Crosswalks coming to seven intersections along 3rd Ave NW

Meghan Walker Ballard

A number of new crosswalks and speed cushions are coming to 3rd Ave NW this year.

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is making several improvements to 3rd Ave NW, including seven new painted crosswalks and two new speed cushions along the busy arterial.

“We’ve collected data and found that people are driving over the 25mph speed limit on 3rd – even during school arrival and departure times,” SDOT tells My Ballard.

“Neighbors have also advocated for traffic calming here as well. Slower speeds are safer and they make people driving more likely to stop for people walking to cross.”

Speed cushions

The project is part of the Levy to Move Seattle, in which SDOT is building safety improvements at every public school in the city. This project is supporting Greenwood Elementary students, “and will make it easier for everyone to cross the street to get to destinations on both sides of 3rd Ave NW like the Greenwood Library, St. John School, and the Healthy Street on 1st Ave NW,” SDOT says.

The improvements will include:

  • Speed cushions on 3rd Ave NW between 67th and 83rd
  • Marked crosswalks at 67th, 70th, 73rd, 75th, 77th, 81st, and 83rd – as well as “paint and post” curb bulbs at most of these intersections that shorten the crossing and make people walking more visible
Example of a “paint and post” design to shorten crossing distance and enhance the visibility of pedestrians.

SDOT says the crossing at NW 83rd St will be a Neighborhood Greenway (NGW) crossing. While SDOT isn’t extending the N 83rd St greenway route further west at this time, they are making the crossing compatible with a future NGW extension.

Photos: SDOT