Questions about who deserves access to West Seattle Bridge becomes flashpoint
SEATTLE — The emotion over increasing access to the lower Spokane Street Bridge was evident Wednesday during a meeting of the West Seattle Bridge Community Task Force.
Even as members celebrated an important milestone in the plan to get traffic moving again, the most heated discussion occurred when Seattle Department of Transportation officials were pressed about increasing individual access to the lower swing bridge over the Duwamish River.
The upper bridge was closed almost one year ago on March 23 after structural engineers said the bridge could collapse when concrete cracks began to expand at a faster than anticipated pace.
Wednesday marked the first day the city could put the estimated $175 million repair job for the upper and lower bridges out to bid because the design phase reached the 30 percent mark, which triggers the bid process.
But when city officials said that few people were using the lower bridge once photo enforcement started of those using the lanes when they shouldn't, several people at the meeting asked why SDOT was being so conservative with its access to the bridge.
SDOT has given emergency vehicles, buses and large freight vehicles entering and leaving the nearby port high priority for access to the bridge.
“We never want to be in a position where we have compromised emergency vehicle access, transit access and freight access,” SDOT Director Sam Zimbabwe said. “We will stand behind that, and I will stand behind that from dawn until dusk.”
SDOT has put caps on daily bridge access so the lanes will never have traffic back ups that could impede emergency vehicles from crossing the two-lane bridge.
During the first work week of the year from Jan. 4 to Jan. 8, there was an average daily count of 7,018 vehicle trips over the bridge, according to SDOT data. That was the week just before SDOT announced it would start photo enforcement to catch violators who were improperly using the bridge.
But actual ticketing didn’t begin until Feb. 1.
During the seventh work week of the year from Feb. 22 to Feb. 26, the average daily count dropped 38 percent to 4,335 trips, SDOT data shows.
To some, that meant SDOT could allow more motorists to use the bridge, and many wanted SDOT to allow for people in need of life-saving medical procedure like chemotherapy or dialysis.
“I hope we can find solutions to advance this promptly,” said King Council Councilman Joe McDermott, who is also a member of the task force.
Some questioned who should decide what life saving meant.
“I don't think it’s our definition we should make up because we are not physicians or patients,” said Lora Radford, executive director of the West Seattle Junction Business Improvement Association and a task force member.
Seattle City Council member Lisa Herbold asked about general access on the weekends, prompting a testy exchange with SDOT’s project leader Heather Marx.
“We want to make sure that we are offering access equity,” Marx said before being cut short by Herbold.
“I know you said that," she said. "I want to know what that means, who are you talking to and whom haven't you already spoken with?”
"We have heard from the community Council member Herbold that it is confusing when we make too many changes too often in access to the low bridge,” Marx said, adding that SDOT will not expand access until it has heard from other community groups who believe they need access to the bridge as well.
After complaining to SDOT for more access, officials set up a pilot program that calls for four groups to split 450 daily trips over the bridge, including:
35 to West Seattle businesses; 150 to the maritime industry; 225 to the International Longshoreman and Warehouse Union; and 40 to city government. Each group was given permission to select who needs to use the bridge for businesses purposes. Those selected will be required to provide license plate information to SDOT, which has final approval for bridge access.
Zimbabwe defended his agency's decisions.
“We are not being defensive, we are not trying to bat down comments or questions” he said. “It is just very, very challenging to try and create that policy and implement it in a way that is fair and equitable and still maintains emergency access, transit and freight.”
But during the second week of photo enforcement from Feb. 11 to Feb. 14, SDOT data shows the only group exceeding its daily limit of trips were city government vehicles.
On Feb. 11, cameras caught 415 government cars crossing the bridge, which is 10 times the allocated limit of 40. All the other permitted groups stayed below their limit, according to city data.
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