What do new curb-lane signs mean?

Q: Motorists are still trying to figure out what to do in the Elliott Avenue West /15th Avenue West corridor between Denny Way and the Ballard Bridge. Some say new posted signs and street markings are confusing.

New signs designate the northbound curb lane for bus use only from 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. — or 3 to 6 p.m., depending on which portion of the street the sign is located on — except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Actually, the curb lane is for buses and right-turning vehicles only. Street stenciling has a right-turn arrow and the word "Only" at 16 intersections with posted signs that read: "Curb Lane Must Turn Right."

Magnolia resident Dick Evans says he thought he was abiding by the new signs. He regularly travels that route, and he drives in the curb lane between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. and after 6 p.m. He says the same is true southbound. He heeds the signs and feels free to drive in the curb lane, except from 7 to 9 a.m.

"Right or wrong, very confusing," he said. "I intend to use the curb lanes all the time, except the restricted hours, until someone tells me different. If curb lanes are restricted all the time ... then change the signs."

A: The right-turn-only signs at intersections apply at all times, says Bill Bryant of Seattle's Department of Transportation. The time-restriction signs, such as 7 a.m.-9 a.m., refer to the hours during which parking is not allowed, and buses and right-turning vehicles have exclusive use of the curb lane. But parking is allowed at other times.

Because of the right-turn requirement, however, traffic does not have a straight shot through the corridor in the curb lane, except for buses and bicyclists.

The transportation department is still repaving in the corridor and working on "Business Access and Transit" (BAT) lanes to help speed traffic, and Bryant concedes it'll probably take time for drivers to become completely familiar with the changes.

Q: For thousands of youngsters, school has resumed. So have readers' questions about what constitutes a school zone. When a sign identifies a school zone as having a 20 mph maximum speed "when children are present," but has no flashing light, does that mean the speed limit applies only when children are in sight, during school hours, only on weekdays, during the nine-month school term or year-round?

"I realize extra caution should be used around school areas at all times," says Betsy Hanson, of Seattle. "But how does the [municipal] code identify this sign?"

A: According to state law, "when children are present" means:

• When school children are in a marked crosswalk, or

• When school children are waiting at the curb or on the shoulder of the road and are about to cross in a marked crosswalk, or

• When school children are present or walking along the road, either on the sidewalk or (if there's no sidewalk) on the road shoulder within the posted school speed-limit zone, up to 300 feet in either direction of a marked crosswalk.

So points out Heather Marx, the Seattle transportation department's deputy director of traffic management. She said Seattle uses that definition, whether other jurisdictions do or not.

Some school-zone signs in Seattle and surrounding communities say "when children are present." Some say "when light flashing." Some say neither.

The 20-mph speed limit may be enforced outside of school hours, including before and after school activities, athletic events and summer-school sessions, says Marx.

Using "when children are present" on the signs, rather than exact hours, is intended, she said, "to aid the enforcement of speed in school zones and urge drivers to use caution in school zones at all times."

Bumper note

Road crews are starting work on Highway 104 (Edmonds Way/Sunset Way) in Edmonds this week, in hopes of improving safety for ferry traffic and area motorists. Workers are to extend the Edmonds ferry-terminal holding lane on Highway 104 to just east of 15th Street Southwest. (In the busy summer months, ferry traffic frequently backs up all the way to 100th Avenue West and blocks driveways and businesses.)

A new, longer ferry lane should provide room for long lines of vehicles waiting for the Edmonds-Kingston ferry during peak season.

Another change: Turns will be restricted at the Highway 104 intersection with Pine Street, where a curve limits visibility for westbound traffic on Pine. Drivers trying to cross or turn left onto the highway from Pine contend with fast-moving highway traffic.

When the change is made, drivers traveling north on Highway 104 will only be able to turn right onto eastbound Pine Street, and drivers headed west on Pine will only be able to turn right to go north on Highway 104.

To head south, drivers will need to use city streets to reach Highway 104 at a different location. On the west side of the intersection, new striping will restrict eastbound drivers on Pine from crossing the highway.

During the work, expect daytime single-lane closures. Crews hope to complete the work by the end of this month.