On what we understand is now known as Blackout Wednesday (that’s today, or rather tonight) the city has announced that the construction that’s jammed Northeast Northgate Way is finished in time for the holidays.
“The Seattle Department of Transportation will open all lanes of traffic tonight– just in time for Thanksgiving travel and holiday shoppers. The intersection will remain clear of construction activities through the holiday season,” the department’s Laura LaBissoniere emails this morning.
The construction has been centered around Northgate and Fifth Avenue Northeast. Areas of the sidewalk that are unfinished will wait until January, when crews return to install new street light and signal poles and complete the sidewalks.
This project will ease congestion and improve pedestrian safety. Specifically, the project:
- Built an additional left-turn lane from westbound Northgate Way onto southbound Fifth.
- Extended the right turn lane from northbound Fifth onto eastbound NorthgateWay.
- Added a landscaped median with trees on Northgate Way just west of the intersectio.
- Created decorative crosswalks on all four sides of the intersectio.
- Installed a new signal system and improved drainage and water qualit.
For more background visit the department’s Northgate page.
Hope they’re fixing the signal lights to be a bit smarter too. Right now it appears to be on a set schedule and will leave looooong lines of cars waiting while nobody is coming the other way. Completely awful.
I don’t know how much it cost? For all the time and money spent, it appears we get one extra left turn lane off of eastbound Northgate Way?
Could we spend a like amount on sidewalks between Roosevelt and 5th NE from about 92nd and 105th? Sidewalks on just one side of each road.
Sound Transit is claiming pedestrian improvements around it’s new light rail station are the City’s responsibility, according to answers I received at the last meeting.
We are a designated Urban Center, we need the infrastructure to support that.