We wanted to bring to your attention the city’s proposed elimination of left turns off Eastlake onto Fuhrman, as it would affect many of those who live on Portage Bay and at the north end of Fairview. The Eastlake Community Council has submitted a letter to the SDOT’s strategic advisor Alison Townsend on July 19 which you can read here . We’ve extracted a relevant portion of the letter below and you can read more about the project at the City’s web site here http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/RooseveltHCT.htm
Left turn restrictions
Businesses and residents in Eastlake and the Portage Bay neighborhood are concerned about SDOT’s proposal to prohibit left turns at Fuhrman Avenue East both northbound and southbound from Eastlake Avenue. Eliminating the southbound left turn from the University Bridge will bring constant traffic onto the non-arterial Allison Street, splitting the north gateway triangle from its south open space and pathways that extend further south. This traffic will continue onto narrow residential portions of Allison and possibly Gwinn and Shelby streets in the Portage Bay residential area.
Eliminating the northbound left turn onto Fuhrman Ave. E. poses different problems. Those needing to access the residences and businesses on Fairview Avenue East and the west block of Fuhrman Avenue E. will add traffic to Allison and Hamlin street and to the Fairview Avenue E. Green Street, whose fast cut-through traffic is already a problem. Compounding the problem is that, unlike the gradual slope of Fuhrman Avenue E., Allison and Hamlin streets (the only other routes to between Eastlake Ave. and this part of Fairview Avenue E.) are unusually steep… Denying a northbound left turn onto Fuhrman may be particularly problematic for trucks trying to reach marine businesses on Fairview Avenue E., and could pose a challenge for all residents and businesses during times of snow and ice.
ECC recognizes the complexity of this intersection and the many competing needs for this right of way. However, ECC is concerned that the consequences of eliminating the northbound or southbound left turns may be unacceptable and have not been adequately explored or discussed with the affected residents and businesses. We ask SDOT to conduct and share with us additional engineering efforts to continue the existing left turns and center turn lane. For example, could any potential delay to buses from keeping the center turn lane with a left turn traffic signal cycle be substantially reduced by the buses’ use of signal priority? We also encourage SDOT to conduct outreach to the residents and businesses that would be affected by elimination of the northbound and southbound left turns. These efforts would include development of an access plan to address their needs should the left turns be eliminated.
ECC wishes to be assured by SDOT that no other left turn restrictions to and from Eastlake Avenue are contemplated. In response to our previous inquiry, SDOT wrote on January 28, “[t]he project will provide left-turn lanes at all locations where left-turn demand meets thresholds for dedicated turn lanes. The analysis will consider both existing traffic levels and changes in traffic volumes and operations because of the project.” Please let us know what numerical threshold you may have in mind, and how it applies to the number of left turns you have recorded and projected at the intersections along Eastlake Avenue. With Eastlake residences and jobs rapidly increasing in number, we believe that left turns to and from Eastlake Avenue are now well above necessary thresholds, and will increase substantially in the future. Please propose no further left turn restrictions.”
Neighborhood residents would be severely impacted by elimination of the left turns onto Fuhrman: Allison, Gwinn, Shelby, Broadway E, even 10th. Cut-throughs are already bad. Those streets cannot possibly handle the arterial traffic.
