Vehicle Turning Circles

Q A Who cleans Metro Transit bus stops What are rules for Seattle traffic circles This weeks Traffic Lab Q A tackles questions about Metro Transit and the rules for Seattles traffic circles. With questions flooding Traffic Labs email inbox, were tackling three reader questions in this weeks Q A. Here goes Q Whos responsible for cleaning Metro bus stops, and how often do they do it Laura Sutkus, West Seattle. A First, a lesson in Metro Transit semantics. The agency calls places with just signs on bus routes stops, and partially enclosed bench areas shelters. Each has a different routine. Crews with the Metro Transit Power and Facilities Section rotate around the regions some 1,7. Metro spokesman Scott Gutierrez said. Team building activities are useful for improving team dynamics, building trust, facilitating communication and teamwork. Here are some short and long activities The. This weeks Traffic Lab QA tackles questions about Metro Transit and the rules for Seattles traffic circles. Volunteers, on the other hand, take care of trash around the bus stops. Metros crews prioritize shelters based on ridership. The more popular the route, the more regular the cleaning. Shelters in downtown Seattle get washed seven days a week, while others across the county get cleaned at least once a week, Gutierrez said. Theres so many people downtown, and so many people on concentration routes, so we make sure those stops are cleaned every day, he said. Riders can report dirty or problematic bus shelters to Metros hotline, 2. The agency will then send someone out to take care of it, Gutierrez said. If theres something really gross at a bus stop its just really dirty or looks in really bad shape call, he said. Q Is it true that the city of Seattle doesnt mandate a counterclockwise traffic flow through its traffic circles, in the mostly universal roundabout fashion If not, why not David Arntuffus, Shoreline. A Nope, thats not the case. Drivers turning left must proceed counterclockwise around traffic circles, per state law, the Seattle Department of Transportation SDOT said. Seattle police can issue 1. But heres the catch If construction work, parked cars or other obstacles make a counterclockwise turn challenging, drivers may need to improvise their navigation around the circles, SDOT said. Theres no law or rule about how this should be done, we just ask that drivers maneuver any blockages as safely as possible and be sure to report any issues, SDOT spokeswoman Mafara Hobson wrote in an email. Vehicle Turning Circles Drawing' title='Vehicle Turning Circles Drawing' />You can take a picture of the problem with your phone and submit it through the citys Find It, Fix It mobile app. Illegally parked cars at traffic circles face towing. Traffic circles aim to slow cars down in residential areas. Vehicle Turning Circles UkThe speed limit in Seattle for arterials is 2. City officials decide whether to install traffic circles at particular intersections based, in part, on the history of collisions there. An intersection may qualify if five or more collisions occurred within three years, SDOT said. Currently, Seattle has about 1,5. Q What is Metro Transits policy on adding extra buses before and after major Seattle sporting events, especially on weekends Do Metros policies cover Sound Transit Express buses, too Susan Gallagher, Mercer Island. A Take a bus near Safeco after a Monday Mariners game, for instance, and its likely going to be crowded and behind schedule. The same could happen after a Tuesday game, too, or really after any home game. Both Metro and Sound Transit said they have a process for deciding whether to add bus service during major events. Officials weigh factors such as expected crowd size and if attendees have access to other transit options. They also weigh logistic issues in arranging bus drivers schedules and shuffling vehicles around. Anytime there is an event that draws large crowds or is expected to have significant impacts on transit service, Metro will more often than not add extra service or some type of mitigation, Gutierrez said in an email. Of last years more than 4. Aktiviti Program Mentor Mentee here. The transit agency, for example, may launch temporary reroutes around a small event that causes a brief street closure, Gutierrez said, without having to add extra service. The ideal solution often is a balance between providing service to and from the event and also making sure that theres less inconvenience to people not attending, he said. At Husky Stadium, the University of Washington has hired extra Metro buses to work as park and ride shuttles. The Seahawks have done the same at Century. Link, Gutierrez said. But that could change this fall, under federal rules prohibiting public transit agencies from providing charter service when private companies are willing and capable of doing so. The university and Seahawks are evaluating their options now, Gutierrez said. Other agencies throughout the region use private buses for events, too. To stay in the know about service changes and delays, sign up for text and email alerts from Metro and Sound Transit via the transit agencies websites. Or, for live updates, follow kcmetrobus and Sound. Transit on Twitter. You know the drill. If you have a question or idea for us, send it to trafficlabseattletimes. We may feature it in an upcoming column. Last week, we described what happens to drivers who cut lines at Washington State Ferries terminals. The week before that, we spotlighted the states vehicle emission test and how officials are preparing to get rid of it. Corrections A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the number of bus shelters in Metro Transits system.