A design proposed by the state would narrow two lanes and a shoulder to make room for a westbound carpool and bus lane on the Homer M. Hadley Floating Bridge between Mercer Island and Seattle. Planners can more easily reconfigure the lanes on the Lacey V. Murrow Floating Bridge, which runs eastbound. Lanes for carpools and buses would greatly help congestion, but might increase the number of severe accidents.
Officials tempted by a chance to reduce traffic jams are hopeful.
An environmental study of the design could be approved by the I-90 Steering Committee next month. To make room, as much as 2 feet also might be cut from the bicycle lane. But whether decreasing congestion is worth increasing the chance of accidents remains for officials to decide. Even the method for calculating accident rates is a debate raging within the state Department of Transportation, said Denise Cieri, the state's I-90 project manager. State and federal regulators support studying the proposal, but are hesitant to make any endorsements.