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Central Sector
E Harrison St / 37th Ave E / Lake Washington Blvd, map
Respondent #17, 7/31/08
Take a look at these two shots that attempt to show that there is no marked pedestrian access to Lakeview Park from Lake Washington Blvd, East Harrison Street or 37th Avenue East. The main entrance to the park is identified by the orange traffic cone just right of the tree in the center of the first photo and the cone next to the hydrant in the second photo. The crosswalk can become dangerous to people leaving the park due to vehicle driver's inability to see people and pets coming up out of the park to cross at Dorffel Drive.
Seattle Department of Transportation (SDoT) Response
SDOT shares your concern for pedestrian safety. Marked crosswalks can be an important tool to help people cross the street comfortably, but they are not the best solution at all locations, particularly where sight lines are not clear.
SDOT normally marks a crosswalk to indicate preferred crossing locations for pedestrians. In considering whether to mark a crosswalk, two factors we consider are 1) motorists' line of sight to the crosswalk; and 2) pedestrian accessibility. As you noted the sight distance for motorists' approaching the intersection of Lake Washington Boulevard/ East Harrison Street/ 37th Avenue East, where the legal crossing exists, may be reduced by a curve in the road and surrounding vegetation. Because of this, SDOT does not have plans to install a crosswalk at this location. Unfortunately, marking a crosswalk does not always increase safety for pedestrians.
In the meantime, you may be interested to know that SDOT is developing a Pedestrian Master Plan in hopes of addressing some of the issues that face pedestrians in Seattle. While a draft of the Pedestrian Master Plan has yet to be completed, continued updates, information, and ultimately, the final Seattle Pedestrian Master Plan may be viewed here.
Thank you again for contacting the Seattle Department of Transportation about pedestrian crossings.
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