SDOT makes fixes at notorious Central District intersection known for crashes

SEATTLE — Homeowners who live on the corner of 23rd Avenue and John Street in Seattle’s Central District say they’ve witnessed wrecks for years.

KIRO 7 has covered the problematic intersection several times in the past.

We revisited the location on Thursday to check out some of the changes the Seattle Department of Transportation has implemented.

“There are a lot of car accidents at this intersection,” said David Hershey.

Joy Hollingsworth, who lives on the corner, has been capturing the chaos for five years now.

She posted a compilation of all the wrecks that happened in 2022 on social media. It’s videos like hers that grabbed the attention of SDOT.

“They’ve cleared a little bit of the corners out. The biggest change I think is the left turn lanes they put each way. A lot of the accidents before were people making left turns, and you couldn’t see people coming out of the other lanes,” said Hershey.

Neighbors say the safety changes were badly needed.

“Every couple of weeks we would hear a wreck, for many years,” said Steven Hastings, who also lives near the intersection.

KIRO 7 asked him when he last heard a crash.

“I don’t know that we’ve heard one since the revision has come in,” said Hastings.

“(I’m) just glad to have a change. Honestly, we even have less honking now,” said Hershey.

Many say they’ve already seen the compilation of all the wrecks.

“I mean, I remember half of these, you hear them, and it’s funny to be reliving old bad memories of car crashes,” said Hershey.

SDOT officials said they still have minor details to complete, such as finishing the sidewalks.

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