In a development that I recently mentioned was imminent, the city has secured a consultant to help in negotiations for improving designs for the 520 bridge. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and the Seattle City Council have hired the San Francisco-based firm Nelson\Nygaard. The firm will be paid $251,000.
The city has 120 days (though it’s unclear when the clock started counting down) to work with the Washington State Department of Transportation and the office of Governor Christine Gregoire to modify existing plans for the 520 bridge, which city officials have roundly criticized for failing to prioritize transit, mitigate traffic in the Montlake neighborhood, or make a good transit connection to the future light-rail stop at Husky Stadium.
The consulting firm will submit plans by mid-April. However, as I’ve written extensively before (recently here and here), it’s uncertain that the city can change the bridge’s design much at this point. The city lacks funding to pay for an interchange on the Seattle side that satisfies its transit requests and five city council members already told lawmakers that the state can begin construction before addressing Seattle’s concerns.
I wonder how many salmon had to die to pay for that pro-car consultant for the zero transit-only lane bridge …
All of them are on Bill Gates and Paul Allen’s heads.
N/N are good people, and they know their shit.