Some Fauntleroy residents circulated a petition recently objecting to the removal of a Metro Transit bus stop in their neighborhood.

The eliminated bus stop is on Southwest Wildwood Place near 47th Avenue Southwest and serves inbound Route 54. That's the street connecting the southern end of Fauntleroy Way to 45th Avenue Southwest, where the small Fauntleroy business district is located.

Some of the 55 petition signers are elderly people who find it harder to walk uphill to the nearest alternative bus stop, which is on Wildwood Place near 45th Avenue Southwest.

The city of Seattle asked King County Metro Transit to re-evaluate bus stop locations around town with an eye toward improving safety and traffic flow, said Linda Thielke, spokeswoman for the King County Department of Transportation.

Metro also removed an outbound Route 54 bus stop at the western end of Wildwood Place, but the petitioners were OK with removal of that bus stop. It came hard after a sharp left turn at the end of Fauntleroy Way, so buses were occasionally rear-ended by vehicles coming around the corner, Thielke said.

"Cars come around there really quick," she said.

Another problem, traffic frequently stalled behind Metro buses picking up and dropping off passengers there, she said.

Bus riders now catch the outbound Route 54 bus at a long-established bus stop on Wildwood Place near 45th Avenue.

In addition, only about 10 passengers a day used the bus stops that were removed, Thielke said.

One of the petition signers is Anita Lusk, who's lived in the neighborhood since 1952. She agrees with elimination of the bus stop at the west end of Wildwood Place, but she enjoyed catching the bus on Wildwood Place near 47th Avenue.

"It's an excellent location for a bus stop," she said.

It's difficult for Lusk to walk uphill even short distances, so it's been tough for her to get to the remaining inbound bus stop. Coming home has been no problem because she can walk down the grade from the bus stop to her house.

Now that one of the inbound stops is gone, people have been parking cars along the curb where the bus stop used to be. That's reduced visibility for motorists pulling out of adjacent driveways, Lusk said. The Seattle Department of Transportation agreed to limit parking along the curb where the 4700 S.W. Wildwood Place bus stop had been so neighbors can see far enough to safely back out of driveways onto the street.

There are about 9,500 bus stops in the King County Metro Transit system, said Sharon Slebodnick, King County Metro Transit route facilities supervisor. Planners try to pair inbound and outbound bus stops and eliminate solitary stops, she said.

There was only about 1,000 feet between the removed bus stop at 4700 Wildwood Place and another bus stop two blocks away at 45th Avenue, Slebodnick said. Generally the goal is to have a quarter to a half mile between bus stops, although some are a sixth of a mile apart in denser parts of Seattle, she said.

Metro will soon be focusing on bus stops on Fauntleroy Way, from Morgan Junction to the Fauntleroy Ferry Terminal, Slebodnick said. The aim is to equalize distances between stops and take out some of the stops along Lincoln Park, some of which are only 400 feet apart.

Fewer bus stops would mean fewer delays on Fauntleroy Way as buses maneuver in and out of traffic. It would also free up more curbside parking spaces, she said.

Tim St. Clair can be contacted at 932-0300 or tstclair@robinsonnews.com