(Image: Ryan Packer/CHS)

By Ryan Packer

One of Capitol Hill’s busiest intersections should get easier to navigate this year, whether you’re in a car, on foot, or in a wheelchair. Broadway E and E John is slated to get a brand new set of traffic signals as part of the Seattle Department of Transportation’s Neighborhood Street Fund grant program. With the signal upgrades will come separate turn signals; drivers heading east on John Street or west on Olive Way will be asked to wait to turn left until pedestrian traffic clears the intersection.

Brie Gyncild of Central Seattle Greenways called the grant application a “last resort” in an SDOT blog post about the project. The city looked at including the signal upgrade with a previous Neighborhood Street Fund grant that made spot improvements to John and Thomas Street across all of Capitol Hill, but couldn’t make it happen due to high cost.

“The Neighborhood Street Fund was a last resort, because we have been trying to get these improvements made for a while,” Gyncild said. “This intersection has seen injuries and close calls. We all recognized the need for change here, but it’s expensive because signals are expensive and there are a lot of things that needed to change alongside the new signal, such as ADA upgrades to curb ramps.” Continue reading →