Week of June 8, 2009

Overhead to underground: King County coordinates at all transportation levels

The Road Services Division coordinates when projects in unincorporated areas are adjacent to city boundaries, like this one at an intersection connecting White Center and Burien.

The transportation network in King County is so multi-layered that all maps should be rendered in 3-D. With state highways, county roads, city streets, multiple transit systems, bike routes, pedestrian paths, and passenger ferries, our county is crisscrossed by a complex travel web.

Right in the center of it all is the King County Department of Transportation (KCDOT), which provides road and transit services that intersect with every other jurisdiction, public utility, and transportation agency in the county. It requires King County Road Services and Metro Transit staff to closely coordinate with many agencies on many levels.

“As the local transportation systems expand, it really does put KCDOT in the center of things,” said Department Director Harold Taniguchi. “County roads and bridges in unincorporated areas carry traffic to and from 39 different cities. Metro Transit buses travel through those jurisdictions as well. Good communication and coordination helps us reduce travel delays for the public and save money on all our projects.”

A single project can involve many agencies. For example, installing a new electrical pole on a Seattle city street can require coordination of up to half a dozen groups, including: Seattle Public Utilities; Seattle Department of Transportation; Metro’s different crews that maintain the overhead trolley wires, the bus stops, and schedule reroutes; and any contractors involved in doing the actual installation.

A county road project near a city might involve the two government agencies, plus the utility companies that have electrical, gas, sewer and cable lines running underneath that road. If the road is on a bus route, it can also impact Metro and local school districts.

Depending on the project, the agencies will work together on a variety of issues, such as: signage, detours, temporary bus stop closures, utility relocation, erosion control, stormwater runoff, plus associated repairs and repaving.

“The county-city boundary is a line on a map that sometimes doesn’t have much to do with what we are trying to accomplish in the real world,” said Roads Maintenance Superintendent Tony Ledbetter. “People travel across those boundaries multiple times a day, and they want reliable transportation services no matter what jurisdiction they are in.”

This week, Metro's construction coordinators are monitoring 83 separate projects throughout King County that impact bus operations.

Ledbetter said for King County it starts with strong communication with the cities and agencies. He has contacts in every city, so he can reach out when the Roads Services Division needs help or wants to offer assistance. Often mutual-aid or interlocal agreements are set up in advance so the cities and counties can work together quickly without having to create a new contract for each project.

Mary Coltrane, the intergovernmental relations coordinator for the Road Services Division, said those kind of agreements are also used for big construction projects where a county road or bridge carries traffic into a city.

“We coordinate on those projects sometimes years in advance,” said Coltrane.

She said some of the broadest coordination has been done on the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) projects the county has sponsored on the Trans Valley Corridor in South King County, the Totem Lake and Juanita areas north of Kirkland, and along Avondale Road east of Redmond. By synchronizing signals and sharing traffic data, multiple jurisdictions can improve the flow of vehicles throughout a corridor.

Vehicle movement is a big concern for the division’s traffic operations group. Supervisor Mark Mitchell says individual jurisdictions have to consider the impact their projects might have on each other and work together on detours.

“When King County does a road project, we try to find a detour route that puts the traffic on similar or higher classification roads, rather than neighborhood streets,” said Mitchell. “And, we definitely want to let the cities know if we are sending traffic their way.”

Paul Moore who helps manage the county’s road paving program says his group tries to coordinate well in advance of laying down new asphalt.

Moore says each fall the county’s list of potential roads for repaving is circulated among local cities and all the utility companies in King County. He says that’s about 80-100 separate agencies. Then, the county tries to select roads for paving the following summer that won’t interfere with projects the other agencies may be doing. In some cases, Moore says the county has been able to coordinate so that the underground utility work is completed just ahead of the paving project. That way the same road doesn’t have to be dug up and repaved twice in one summer.

Hovering over all these projects are Metro Transit’s construction coordinators. It is their job to scrutinize all road-construction and road-blocking projects – no matter how big or how small – and then calculate all the ways that work will impact Metro’s routes and passengers. Even if a project is solely in the hands of one agency, it is very likely to affect a bus route or bus stop.

The coordinators also handle numerous requests for Metro to deactivate the overhead trolley and streetcar wires in Seattle, so that city and contractor crews can work near the lines. When the electricity is turned off, any affected trolley routes must be switched over to run with diesel buses – which can only happen on weekends when the additional diesel buses are available. And, the coordinators have to stay on top of the project to put the electric trolleys back on the wire as soon as the work is done.

This week alone, Metro’s coordinators are monitoring 83 active construction projects all across King County that are affecting bus service.

“Our vantage point allows us to scan all the projects and pinpoint where there may be potential for conflict,” said Coordinator Richard Garcia.

By staying in touch with contractors and coordinating with jurisdictions, Garcia’s group helps reduce delays and inconvenience for transit passengers, and minimize damage to Metro facilities. It saves Metro thousands of dollars each year.

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This 60-year-old timber bridge near Covington will be replaced this summer.

Bridge projects will close roads in southeast King County

Bridge replacement projects in Southeast King County will close three county roads for up to three months near Enumclaw and Covington. These King County Road Services Division projects and start dates include:

• Monday, June 15 on Southeast 416th Street north of Enumclaw near 270th Avenue Southeast, where the county will replace an 84-year-old bridge across Newaukum Creek;
• Thursday, June 18 on Southeast 244th Street near 148th Avenue Southeast east of Covington crossing a tributary of Soos Creek;
• Monday, June 22 on 172nd Avenue Southeast at Southeast 240th Street northeast of Covington, also crossing a Soos Creek tributary.

All of the work is expected to be completed by mid September. New bridges in these locations will be constructed of concrete and steel at a cost of $817,000 each.

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May Creek Bridge open house this Thursday

The King County Road Services Division will host a drop-in open house on Thursday, June 11 to discuss plans to replace the May Creek Bridge in the summer of 2010.
The bridge is located on Southeast May Valley Road just east of State Route 900 (Southeast Renton-Issaquah Road), and its timber supports are decaying. The replacement bridge will meet current safety standards with a wider roadway and improved sightlines.
Learn more about the project at Thursday’s open house, which will run from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Briarwood Elementary School, 17020 SE 134th St., Renton.

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Spot auction set for June 10

The next King County Spot Bid auction will take place Wednesday, June 10 and features surplus office equipment, computers, and commercial kitchen equipment.

The auction is managed by the Fleet Administration Division, and includes both King County surplus and items from other government agencies. Previews are on auction day only, from 10 a.m. until the start of the bidding process at noon.

The auction will take place at Fleet’s warehouse at 707 S. Orcas St., Seattle. For information, photos and driving directions, visit the auction website.

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Trolley back in time

Enjoy an unhurried four-hour tour of Metro's unique trolley system with a nostalgic twist, as the Metro Employees Historic Vehicle Association (MEHVA) hosts a special excursion on Sunday, June 14.

MEHVA’s restored trackless trolley buses will take you from Seattle's hectic downtown to several historic neighborhoods throughout the city. There will be stops for photos and lunch.

The trolleys depart at 11 a.m. from Second Avenue South and South Main Street in Seattle’s Pioneer Square. No reservations are accepted, and passengers will be boarded in arrival order until all buses are filled.
Fares are $5 for all passengers over the age of 5. Metro transfers, tickets, or passes are not accepted. Please, do not bring food or beverages onboard the historic buses.
For information, call the MEHVA hotline at (206) 684-1816, or visit the organization’s website.