Burlington Northern Santa Fe is expected to complete railroad track realignment this month, after which work to build the Ship Canal Trail from 11th Avenue West to Emerson Street near Fisherman’s Terminal will begin. BNSF had to install approximately 1,600 feet of railroad track, both mainline and industry; pave the 13th Avenue W and W Blewett Way intersection as well as an area access road; and build three new railroad crossings – all on BNSF right-of-way.
Construction on the long-awaited final segment of the Ship Canal Trail is expected to begin in early September and be complete by the end of the year, the Seattle Department of Transportation announced.
This project will connect the trail from 11th Avenue West to Emerson Street near Fisherman’s Terminal, eliminating a critical gap in Seattle’s Urban Trails System.
The Ship Canal Trail will connect the Elliott Bay Trail and the Interbay and Magnolia neighborhoods to bicycle routes at the Fremont Bridge, including the Interurban route on Fremont Avenue North, the Burke-Gilman Trail, and the Dexter Avenue route, and will make bike riding in the south canal area more comfortable for all levels of bicyclists.
This Ship Canal Trail work is the second contract in phase II of the project. Phase I, which stretches from the Fremont Bridge to 6th Avenue W was completed in 2006.
Phase II was split into two contracts so that construction could move forward on the section from 6th Avenue W to 11th Avenue W, which completed in 2010, while hurdles were overcome on the remaining segment. Those hurdles included negotiation of permits to move private utility lines to a new location, necessary before Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks could then also be relocated. The relocation of those tracks is wrapping up this month.
Construction of the trail is funded in part by the voter-supported Bridging the Gap levy, passed in 2006.
