Here’s how Bellingham hopes to make area near city’s most dangerous intersection safer
The area near Bellingham’s most dangerous intersection will be reconstructed this summer in an effort to help make it safer, according to a city press release Tuesday, Feb. 4.
West Bakerview Road and Northwest Avenue was the site of 43 reported crashes of varying severity between January 2016 and June 2017, according to crash data compiled by the Bellingham Police Department. That was 3.2% of the 1,350 accidents reported within city limits and 18 more than any other intersection.
The summer construction projects are intended to help reduce the number of crashes in the West Bakerview corridor between Northwest Avenue and Interstate 5 and improve conditions for pedestrians, bicyclists, bus riders and vehicle drivers.
“Over the past decade, new development along West Bakerview between Interstate 5 and Northwest Avenue has significantly increased the volume of traffic as well as vehicle collisions,” a city release announcing the projects stated. “Many collisions occur as drivers attempt to cross multiple lanes of traffic to access a business.”
In an effort to help reduce those crashes the city will reconstruct sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks and bike lanes at the West Bakerview-Northwest intersection, the release stated. The project is No. 5 on the city’s 2020-2025 Transportation Improvement Program, which the city council approved in June 2019.
The second project will be the installation of a 1,900-foot raised median from the intersection of West Bakerview and Arctic Avenue near Costco east to the first landscaped center median, the release states.
The median will be a continuation of the one installed between I-5 and Arctic Avenue in 2017 and will be similar to the Washington State Department of Transportation-installed median along Guide Meridian between I-5 and Kellogg Road, according to the release, which added that collisions along that stretch have decreased since the median was installed in 2013.
▪ According to the release, the new median on West Bakerview will restrict:
▪ Westbound left turns out of the driveway on the east end to the Fred Meyer parking lot.
▪ The shared driveway for the LaQuinta Inn and Suites, Starbucks and Hampton Inn to right-hand turns in and out.
▪ The driveways for Heritage Bank, BioLife and the Villa Santa Fe apartment (812 W. Bakerview) to right-hand turns in and out.
The decision to proceed with the projects was based on the 2015-2016 West Bakerview / I-5 Interchange Study and the 2016-2017 Northwest / Bakerview Intersection Safety Study, which focused on the high number of crashes in the area.
This story was originally published February 4, 2020 at 12:13 PM.
