Image via Seattle Transit Blog.

The Rainier Valley Post reports today that the city is planning major improvements to Rainier Ave. S. along the Route 7. On the list: New pedestrian signals at the corner of Rainier Ave. South and 39th Ave. South!

Ready to get parochial? That's my bus stop, and has been since Metro eliminated the stop at Rainier and Hudson—a well-lit stop at a signalized crosswalk with lots of pedestrian traffic and businesses nearby that are open late at night.

As I wrote a few months ago, the "new" stop is at an unlit intersection, in front of a vacant parking lot, with no businesses around, no traffic light, and a bus stop across the street where people frequently congregate to buy and sell drugs:

Besides being a pedestrian-safety nightmare (cars whiz by at speeds upward of 50 mph because of the huge distances between lights on the main drag of my neighborhood), the intersection feels unsafe to me. Will it keep me from taking the bus? No. But would it deter someone who isn’t reliant on transit from riding again? I’m absolutely convinced it would.

Additionally, SDOT plans to improve street lighting along the corridor. Those improvements (funded by 2007's Bridging the Gap levy) won't solve the vacant-lot problem (business activity ---> eyes on the street ---> safer bus stops), but it may make that site more appealing to business owners looking for a spot in the neighborhood in the future.