The Seattle Department of Transportation is asking for feedback on draft design concepts it’s created for West Seattle Link Extension stations, seemingly based on the assumed alignment of an aerial station at Delridge, a retained-cut station at Avalon, and an underground station at Alaska Junction.
The designs and notable concepts featured in the survey are summarized below.
SW Alaska Street Design Concepts
The assumed Alaska Junction station is an underground station located underneath Alaska street between 40th and 42nd street, with station entrances indicated in orange. Potential transit improvements include potential bus-only lanes both ways on SW Alaska street, indicated by the (1), and pedestrian improvements includes raised intersections at 40th and 42nd (4), and raised east-west crossings at 41st (5). Reading the tea leaves: it seems likely that the bus lanes would end up as Bus + Freight (FAB) lanes, assuming SDOT’s FAB lane “pilot” on Westlake for the Route 40 TPMC project are determined to be successful.
42nd Avenue SW Design Concepts
The most notable improvement in this concept is the closure of 42nd to through traffic, indicated by the (2). The station entrances associated with this plaza are indicated on the station box marked (1). SDOT is also asking for feedback on the visual design of the plaza. Presumably, the rest of the station area would be rebuilt as transit-oriented development.
SW Genesee Street & 36th Avenue SW Intersection Design Concepts
Here, SDOT is sharing two versions of a concept involving conversion of an unused triangle of land between Fauntleroy, Genesee, and 36th into a pedestrian plaza.
Concept #1: Outlet from Genesee & 36th in center of plaza.
Concept #2: Outlet from Genesee & 36th shifted north.
The assumed Avalon station location appears to be the retained-cut alternative, with the station located in a trench transitioning from above-ground to below-ground operations similar to the Bellevue Downtown station. Notable improvements in these concepts include significant reduction of access to Genesee and 36th Ave from Fauntleroy, with an eastbound one-way road through the raised plaza leading to a right-turn-only connection to Fauntleroy, and a nebulous “crossing improvements” concept at the circled marked (11). However, the success of such a design is heavily dependent on whether SDOT can figure out how to avoid replicating the significant issues with the design of the raised intersection at Melrose/Minor/Pike (the southern end of the Melrose Promenade) in Capitol Hill.
Fauntleroy is practically a highway in this area, and station connectivity with the Genesee neighborhood could be much better achieved if the entire section of Fauntleroy adjacent to the station were closed to traffic. Through traffic could take the dog-leg of SW Avalon and 35th Ave SW to reconnect to Fauntleroy on the other side of the plaza. In the meantime, the entire northwest half of the station’s walkshed could easily walk or roll down the hill to a large plaza, instead of waiting minutes to cross a congested Fauntleroy Way.
Delridge Station Area Design Concepts
The assumed Delridge Station location is an aerial station replacing the business park southeast of Nucor Steel at Delridge and Andover. Noteworthy proposed improvement concepts here include closure of 26th Ave SW to vehicle traffic at SW Andover Street (numbers 2 and 9 through 12), creation of a wide raised crossing at SW Andover (8), and installation of a traffic circle at the intersection with Charlestown (13) with a raised crosswalk (14). SDOT is also proposing a pick-up/drop-off zone along the south side of the station and just west of Charleston (15). Cyclists and pedestrians coming from 26th avenue and westward are given separated paths (items 7 and 6, respectively) weaving in parallel between aerial guideway pylons.
Delridge Way already features bus lanes adjacent to the proposed station location, but no additional crossing improvements are currently proposed for the intersection of Delridge and Andover.
Although it’s not certain these will be the final station locations, surveys like this give us an idea of what SDOT thinks is feasible to change around future stations. Some changes are relatively radical, while others are modest. Even if station locations change, feedback here will inform SDOT on what would be palatable once the stations are nearing completion in 2032.
What do you think of these concepts?
I am just speechless that there is nowhere for a bus to idle on Alaska Street. Aren’t several routes planned to end there? Isn’t that where drivers may take breaks? It looks like a very basic design mistake to me — even as a bus only street.
I don’t think it’s a big deal.
Currently the 50, 128, C all pass through. Only the 22 ends there.’
In the farther future with the new station, I guess the rapidride C might be truncated to alaska junction station, but it should be fine to find layover spots a bit more north or south. Aka for example like after reaching the bus stop head south on 42nd and stop there.
https://oohwsblink.blob.core.windows.net/carousel-images/ALASKA%20JUNCTION_PLAN_PO.jpg
If it won’t be a bus only street, the drop off and pick up activity will also be done within the only travel lane.
And even through buses will take awhile to load and unload riders. It’s going to be a very busy stop! That’s going to keep other buses from pulling up.
The repurposing of Alaska Street would eliminate lots of traffic, making the expensive deep station unnecessary.
It makes me wonder if SDOT, ST and Metro are in the same reality.
The lack of a crosswalk in front of the proposed Avalon station entrance will encourage a ton of jaywalking. Why is there NOT a crosswalk light there? Either add a crosswalk there, or tell ST to move the station entrance.
Can this be built without demolishing brand-new high rise apartment buildings?
The tunneled Alaska Junction Station option “only” demolishes Jefferson Square (1980’s), a bank branch, and a Jiffy Lube.
ST studied a refined version of the elevated alignment with a station east of Fauntleroy that would “only” demolish a few low-density businesses, a few houses, and one newish medium-sized apartment building.
We will find out the exact extent of impacts from the finalized alignments when the FEIS is released.
I really like how the Alaska Junction Station turned out. Sound Transit did a brilliant job of positioning the station in a way to enable two entrances near both California and Fauntleroy. Looking forward to the new TOD that will replace Jefferson Square. Also love the narrower Alaska Ave with protected bike lanes
I agree Casey. I took the survey for Alaska Junction Station. The only change I suggested is to make Alaska Street transit only in BOTH directions between 41st and California. I will be glad to see Jefferson Square demolished and replaced with TOD.
> Potential transit improvements include potential bus-only lanes both ways on SW Alaska street, indicated by the (1), and pedestrian improvements includes raised intersections at 40th and 42nd (4), and raised east-west crossings at 41st (5)
Just to mildly clarify for others
Existing state of alaska street has 4 lanes with the outer lanes already being BAT lanes.
New state will remove the general lanes and use the extra space for the protected bike lanes
I wonder if the C-line (and other buses) will continue to detour to Alaska Junction, even though the connection that matters is east of California.
I hope not, but the pessimistic side in me says “yes”. Somebody will object to having to walk an extra block to get to the bus, and somebody who owns a business on California will complain about losing a couple of parking spaces to make room for a bus stop. The path of least resistance is always to maintain the status quo, even when it doesn’t make sense.
Luna Park Cafe wanted a C station but didn’t get it. RapidRide lines are more resistant to squeaky wheels than other routes, because travel time gets more scrutiny in its design and marketing.
The worst RapidRide detours are for more than just a 1-business/1-parking space squeaky wheel:
* B 152nd: For a senior center, and now lucky for Overlake Village Station, but will be straightened out to 156th in the East Link restructure.
* F TIB Station, Tukwila Sounder station, southwest Renton office ghetto: Link transfer, Sounder transfer, office workers (originally Boeing offices).
* D Uptown: Uptown neighborhood and Seattle Center. (Compared to a faster route 15 alignment.)
TBF in the case of RR F they could make the section between Tukwila Sounder Station and Lind Ave & SW Grady as a rush hour only section and just send the rest of busses up SW Grady to where the F line is after going through the section with the office parks.. I mean Metro has done this before with other routes where some stops are rush hour only.
I thought Metro tried once to straighten the C at Alaska Junction, but the local business owners didn’t like it and a few riders complained about having to walk and extra block, so Metro scuttled the idea.
I’ll be curious how long different streets will be closed through the 6 to 9 years of construction. I’m reminded of how long the Capitol Hill station site was fenced off as that station vault was getting excavated and built. John Street ran on top of the site like Alaska Street does here. The street diagrams are pretty — but they won’t happen for at least 10-14 years.
As long as we have good transfers between bus and rail… typically a huge blindspot in our transit planning. Avoid crossing busy streets and as close to station entrances as possible while keeping the thru buses in the street in their direction to minimize time loss.
Would it make sense to have another station entrance and ped tunnel (similar to Cap Hill by SCC) at Junction Plaza Park on the north side of SW Alaska Street? Additional access to Alaska Junction commercial district and westbound bus routes on Alaska St?
It’s one of those crappy leftover “open space” plazas no one uses anyway so would make a good station entry.
I was one of those who pushed for the Capitol Hill southwest entrance to have entrances on both sides of the street. But now that it’s my entrance and I use it half the time, I wonder if it’s really a benefit or worth the cost. Broadway is pretty easy to cross and there aren’t long delays waiting for a light. The tunnel has a V-shaped turn at the western entrance that seems like a little detour.
So I don’t think I’d recommend this anywhere else. What we should have had was a station in the middle of Broadway so that all the entrances on both sides would be short. But ST didn’t want to do that because of construction disruption. Instead we have a tunnel going all the way across Broadway. That may be worthwhile in cases like UW Station crossing two long traffic lights and a car sewer to the west side of Pacific Street, but that isn’t the case for Broadway… or for Alaska Street.
Here are the most recent public presentation documents that I could find that detail the station layout on the surface (March 2024)::
https://www.soundtransit.org/sites/default/files/documents/WSLE-station-planning-materials-english.pdf
There are two major station entrances, each on different sides of Alaska Street.
Note that these plans still have four lanes on Alaska Street as well as bus pullouts at the station entrances. The City’s new diagrams treat Alaska Street very differently — with only two lanes and no bus pullouts.
I would note that if traffic on Alaska Street is reduced to two lanes like the City has proposed — regardless of its bus-only status — it will be an easy street to cross. Entrances on both sides of Alaska Street would be less important to have.
Finally, it’s still not clear where the station vault will be. In either plan, Alaska Street will have to be closed for a long period of time. The deeper things have to be excavated, the longer the street closure will be. Unlike Broadway which had an underground walkway excavated running only across the street, this underground walkway would run almost two blocks parallel and underneath Alaska Street.
The Avalon station leaves me speechless. Has any Sound Transit designer ever been to any major European city to see how underground station entrances should work? Why are they making people cross Fauntleroy or 35th to get to the station entrance instead of putting underground entrances on the opposite sides of the streets? That intersection is always heavy traffic. Making people cross that on the surface is crazy talk.
I think that there is no underground connection at Avalon Station as proposed because the station will have no mezzanine. ST calls it a “retained cut” station. If a connection was added, riders would have to cross the outbound light rail tracks in the station to get to the platform — similar to Redmond Technology Station. Either that or the station would need to be lots deeper and more expensive so ST could add in a mezzanine level.
The station entrances are on both sides of 35th. 35th will have a long closure to excavate the station but it’s not planned as very deep like the Alaska Junction station is planned to be. ST appears to expect Link riders to cross Fauntleroy at the scary 35th intersection.
It’s almost like ST put the station on an island with no bridges from the mainland, isn’t it?
When this station opens to universal criticism, underground passages under 35th and Fauntleroy will be constructed, with quite a bit of extra disruption. They will be built because the neighborhood will demand it after enough pedestrians are killed trying to make the once-every-ten-minutes trains.
And yes, all riders using them will have to make two level changes one way in every round-trip.
It’s almost as if the designers are driver n by their guilty consciences to make a bad extension worse just so everyone will agree thet it was a great folly.