Traffic Engineering Subject Files, 1926-2000

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Seattle (Wash.). Engineering Dept.
Title
Traffic Engineering Subject Files
Dates
1926-2000 (inclusive)
Quantity
5.2 cubic feet, (13 boxes)
Collection Number
2609-01
Summary
Material relating to traffic control and transportation planning in Seattle.
Repository
Seattle Municipal Archives
Seattle Municipal Archives
Office of the City Clerk
City of Seattle
PO Box 94728
98124-4728
Seattle, WA
Telephone: 2062337807
Fax: 2063869025
archives@seattle.gov
Access Restrictions

Records are open to the public.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for processing this record series was provided through a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

Seattle traffic issues fell under the jurisdiction of the Department of Streets and Sewers during the first three decades of the 20th Century. With the recognition of growing traffic engineering needs, the Office of Traffic Engineer was established within the Department in 1930. The Department of Streets and Sewers was abolished by City Charter Amendment in 1936 and most of its functions absorbed by the Engineering Department. The Office of the Traffic Engineer became a division within the Department. When the functions of the Engineering Department were reorganized in 1997, the traffic engineering and transportation functions were consolidated in the newly formed Seattle Transportation Department.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

Memoranda, correspondence, meeting minutes, maps, blueprints, newspaper clippings and presentational material concerning various traffic control topics and traffic and transportation planning. General topics include traffic planning, street closures, civil defense, traffic safety, and traffic control; specific subjects include Central Business District Exclusive Bus Lanes, METRO, the Seattle Transit System, New Deal traffic projects, and World War II traffic routing. The bulk of the material dates from the New Deal and World War II periods.

A large portion of the series encompasses the records of J.W.A. "Arch" Bollong who served as Traffic Engineer from 1930 to 1952. The records reflect major street and bridge construction projects during that period including Alaskan Way, Aurora Avenue, the Aurora Bridge, and traffic issues related to the Lake Washington Floating Bridge, Boeing Company expansion, and the Seattle Transit System. Traffic safety became a major concern as more and more automobiles were introduced to Seattle. Records include discussions of school crossing issues, activities of the Seattle Traffic and Safety Council, and local and national safety contests.

The largest body of records relate to Civil Defense, particularly to the location of air raid sirens and whistles, lighting regulations during blackouts, traffic and danger signals used during blackouts, and the creation of traffic routes during wartime. The latter included identifying routes through the city that would be used by the military in an emergency as well as the routing of normal traffic.

Most of the records that post-date Bollong's tenure as traffic engineer are related to the controversy around the proposed creation of exclusive bus lanes in the Central Business District in the mid-1970s.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

[Item and date], Traffic Engineering Subject Files, Record Series 2609-01. Box [number], Folder [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
1 1 Administrative Survey Volume VI Engineering Department 1957
1 2 Alaskan Way - Correspondence 1931-1933
1 3 Alaskan Way - Correspondence 1934-1935
1 4 Alaskan Way - Correspondence 1936
1 5 Alaskan Way - Correspondence 1937-1938
1 6 Alaskan Way - Correspondence. 1939-1940
1 7 Alaskan Way - Maps and Drawings 1929-1937
1 8 Annual Inventory of Traffic Safety Activities - National Safety Council Contest 1951
1 9 Armory Way - Highway 99 By-Pass 1931-1939
1 10 Armory Way Map - Downtown By-Pass for Highway 99 1938
1 11 Arterial Highways 1928-1932
1 12 Arterial Highways in Seattle - Map 1930
1 13 Arterial Priority System 1965
1 14 Aurora Avenue Bridge 1930
1 15 Aurora Avenue 1931
1 16 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1932
1 17 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1933
1 18 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1934
1 19 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1936-1937
1 20 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1938-1939
1 21 Aurora Avenue and Bridge 1940-1944
1 22 Aurora Avenue - Maps 1930-1937
2 1 Aurora Avenue - Traffic Flow Maps 1929-1931
2 2 Aurora Avenue - Safety Zone Photographs 1930-1931
2 3 Aurora Avenue - Traffic Across Fremont Bridge 1926-1929
2 4 Bay Street Traffic Closure - Great Northern Railway Co. 1969
2 5 Blackout Program - Maps 1941
2 6 Blackout Program - Procedures and Instructions 1941
2 7 Blackout Program - Reference Material and National Publications 1942
2 8 Blackout Program - Test Blackout Night (March 7) 1941
2 9 Blackout Program - Traffic and Danger Signals 1941
2 10 Blackout Program - Traffic Signals (January-April) 1942
2 11 Blackout Program - Traffic Signals (May-December) 1942
2 12 Blackout Program - Traffic Signals and General Information 1943
2 13 Blackout Program - Traffic Signals 1944
2 14 Board of Public Works 1969-1970
2 15 Boeing Company - Correspondence 1939-1941
2 16 Boeing Company - Correspondence (December) 1941
2 17 Boeing Company - Correspondence 1942-1944
2 18 Boeing Plant - Maps 1940-1944
2 19 Bon Marché - Solutions for Traffic Control, Contest 1946
2 20 Bon Marche - Solution for Traffic Control, Contest Drawings 1946
2 21 Bus Line Warning Signs - Drawings. 1939
3 1 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (December) 1941
3 2 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (January) 1942
3 3 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (February) 1942
3 4 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (March) 1942
3 5 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (April) 1942
3 6 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (May-June) 1942
3 7 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (July) 1942
3 8 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (August) 1942
3 9 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (September) 1942
3 10 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens (October-December) 1942
3 11 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens 1943
3 12 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens 1944
3 13 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens 1950-1959
3 14 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens. Air Raid Siren Control Network (maps) 1942
3 15 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens. Auxiliary Air Raid Alarm Signals. (map) 1942
3 16 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens. Equipment and Installation Sketches 1941-1951
3 17 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens Equipment 1942-1945
3 18 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens Equipment 1946-1951
3 19 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, Location of Air Raid Sirens and Air Raid Warning Zones 1941-1942
3 20 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, Location of Air Raid Sirens. (Maps) 1941-1943
3 21 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, Location (Maps) 1951
3 22 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, Location of Air Raid Sirens, Whistles, and High Pressure Steam Plants (Maps) 1943
3 23 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, Location of fire Department Street Sirens (Maps) 1942
4 1 Civil Defense - Air Raid Sirens, 145 H.P. Siren Test (Map) 1942
4 2 Civil Defense - Lighting Control Measures Prior to Blackouts, Report. 1942
4 3 Civil Defense - Blackouts and Lighting Regulation (January-February) 1942
4 4 Civil Defense - Blackouts and Lighting Regulation (March-May) 1942
4 5 Civil Defense - Evacuation and Military Route Maps 1942
4 6 Civil Defense - Evacuation Planning 1942
4 7 Civil Defense - General Correspondence 1967-1972
4 8 Civil Defense - Organization 1941-1943
4 9 Civil Defense - Organization Charts 1942
4 10 Civil Defense - Publicity, Civilians for Defense Radio Script. 1942
4 11 Civil Defense - War Chest Street Stencil. 1942
4 12 Civil Works Administration 1933
4 13 Civil Works Administration Projects (January) 1934
4 14 Civil Works Administration Projects (February) 1934
4 15 Civil Works Administration Projects (March-May) 1934
4 16 Civil Works Administration (June-December) Federal Emergency Relief Administration 1934
4 17 Classification and Compensation 1945-1957
4 18 Correspondence - Miscellaneous 1944-1945
4 19 Downtown Parks Committee - Committee Meetings 1958-1959
4 20 Downtown Parks Committee - Minutes 1958-1960
4 21 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Community Correspondence 1974
4 22 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Community Correspondence 1975
4 23 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Community Correspondence 1976-1977
5 1 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Government Correspondence 1974
5 2 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Government Correspondence 1975
5 3 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Government Correspondence 1975
5 4 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Government Correspondence 1976
5 5 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Government Correspondence 1977
5 6 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Misc. Correspondence 1974
5 7 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Misc. Correspondence 1975
5 8 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Central Business District, Misc. Correspondence 1976-1977
5 9 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Economic Impact of Exclusive Bus Lanes in the Seattle Central Business District 1976
5 10 Exclusive Bus Lanes - Public Hearing, City Council Transportation Committee (transcript) 1976
5 11 First Avenue South Bridge Interchange 1945-1952
5 12 Fourth Avenue South Railroad Signals 1934
5 13 Fourth Avenue South Traffic Safety and Railroad Crossing (Maps) 1934-1936
5 14 Harbor Island - Parking and Traffic Patterns (Maps) 1941-1943
5 15 Harbor Island - Parking and Traffic Patterns (Maps) 1941-1943
6 1 Highway Research Board (National Research Council) 1941-1943
6 2 Institute of Government, University of Washington 1937-1939
6 3 Institute of Government, University of Washington 1940-1944
6 4 Institute of Traffic Engineers - Preliminary Report of Sub Committee on Traffic Operations Improvements 1945
6 5 Institute of Traffic Engineers - Post War Planning, Organization and Administration of City Traffic Engineering Departments (Draft) 1944
6 6 Institute of Traffic Engineers - Post War Planning Committee 1944-1945
6 7 Institute of Traffic Engineers - War Transportation Committee, Case Report on Traffic and Transport Sea-Tac Shipbuilding Co Terminal Parking, Boeing Plant 2 1944
6 8 Lake Washington Floating Bridge 1938-1939
6 9 Lake Washington Floating Bridge - Dedication 1940
6 10 Lake Washington Floating Bridge - Traffic Distribution Maps. 1937-1938
6 11 Lake Washington Second Floating Bridge Location 1951-1953
6 12 Legislation - National 1931-1941
6 13 Lock Your Car Anti-Theft Program 1965-1968
6 14 Mayor's General Committee on Traffic Conditions in the South End 1941
6 15 Mayor William Devin - Correspondence 1947-1950
6 16 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1941
6 17 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1942
7 1 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1943
7 2 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1944
7 3 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1945
7 4 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1946
7 5 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs 1947-1949
7 6 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs - Army and Navy, Seattle Traffic Route Maps 1941-1943
7 7 Military Traffic Route and Parking Needs - Army and Navy, Traffic Route and Parking Needs, Vehicle Routing at Sick's Stadium 1942
7 8 National Safety Council Contest Correspondence 1941-1944
7 9 National Safety Council Contest - Report to Judges 1932-1941
7 10 National Safety Contest - Seattle Entry I 1945
7 11 National Safety Contest - Seattle Entry II 1945
7 12 National Safety Contest - Seattle Entry III 1945
7 13 Parking - Seattle Central Business District, Resume of Parking Study 1948
7 14 Port of Seattle - Rules and Regulations 1942
7 15 Post-War Traffic Planning 1944-1948
7 16 Potlatch of Progress Parade 1934-1935
7 17 Potlatch of Progress Parade (includes map) 1938
7 18 Potlatch of Progress Parade 1939
7 19 Purchasing - Wartime Priority Ratings 1941-1943
8 1 Reflecting Signs 1929-1934
8 2 Reflecting Signs - Canadian Traffic Signal Corporation 1929
8 3 Report on Street Traffic Survey (WPA) - Request for Copies 1937-1943
8 4 Review of the Organization and Activities of the Traffic Engineering Division. Engineering Department, City of Seattle 1944
8 5 Roosevelt Way - Widening 1938
8 6 Safety Islands - Location Maps undated
8 7 School Crossings 1927-1930
8 8 School Crossings 1931-1932
8 9 School Crossings 1933-1934
8 10 School Crossings 1935-1937
8 11 School Crossings 1940-1944
8 12 Seattle Center Stadium - Traffic and Access Analysis (Washington Highway Department) 1968
8 13 Seattle Municipal Street Railway - Proposed Route Maps, The Beeler Organization 1939
8 14 Seattle Police Department - Junior Safety Division, Annual Reports 1940-1942
8 15 Seattle Police Department - Junior Safety Division, Reports on Halloween Depredations and Vandalism 1937-1944
8 16 Seattle Police Department - Junior Safety Division, Reports on Halloween Depredations and Vandalism 1937-1944
8 17 Seattle Safety Council 1943-1944
8 18 Seattle Safety Council - A Report on the Seattle Pedestrian Accident Problem 1943
8 19 Seattle Safety Council Meetings 1943-1944
8 20 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1930
9 1 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1931
9 2 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1932
9 3 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1933
9 4 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1934
9 5 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1935
9 6 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1936
9 7 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1937
9 8 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1938
9 9 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1939-1940
9 10 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council 1941-1943
9 11 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council - Minutes 1938-1939
9 12 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council - Minutes 1940-1941
9 13 Seattle Traffic and Safety Council - Newsletters 1937-1942
9 14 Seattle Traffic Research Commission - Plans and Statistics. Rapid Transit Planning 1928
10 1 Seattle Transit System 1939
10 2 Seattle Transit System (January - February) 1940
10 3 Seattle Transit System (March-May) 1940
10 4 Seattle Transit System (June-August) 1940
10 5 Seattle Transit System (September -October) 1940
10 6 Seattle Transit System (November) 1940
10 7 Seattle Transit System (December) 1940
10 8 Seattle Transit System 1941-1942
10 9 Seattle Transit System 1944
10 10 Seattle Transit System (January-May) 1945
10 11 Seattle Transit System (June-December) 1945
10 12 Seattle Transit System 1946
10 13 Seattle Transit System 1947
10 14 Seattle Transit System (January-July) 1948
10 15 Seattle Transit System (August-December) 1948
10 16 Seattle Transit System - Routing Maps, Downtown Business District 1940-1942
10 17 Seneca Street Extension - Harvard Avenue to Broadway 1934-1935
10 18 Seneca Street Extension - Maps and Drawings 1934-1935
10 19 Sick's Seattle Stadium - Economic Analysis of Proposed City Purchase 1965
11 1 Sick's Seattle Stadium - Right of Way Study 1965
11 2 Spokane Street Viaduct 1941-1943
11 3 Spokane Street Viaduct - Maps and Drawings 1941-1943
11 4 Stadium Preliminary Site Selection 1967-1968
11 5 Street Classifications 1949
11 6 Street Closures - Board of Public Works 1969-1970
11 7 Street Closures - Board of Public Works 1971
11 8 Street Closures - International District 1970-1971
11 9 Street Lighting Traffic Safety - Plans and Reports 1951-1971
11 10 Street Lighting Traffic Safety - Plans and Reports. Maps 1945-1971
11 11 Traffic Accident Statistics - Monthly reports (January-June) 1939
11 12 Traffic Accident Statistics - Monthly reports (July-December) 1939
11 13 Traffic Accident Statistics - Monthly reports (January-June) 1944
11 14 Traffic Accident Statistics - Monthly reports (July-December) 1944
12 1 Traffic Engineering from the Viewpoint of an Urban Traffic Engineer (speech) 1944
12 2 Traffic Law Enforcement 1937-1938
12 3 Truck Traffic Committee 1941
12 4 University of Washington Approach - Traffic and Grade Separation Master Plan (Drawings) 1944
12 5 War Production Transportation Commission 1942
12 6 War Production Transportation Commission - Share the Ride 1942
12 7 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 310 Traffic Survey 1935
12 8 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 310 Traffic Survey 1936
12 9 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 310 Traffic Survey - Instructions 1934
12 10 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 310 - Summarized Reports 1936
12 11 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Report Exhibits 1936
12 12 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 310 Traffic Survey - Summary and Status Reports 1936
12 13 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Traffic Survey. Brief of Engineering Manual for Traffic Surveys 1934
12 14 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 4163 Traffic Survey 1936-1937
12 15 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Project No 4163 Traffic Survey - Traffic Flow Map 1937
12 16 Works Progress Administration (WPA) Police Department Proposal for Minor Traffic Violation Aides 1935
13 1 Central Business District Signal System Project 1984-1985
13 2 Half Signal Usage Proposal 1985
13 3 Midvale Pl. Safety 1986
13 4 Neighborhood Speed Watch Program 1986-1987
13 5 Neighborhood Traffic Control Program 1988
13 6 No Smoking Policy Committee 1985
13 7 Pedestrian Model Safety Program 1986
13 8 South Transfer Station 1985
13 9 Street / Traffic Classification Issues 1983
13 10 Traffic Counts - ML King Way 1982-1988.
13 11 Downtown Parking and Circulation Task Force 1993
13 12 Street Parks 1991-1992
13 13 Street Parks 1991-1992
13 14 Parking Reports 1983-1998
13 15 Parking Issues and Policies 1981-2000
13 14 Traffic Engineering - Subject Files Photographs 1930-1963

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Alaskan Way Viaduct (Seattle, Wash.)
  • Aurora Avenue (Seattle and Shoreline, Wash.)
  • Bus lanes--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • City planning
  • Civil defense--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Public works
  • Traffic engineering--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Traffic safety--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Transportation
  • Transportation--Planning--Washington (State)--Seattle

Personal Names

  • Bollong, J.W.A. "Arch"

Corporate Names

  • Seattle (Wash.). Engineering Dept.
  • Seattle Transit System
  • United States. Work Projects Administration. State of Washington

Geographical Names

  • Seattle (Wash.)