this year. Southbound traffic along this stretch of Delridge Way SW will be maintained.

Northbound Delridge Way SW traffic at SW Roxbury Street is directed along one of two paths:

· West on SW Roxbury Street
· North on 26th Avenue SW
· East on SW Barton Street/ SW Barton Place onto Delridge Way SW

Or

· North on 16th Avenue SW
· West on SW Henderson Street to Delridge Way SW

Just north of White Center, the City of Seattle Department of Transportation is changing the detour direction for the final phase of Delridge Way repaving – southbound traffic will keep flowing, northbound traffic will be detoured, instead of the other way, which is how it’s set up now. The city hopes the change will:

· Simplify traffic control measures for ease of understanding for the traveling public

· Eliminate the buildup of excessive traffic at the intersection of Southwest Roxbury Street and 16th Avenue Southwest due to the detour

· Allow for a more natural traffic flow – southbound on Delridge Way in the original right lane

· Reduce the possibility of someone driving in the wrong direction.

The new detour will direct northbound Delridge Way Southwest traffic at Southwest Roxbury Street onto northbound 16th Avenue Southwest and then onto westbound Southwest Henderson Street to return to Delridge Way. This detour will remain in place until the project is complete at the end of the year.

To ensure the safety of drivers and pedestrians and to allow enough space for the crews to conduct this work, curb-side parking on Delridge Way will be inaccessible between Southwest Henderson and Southwest Roxbury streets until project completion.

Tomorrow night, you can ask an SDOT rep about this during the White Center Chamber of Commerce‘s monthly evening mixer at 6 pm at Bahn 88, 9418 Delridge Way SW.

(UPDATED Tuesday evening with correct map, re-sent by SDOT)

Since January, the Seattle Department of Transportation has been repaving Delridge Way SW in West Seattle, south of SW Orchard, in segments. The final segment will be just north of the White Center business district, so we thought you’d want to know. It’s set to start September 23rd, and here’s the announcement, with a map:
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(Updated map sent by SDOT)

The Seattle Department of Transportation’s Delridge Way SW Paving Project enters its fifth and final phase on September 23, 2013. The project rebuilds much of the roadway from SW Henderson to SW Roxbury streets, installing new storm water detention pipes, upgrading curb ramps to ADA standards and adding bike facilities on the northern end. The project began January 10 and is expected to wrap up by the end of the year.

To ensure the safety of drivers and pedestrians and to allow enough space for the crews to complete the work on Phase 5, between SW Henderson and Roxbury streets, on-street parking will be inaccessible. Also, southbound traffic will be detoured at SW Henderson St to 16th Avenue SW (see map).

Currently crews are working to complete Phase 4, between SW Holden and Orchard streets. This includes rebuilding SW Orchard Street, between Sylvan Way SW and Delridge Way SW. Crews are constructing one side at a time, with SW Orchard Street closed to eastbound traffic through September 13 and to westbound traffic the following two weeks. Traffic is being detoured along Delridge Way SW and Sylvan Way SW.

In Phase 4 these next two weeks, weather permitting, crews will also stripe Delridge Way SW between SW Holden and Myrtle streets. The markings reconfigure Delridge, between SW Kenyon and SW Myrtle streets, to accommodate new 6’ wide bike lanes.

The southern portion of Delridge Way SW is an important West Seattle arterial that had deteriorated over time. Completion of this $6.7 million Bridging the Gap funded paving project provides a smoother roadway, greater pedestrian accessibility and a higher level of safety for all modes of travel while the new drainage detention pipes slow the rate of storm water flow into Longfellow Creek during periods of heavy rain.

12:39 AM: If you’re thinking of heading to southbound 509 down Roxbury/Olson/1st Avenue South – you’ll have to wait a while. A rollover crash has closed off southbound 509 at Cloverdale. One person is going to the hospital but is not believed to have major injuries. More details on our partner site West Seattle Blog.

7:37 AM UPDATE: The highway reopened after five hours; the link above has been updated with more information about the crash.

9:46 AM: Traffic alert: A car hit a tree in the 15th/Roxbury vicinity and eastbound Roxbury is blocked for a while. Two people were taken to the hospital, according to deputies on the scene. Buses are being routed off Roxbury in the area.

10:31 AM: Metro says buses have returned to their regular routes, which indicates the scene has been cleared.

Some slow going this morning on the hill to and from the Myers Way/1st Avenue South ramp for Highway 509: A semi-truck with trailer wound up on its side – no way to get a close-up photo, but it’s in the backdrop of what you see above. Nobody hurt, we’re told, and traffic was being directed around it while a tow truck got ready to right it.

This might affect you, heading eastward toward Highway 509 the next few days. Announced today by the Seattle Department of Transportation:

Crews from the Seattle Department of Transportation plan to repair a hand rail this week on First Avenue (South) and Olson Place [map]. They will close the right lane of both streets at this location from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on January 11, 12 and 13. This work is subject to change in the event they are called to respond to an emergency at another location.

(Photo by Katie Meyer for WCN)
4:07 PM (crossposted from partner site West Seattle Blog): Big emergency response to 3rd SW/Olson Place just past the east end of Roxbury – there’s a crash that went out as an “automobile rescue” call. Our crew is there and we’ll have more shortly – for now, though, avoid the area, which is a busy route to and from Highway 509. Ongoing updates in the story on WSB.

(Crossposted from partner site West Seattle Blog)

11:39 AM: A crash on Olson Place heading downhill to Highway 509 from the east end of Roxbury has traffic being diverted at Olson/4th (map) – you’ll have to go southbound on 4th. The crash scene is close to the top of the hill. The Seattle Police Department Traffic Collision Investigation Squad is there, which suggests that downhill (eastbound to 509) Olson will be closed for a while, usually a few hours. Southwest Precinct Lt. Ron Rasmussen tells us two people were taken to the hospital.

1:53 PM UPDATE: Per scanner, police are clearing and Olson is now open again.

7:15 PM: A house fire in the 9400 block of 8th SW in Highland Park has closed 8th SW immediately north of Roxbury, to Cambridge, so if you are headed into West Seattle, you’ll want to find an alternate route. (Nobody’s hurt; here’s our coverage on West Seattle Blog.)

We’ve heard from numerous people wondering what’s causing the backup at Olson/Myers, on the way from White Center (and West Seattle) toward Highway 509 and South Park. It’s on the 911 log as a car fire. Some folks tell us they’ve been stuck as long as 45 minutes.

Writer Chad Newton makes the proposal on his website: What about a new South Park Bridge that’s aligned along South Cloverdale rather than 14th Avenue South? He made the Google Map above to illustrate his idea. You can read about it here. (Of course, as he notes, this would cost a few hundred million dollars more, but his main point is the west-east disconnect in the south sections of Seattle.)

Just in from King County:

On Wednesday, Oct. 20, the King County Road Services Division will be making repairs to Southwest 108th Street between 4th Avenue Southwest and 2nd Avenue Southwest. The roadway will be closed from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Thanks to Michelle for the tip on this – we’d heard there was a serious crash on 16th SW in White Center; she reports:

Just north of the intersection of 112th and 16th, there was a sign up and many, many police cars. The sign said “Road Closed due to Accident Investigation.” This was approximately 40 minutes ago. We had to take a detour to get back to (West Seattle).

Those are all the details we have so far. 2 AM NOTE: Drove past the scene and tow trucks were taking away at least one damaged vehicle – it appeared 16th SW was about to reopen, after being shut down from just south of 107th to just north of 112th.

Not certain about the nature of the incident but did want to let you know that Seattle Police are blocking westbound Roxbury at 9th SW as of a few minutes ago (2:45 am).

Traffic alert as of 8:56 am Wednesday – there’s a crash affecting traffic on the hill between White Center and Highway 509. No further details but just a heads-up that if you’re trying to head that way, it’s likely to be slow going.

If you’re likely to be on I-5 northbound this weekend – take note that it’ll be closed from Airport Way northbound toward the West Seattle Bridge both tonight and Saturday night, midnight-8 am both nights, for more sign installation. That’s part of an increasingly long list of construction-related closures that are all listed online (set aside some time to read the whole list!) – see the updated version here.

We first reported these last night on partner site West Seattle Blog – but in case you didn’t see them there, we’re linking here too. Multiple agencies sent reps to the first “bridge closure planning meeting” yesterday in SP; after that, we were off to a media opportunity with Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, whom we asked whether the city might chip in money for a new bridge, as a county rep had suggested to us might be necessary. Here’s the full story with details on both angles (including video of the mayor’s answer). Meantime, nothing has changed as the county moves toward its plan to close the South Park Bridge permanently at 7 pm June 30th.

Thanks to the caller on our breaking-news line (206-293-6302, round the clock) – we just got word a crash has closed the South Park Bridge. The KIRO TV traffic chopper showed a vehicle on its side. No word how much longer (it’s 6:28 am as we post this) it’ll be closed.

Update this morning from King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. John Urquhart on yesterday’s crash at 1st South/SW 112th:

The driver of the Kia died at Harborview. He was a 49 year-old Burien man. His identity will be released by the Medical Examiner’s Office. The accident is still under investigation and there have been no arrests.