Residents call for new 520 bridge plan
SEATTLE -- More than 100 people gathered in the city's Montlake neighborhood Monday to announce their opposition to the proposed 520 bridge replacement plan.
A coalition of neighborhood groups, the Sierra Club and the Cascade Bicycle Club were joined by Mayor McGinn, House Speaker Frank Chopp and other elected city and state officials at a news conference.
The group wants two of the proposed six lanes for the new bridge to be dedicated solely to mass transit.
The plan recommended by the state Department of Transportation calls for two general purpose lanes and one HOV lane in each direction.
McGinn and neighborhood leaders believe the current design will increase traffic congestion in the area of the SR-520/Interstate 5 interchange and cause ongoing environmental damage.
"This is a project that's going to last 50 to 75 years," McGinn said. "Our job is to build something that responds to that future."
They are asking the DOT and the legislature to consider new design options. Whatever the design, the bridge is expected to cost at least $4.5 billion.
A coalition of neighborhood groups, the Sierra Club and the Cascade Bicycle Club were joined by Mayor McGinn, House Speaker Frank Chopp and other elected city and state officials at a news conference.
The group wants two of the proposed six lanes for the new bridge to be dedicated solely to mass transit.
The plan recommended by the state Department of Transportation calls for two general purpose lanes and one HOV lane in each direction.
McGinn and neighborhood leaders believe the current design will increase traffic congestion in the area of the SR-520/Interstate 5 interchange and cause ongoing environmental damage.
"This is a project that's going to last 50 to 75 years," McGinn said. "Our job is to build something that responds to that future."
They are asking the DOT and the legislature to consider new design options. Whatever the design, the bridge is expected to cost at least $4.5 billion.