What's the commute like for Fremont/Ballard to SLU? (Seattle: home, transfer to)

[rca215]

I know by most standards this would be a fairly reasonable commute, but what should I generally expect to go from around NW 65th St and 15th Ave NW to around Westlake and Denny (by car and/or public transportation)?

It would be during fairly typical rush hour. Probably departing between 7:30-8am in the morning and coming home between 5-6pm.

Google Maps shows a pretty variable time and upwards of 40 minutes. Does that sound about right? Are the bridges the choke point or is the whole thing just very slow?

Is biking a decent option for this route? Would the weather rule that out for much of the year?

Thanks! Any insight is much appreciated.

[tobester]

You can bike year round here ... the mild climate allows it. With Burke-Gilman this is very doable. Otherwise are thinking of driving? As many mention, getting out of a parking garage at SLU can take inordinate amounts of time. Otherwise, a bus ride of 25-35 minutes probably.

[rca215]

Thanks for the response!

I'm not sure what you mean about the parking garage issue. I searched the forum but couldn't find anything.

[CrazyDonkey]

There is no direct bus from NW 65th St & 15th Ave W to Denny & Westlake. You can:

1) Take the D-Line RapidRide from 65th & 15th to

2a) 15th & Leary Way and transfer to the #40, to SLU, or

2b) Mercer & Queen Anne and transfer to the #8, to SLU, or

2c) 3rd & Bell and walk on Bell to Denny, then Denny to Westlake, or

2d) 3rd & Pike and walk to 5th & Stewart, then catch the SLU Streetcar to SLU.

[Kayela]

I'm not sure what you mean about the parking garage issue. I searched the forum but couldn't find anything.

The traffic in SLU all has to funnel onto a few very congested streets. One of those being Mercer (Google 'Mercer Mess'). Thus all the side streets back up as well. People trying to get out of parking garages can't. There are often people directing traffic at garage doors at key commute times, or it would be almost impossible to get out of a garage and into the nearly standstill traffic. As it is, it's still slow going because traffic can only accommodate so many cars trying to leave all those garages at a time. So you can just sit and sit and sit there trying to get into traffic so you can sit and sit and sit in traffic.

You couldn't pay me enough to drive to a job in SLU, and I wouldn't wish that traffic on anyone. Feel free to find out for yourself, but also consider making sure you live near transit. I see many biking, but personally wouldn't feel safe doing so in the winter. Too dark, too rainy, too many drivers not paying attention.

[homesinseattle]

I live near there and drive my daughter to school on Capitol Hill each day. try to leave by 7:20 AM if you are driving. It's fairly bikeable, I see people do it all the time, mostly downhill on way to work.

[rca215]

Very helpful info. I guess I'm ruling out ever trying to drive to work in that area!

Are buses impacted by the area's gridlock? Or do their routes generally avoid the mess(es)?

[homesinseattle]

Yup, unless they take advantage of carpool lanes (which are not available on your proposed commute), buses have the same traffic challenges.

[rca215]

Well that's a bummer. It looks like a walking distance commute from Capitol Hill might be the best bet.

Also, a different commute question, does Seattle have a proper reverse commute or is it jammed in every direction? To be more specific, would a commute from, say, Capitol Hill to a northern neighborhood be fairly nice?

I used to live in Chicago which was a nightmare in every possible direction. But I also lived in SF and commuted north over the Golden Gate Bridge, which was quite nice as a reverse commute (but reverse commuting to the Peninsula/South Bay would be hell). I'm not sure where Seattle, or at least the northern half of the city, lands in this regard.

Thanks again everyone for the help!

[CrazyDonkey]

Originally Posted by rca215

Very helpful info. I guess I'm ruling out ever trying to drive to work in that area!

Are buses impacted by the area's gridlock? Or do their routes generally avoid the mess(es)?

In general, commuting by SOV to Downtown or adjacent areas is not advised.

The D-Line RapidRide has bus-only lanes on 15th Ave W and Elliott Ave W., which speeds things up considerably. It runs every 6 to 8 minutes. Bottlenecks can happen at the Ballard Bridge and through Lower Queen Anne.

The D-Line and C-Line used to be linked, which caused reliability issues in the afternoon/peak trips - they now deadhead in Pioneer Square and SLU, respectively.

An alternative would be to walk to 8th Avenue NW and catch the #28 Express to Denny Way & Aurora, then walk east along Denny to Westlake (about 1,000 ft).