Newly striped crosswalk and curb ramps near Magnuson Park.
In 2006, Seattle voters passed a nine-year levy program targeting transportation maintenance and improvement projects – Bridging the Gap (BTG). The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) has worked hard every year to spend the levy dollars wisely and to hold to the promises made to voters. Once again in 2014, the work plan for the program sets aggressive goals and will push SDOT staff to be creative in their designs and delivery of projects.
One of the most visible programs of the BTG levy is the asphalt and concrete paving program; this year they will deliver 17 lane miles of new pavements along some of the city’s most traveled streets. Projects include paving work along N 105th/Northgate Way – Greenwood to First Avenue NE and along Holman Road.
Additional work to be completed in 2014:
- SDOT will repair 25 blocks of sidewalk, rehabilitate seven stairways and make smaller repairs to 16 lane-miles of road through the Arterial Major Maintenance program.
- Seattle’s bridges will continue to receive much needed repair work. Crews will make 186 repairs to Seattle’s bridges, while design work will continue on two additional bridges – Fairview Ave N and Yesler Way over Fourth Avenue. Both bridges will be rehabilitated or replaced in future years.
- Seismic retrofit work will be completed on the Ballard Bridge and the King Street Station complex of bridges.
- SDOT will plant 500 new street trees and prune more than 3,000 trees.
- Twelve Neighborhood Street Fund (NSF) Large Projects will be designed and constructed in 2015.
During the seven years of the levy, the city has delivered on the promises made by BTG. SDOT has paved more than 205 lane-miles of road, repaired 168 blocks of sidewalk, made 2,047 bridge repairs, rehabilitated 33 stairways, pruned more than 23,086 trees and planted 5,569 new street trees.
For more information about BTG’s goals and progress on meeting those targets, please visit the BTG web page.