By Patrick Robinson

Recent reports of cars spinning out, rolling over or otherwise failing to navigate the curve on the West Seattle Bridge north east of the Welcome to West Seattle sign have prompted questions about safety on that stretch of pavement. 

According to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Crash Data Portal there were 10 motor vehicle incidents in 2024, but no fatalities, westbound on the West Seattle Bridge near the curves. No motorcycle or heavy truck incidents were seen near there. 
No teen drivers were involved in these incidents last year.

That’s out of a count of 573 total crashes in Seattle in 2024

According to SDOT’s Ethan Bergerson,

"Our Vision Zero team and pavement team have recently looked into the traffic data at this location to better understand the history and current conditions and consider potential next steps.
As a follow up to this discussion, we plan to add safety enhancements this year to encourage drivers to approach the curve at a safer speed. We are currently considering various treatments such as warning signs, raised pavement markings, and/or reflective markings. 

We will continue to monitor this area after these safety enhancements are installed. If we continue to see a pattern in this area, we can consider increasing the traction of the pavement in this area either by grinding down the top layer of pavement or adding a high-friction surface treatment. Either option would need to be scheduled at some point a little further out in the future after considering resources, crew availability, weather, and traffic impacts for drivers."

 
Most commonly, despite a sign indicating a potentially slippery road ahead, people exceeding the speed limit can lose control of their vehicle as the roadbed transitions from grooved pavement to conventional aggregate concrete.  Rollovers, and other outcomes are the result.

The Washington Traffic Safety Commission (WTSC) has been monitoring speeding trends, and the data paints a concerning picture. A recent observation survey revealed that over three-fourths of drivers exceed the posted speed limit. This dangerous behavior has been on the rise since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

The Consequences of Speeding

Speeding has serious consequences, including a greater potential for loss of vehicle control, increased stopping distances, and more severe crashes. Traffic fatalities involving a speeding driver rose 14 percent in 2020 and 19 percent in 2021 and continued to rise through 2022 the latest year for which statistics are available.

At greater speeds, vehicle safety airbags and structural safety designs are compromised resulting in serious injury and death. Speeding endangers everyone.

Where Speeding Occurs

Speeding is more prevalent in certain areas. Nearly 90 percent of drivers exceed the posted speed in locations posted for 40-45 mph. In these areas, more than half of speeding drivers exceed the limit by 6-15 mph.

Who is Speeding?

While overall, female drivers are just as likely to speed as male drivers, male drivers have higher rates of exceeding the posted speed by 6 or more mph. 

Delivery truck drivers were least likely to speed. More drivers speed on weekends than weekdays. More than one-fourth of speeding motorcycle drivers exceed the posted speed by 16 mph or more, with one in ten drivers exceeding the posted speed by more than 25 mph

What will speeding cost you?

• For posted speed limits of 40 mph and slower:

  • 1 to 5 mph over: $125

  • 6 to 10 mph over: $136

  • 11 to 15 mph over: $166

  • 16 to 20 mph over: $207

  • 21 to 25 mph over: $259

  • 26 to 30 mph over: $310

  • 31 to 35 mph over: $361

  • More than 35 mph over: $423

• For posted speed limits faster than 40 mph:

  • 1 to 5 mph over: $105

  • 6 to 10 mph over: $125

  • 11 to 15 mph over: $156

  • 16 to 20 mph over: $187

  • 21 to 25 mph over: $218

  • 26 to 30 mph over: $259

  • 31 to 35 mph over: $310

  • 36 to 40 mph over: $361

  • More than 40 mph over: $423

Taking Action

The WTSC is also taking steps to address the issue of speeding. They have developed an Automated Speed Enforcement Readiness Guide to help local jurisdictions establish successful automated speed enforcement programs. Washington allows for the limited use of automated speed enforcement. In 2022, RCW 46.61.415 was modified to allow local jurisdictions or the secretary of transportation to establish maximum speed limits of 20 miles per hour on non-arterial highways or parts of a non-arterial highway without the need for an engineering or traffic investigation.