We weren’t the only ones who raised an eyebrow at the Sound Transit press release announcing a new crosswalk on E. Denny near the Capitol Hill light rail construction site. CHS commenter Captain Chaos perhaps put it best:
How wonderful that they’re putting a new cross walk on our street…right next to the barricade closing that corner for through traffic till summer of 2016. Glad they’re on top of this!
We followed up with Sound Transit and, turns out, they goofed in their media release. The new crosswalk is actually at 10th Ave and John — providing a (hopefully!) safer passage on a much busier street near the construction site. You’ll also note a new pedestrian tunnel on the south side of John alongside the big red construction wall.
Speaking of Capitol Hill walkability, the Capitol Hill Community Council has announced that City Council member Sally Clark will be in the neighborhood Thursday night to talk Pike/Pine pedestrian improvements.
City Council Member Clark to Attend Community Council Meeting to Discuss Pike/Pine Walkability Improvements
The Capitol Hill Community Council will welcome Seattle City Council Member Sally Clark to its next general membership meeting at 7 pm on Thursday, July 15 at the Cal Anderson Park Shelter House. Council Member Clark will be discussing future pedestrian improvements to the Pike/Pine section of Capitol Hill. She is scheduled to speak at 7:30. This promises to be an engaging and timely dialogue.
Council Member Clark said, “Capitol Hill has long been one of the best neighborhoods for everything that’s great about urban living. I appreciate the Capitol Hill Community Council for continuing to push for a better, more vibrant, more walkable city.”
Anyone know if this crosswalk is permanent or will be removed as soon as construction is over?
A couple of months ago they installed ADA compliant curb cutouts at the corners but that’s it. There’s nothing new since then. There isn’t even a crosswalk sign.
AFAIK, there has always been a crosswalk there, just not a *marked* crosswalk.
As usual they are picking a corner that is not the most used for crossing in order to build a crosswalk. More people cross a block up at 11th–but that doesn’t border the light rail, so I guess they are hoping people will change their habits. It didn’t work that way further down John after it becomes Olive and heads down the hill. People still just cross all over the place.
This is supposed to be permanent, but I was also told by the city last year at a meeting that they will have to take out the parking restrictions on John to legally put in this crosswalk and that hasn’t happened, so I am assuming this is going to take awhile.
The tunnel Sound Transit put up for pedestrians is closed most of the time during the day and I have called them several times and have had no explanations for this. Anyone know why it is closed all the time?