Mercer Street Study Released Following Vote

The city just released a study on the proposed Mercer fix that says the project would do little to help traffic flow and may even be of harm, shortly after the City Council voted 8-1 to proceed with caution.

Trips westbound from Interstate 5 to Seattle Center would improve by 2-½ to 4 minutes in the morning, because drivers won't have to make a pair of turns to reach Valley Street. Eastbound trips would be about the same. But in the afternoon, most trips in both directions would be slower, the study says.

The study confirms a similar study conducted years ago, and council members were presumably well aware of the findings — but weighed against the potential benefits to the community, the City Council voted almost unanimously for the project, albeit with a funding caveat (except for Nick Licata, who is also against the streetcar expansion and co-chair of the pedestrian safety committee - wtf?).

The Seattle Times also summarized some of the other findings from the study:

• Valley Street, to be narrowed from five street lanes to two, plus bike lanes, would "promote a pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly atmosphere" next to Lake Union Park.

• The junction of Mercer with Fairview Avenue North would improve, but it would still be sluggish.

• "High delays" would occur where Mercer, Broad Street and Ninth Avenue converge at the west end of the rebuilt corridor.

• On-street parking would be provided on stretches of Mercer and Valley streets. One option would reduce Mercer by one lane — and boost a 10-minute eastbound peak trip to 18 minutes. The report says there's also a benefit: separating sidewalks from busy traffic.