I am wondering if the Ballard News-Tribute can do an article on the dangerous pedestrian corridor on 24th Avenue Northwest due to construction?

As you know, 24th Avenue Northwest was totally reconfigured recently in the interest of pedestrian safety (or so the party line went), and now there are two construction projects on 24th that frequently allow no pedestrian corridor in lieu of a sidewalk.

The construction site on the east side of the street, where the old QFC used to be, is frequently cordoned off for pedestrian access, and there is significant progress on construction. It seems as though they are mostly operating within regulation and providing a pedestrian corridor when possible.

But the construction site on the west side of the street in the 5800 block most often provides no pedestrian corridor. When a pedestrian corridor was provided in April, the construction workers mostly used it to park their own vehicles during the day. And, the project appears to be going nowhere, meaning that it looks like there will be no sidewalk for months and months. Pedestrians are either having to cross unsafely on their way down the street, or they are walking in the street around the parked cars in front of the construction site.

I did complain to the (Seattle) Department of Transportation in April, and they responded promptly and efficiently, noting that the construction on the east side of the street was being done without appropriate permits. The situation improved temporarily. The No Parking signs were effective through April 30, 2008. The Department of Transportation has not responded to my follow-up e-mail in mid-May, in which I noted that there was once again no safe pedestrian corridor and that construction appears to have stalled.

I would appreciate it if the Ballard News-Tribune could focus on the fact that there is no safe way to walk down 24th Avenue Northwest now, and it does not appear that this situation is going to change in the foreseeable future. Thank you. It would be wonderful if the (Tribune) could bring attention to this unacceptable situation. In an age when we are encouraging folks to walk or catch the bus, the city ought not to make it a dangerous sport to get to one's bus stop.

J.D. Munro

Ballard