(Traffic-camera image of low bridge, looking west)
With the recent troubles for the state-owned 1st Avenue South Bridge – the bridge-decking cracks, then the mechanical trouble this week (still pursuing followup questions about that) – we wondered about the city-owned West Seattle low bridge’s status. It’s had various maintenance projects in the past few years, but still has periodic problems with the gates, among other things. So we asked SDOT if anything else was on the horizon for the low bridge (officially, the Spokane Street Swing Bridge). Short answer, yes. Long answer:
Our work to maintain and upgrade the West Seattle Low Bridge is ongoing. We have completed several major improvements over the past few years and are planning to continue working on additional upgrades to improve the bridge’s reliability and operations.
Over the past few years, we have completed several improvement projects including bridge strengthening work, earthquake safety upgrades, replaced and refurbished key mechanical components including the turn cylinders, upgraded the bridge’s control system, and installed an intelligent remote monitoring system.
In the near future, we plan to replace both vehicle barrier gates. We are waiting to receive the components for this project and do not yet have an exact estimate for when this work will occur. We will share more details about the schedule when we know more.
Other future projects in the coming years will likely include additional work on the bridge’s hydraulic systems and lock mechanisms and further improvements to the machinery that operates the bridge. We are in the process of designing this work and have not determined the exact timeline.