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June 1, 2004
Allison Ray
AWV Project Office
999 Third Avenue, Suite 2424
Seattle, Washington 98104
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Draft Environmental Impact statement
for the Alaskan Way Viaduct. Note that the Downtown Seattle Association is on
record as supporting the Six-Lane Tunnel alternative, as we strongly believe
this alternative will provide the greatest long-term benefit for Seattle and
the best return on investment. The DSA encourages the State and City to adopt
this option as the preferred alternative. Our specific comments on the information
in the DEIS are below.
Comments on the Six Lane Tunnel Option Analysis
| 1. |
Further analysis
is needed on the issue of hazardous material transport from the Ballard
industrial areas to the Port and railroad yards in south Downtown, including
capacity needed, tunnel constraints and alternative routes. |
| 2. |
The current configuration
has traffic emerging from the tunnel adjacent to the Pike Place Market and
Victor Steinbrueck Park. We encourage the team to explore options to extend
the covered portion of the tunnel for the Viaduct roadway in this location
to improve east west access to the waterfront. |
| 3. |
East-west pedestrian access from
Pioneer Square and the stadium areas to the Puget Sound is critical. More
analysis of options that facilitate this access is needed, especially in
the tunnel options, which seem to imply a wall between the stadium area
and the Puget Sound. |
| 4. |
Access to the Viaduct from Downtown
needs more analysis and clarification; there are concerns about the impacts
of the additional traffic to Pioneer Square and Belltown. |
| 5. |
The exit and entrance ramps to
Elliott and Western are preferable to the ramps at Stewart Street shown
in the DEIS, as they would support greater freight mobility. However, analysis
of impacts to the Belltown neighborhood needs to be completed. |
| 6. |
We support keeping Alaskan Way
at a maximum of two lanes each way to provide opportunity to create a pedestrian
priority environment along the waterfront. |
| 7. |
We request that the EIS include
the option of shifting Alaskan Way traffic east towards the existing buildings
in order to provide a pedestrian boulevard along the water and potential
development sites for small mixed-use buildings. |
| 8. |
We support the interchange connecting
SR 519 and SR 99 at Atlantic Street and Royal Brougham Way. |
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