Northwest Bliss Road/139th Street School Zone Safety Improvement Project

This project will improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists in a school zone that serves an elementary, middle and high school. The project includes replacing the existing pedestrian crossing and reducing traffic to a single travel lane in each direction. This project also incorporates design features including dedicated turn lanes, wide buffered bike lanes, high-visibility bike lane markings, enhanced signage, and pedestrian refuges to improve safety and accessibility for all road users.

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About the project

This project, located on Northwest Bliss Road/Northwest Hathaway Road/Northwest 139th Street between Northwest 11th and Northwest 21st Avenues, will…

Restripe the road for one vehicle travel lane in each direction
Add wide buffered bike lanes
Include dedicated turn lanes at school entrances
Enhanced pedestrian crossings and install pedestrian refuge islands between the two travel lanes

Click here for a map of the project location.

In recent years, the community has contacted Public Works with concerns about the safety of the school zone corridor and crosswalks in this area, particularly near Chinook Elementary and Alki Middle School. Community members have voiced concerns about narrow bike lanes, speeding motorists, motorists failing to yield to pedestrians, long crossing distances over multiple lanes, and distracted driving.

To address some of these concerns, Public Works installed "Stop Here for Pedestrians" signage and stop lines in summer 2023. This safety project will incorporate Complete Streets design features that enhance pedestrian and cyclist safety, and reduce vehicle travel lanes to a single travel lane in each direction. These improvements will help protect students, families, and others who walk, bike or drive in this corridor.

Information Session - March 26th

Join us for an information session to learn more about the changes coming to Northwest Bliss Road/Northwest Hathaway Road/Northwest 139th Street.

INFORMATION SESSION
6-8 p.m. Wednesday, March 26
Presentation 6:30 – 7 p.m., Q&A (question-and-answer) session immediately following

In-person location: Alki Middle School, 1800 NW Bliss Road

Attend online:
Registration is not required. Why register? By registering, you will receive the meeting link in an email. If you do not register, you can click on the meeting link below to join, instead.

Registration link- https://clarkwa.webex.com/weblink/register/rdd12f596ea9e9645581a45b5bc731fd2
Meeting link- https://clarkwa.webex.com/clarkwa/j.php?MTID=m0ba823515f27bb33675c2ddad4abb439
Meeting number- 2485 250 7712
Password- Bliss

Project timeline

Construction is expected to start in late April and is scheduled to be completed before the start of the 2025-2026 school year. Public Works is working closely with the school district to reduce impacts of construction on school pickup, drop off, and events.

Design: winter 2024-2025
Construction: summer 2025