View of the new protected intersection at Thomas St and Dexter Ave N in South Lake Union. Photo: SDOT. Blog stats: 800 words | 4-minute read
At-a-glance:
- We’ve been putting the finishing touches on our city’s first protected intersection at Thomas St and Dexter Ave N.
- The protected intersection maintains and modernizes the street, supports people walking, biking, and rolling, and makes travel more predictable for everyone.
- We’ll continue to monitor the intersection and signals to make sure everything is operating smoothly, and make any minor adjustments if needed in the weeks ahead.
- This work is part of the Thomas St: 5th Ave N to Dexter Ave N project. It is based on the community vision detailed in the Thomas Street Redefined Plan. Thomas St is also a designated Neighborhood Greenway.
We opened the new protected intersection at Thomas St and Dexter Ave in South Lake Union.
Here’s a quick overview of how the new intersection works and other important upgrades taking place along Thomas St in this part of South Lake Union.
Why we’re building a protected intersection
Protected intersections are recommended by National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) as a proven safety upgrade. This modern design increases visibility and reduces turning conflicts. A Federal Highway Administration report identifies numerous safety benefits and a survey taken at San Francisco’s first protected intersection resulted in 96% of drivers yielding to people on bikes, and 100% yielding to people walking.
After extensive community involvement spanning back to 2013, the intersection at Thomas St and Dexter Ave N was identified as an opportunity to create a Thomas St that strengthens pedestrian and bicycle connections.
Seattle’s first protected intersection will prioritize people walking, biking, and rolling in this busy area. It includes traffic signals for people crossing Dexter Ave N. It also adds permanent concrete barriers to help safely separate people driving from people walking, biking, and rolling.
The protected intersection provides connectivity to the citywide bike network. It links the greenway on Thomas St to the popular Dexter Ave N bike lanes. It also connects the Seattle Center to South Lake Union to help move large numbers of people during events, festivals, and other important community activities.
How the protected intersection works
Seattle’s first protected intersection is an exciting step forward for everyone, no matter how you travel.
- New corner islands lead to safer turns. Concrete islands lead to calmer traffic and encourage drivers make turns at safer speeds. There are improved lines of sight for people in cars, making it easier to see people biking and walking.
- New traffic signals for people walking and biking. The new walk signals have been designed to meet the needs of people walking, rolling, and biking and give people plenty of time to cross Dexter Ave N.
- Better experience for people riding bikes. People riding bikes have a separate path through the intersection making bike riders more visible to drivers. This reduces the likelihood and severity of crashes, including right-hook conflicts between drivers and people biking.
- Simple to drive through. Driving through theintersection is still simple and intuitive. There will be no significant impact on travel time or traffic flow for people driving, and it will not change the routes through the neighborhood. People driving can make the same right turns onto Thomas St from Dexter Ave N that they could before construction, and travel along Dexter Ave N is not changed. Signs and markings guide drivers through the intersection and show where to stop during red lights.
We’ll continue to monitor the intersection and signals to make sure everything is operating smoothly, and are ready to make minor adjustments if needed in the weeks ahead.
More improvements coming to Thomas Street later this year
We’re making numerous improvements to other parts of Thomas St between 5th Ave N and Dexter Ave N, in coordination with Seattle City Light and other adjacent property owners.
In the weeks after the intersection opens, we will continue to work on sidewalk and landscaping installation in this area, which may require additional temporary sidewalk closures.
We expect to complete all of these planned improvements this year:
- Create a new pedestrian plaza on the half-block east of 5th Ave N (completely closing this area to cars).
- Widen the sidewalk significantly and plant new trees on the block between Taylor Ave N and 6th Ave N.
- Extend the existing bicycle facilities to a total of 6 blocks between 5th Ave N and Dexter Ave N.
To stay informed
- Visit our website
- Email us: ThomasSt@seattle.gov
- Call us: (206) 900-8718
Thank you for your time and interest in this project.
Editor’s Note – May 10, 2024: We updated the blog post to add more photos and a short video of the protected intersection, and note that it has opened to the traveling public.