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Washington State Patrol (WSP) is hoping the public can help the agency identify and locate the car that drove westbound on the Interstate 90 bridge’s biking and walking trail over Lake Washington on the afternoon of Sept. 10.
A rider on the Sound Transit 2 Line light rail filmed the incident, posted the footage on Reddit that day and it’s been all over the social media realm ever since. WSP trooper Rick Johnson also witnessed the illegal circumstance while monitoring the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) traffic cameras in his office. WSP received a call about the vehicle at 1:03 p.m. that day and sent troopers to the scene.
There were no injuries reported during the incident in which the driver covered the entire path. Johnson noted that the video showed one pedestrian walking in front of the car, which was travelling slowly at that point. WSP believe the white compact vehicle — which didn’t have a license plate — was going freeway speed or faster at other points.
“That is a pretty heavily walked and biked path, especially on a sunny afternoon. At least not in the video, and then at the end, I did not see any bikes or pedestrians that were involved in this. Not to say there wasn’t at some point,” said Johnson, whose agency is leading the investigation.
Johnson has been asked if it was an AI-generated video, but he knows the incident is real by watching the WSDOT camera.
“I remember hearing the call come out, troopers heading that direction, and then the next thing I saw was this vehicle exiting the bike path on the west side of the freeway. That’s kind of what solidified that for us,” he said.
After entering the path on the Mercer Island side, the driver exited near the Mount Baker area of Seattle, said Johnson, adding that the Seattle Police Department received a call and was assigned to the area. The car hasn’t been located at press time.
Johnson believes the car entered the trail near Aubrey Davis Park or from another access point from underneath the freeway.
The trooper checked out the area himself on Sept. 13 and noted about his findings: “It’s hard for me to believe that someone wouldn’t know that that wasn’t the place they should be. Because if you walked it, when you get close to where the bridge starts, it gets pretty skinny. Obviously your car can still fit through it, and then at the beginning of that up there by the park, it says ‘No Motorized Vehicles.’”
Johnson added that there are no traffic bollards present in the area.
A statement from the city to the Reporter reads: “The city of Mercer Island is aware of the concern regarding vehicle access to the trail and is working with WSDOT to evaluate potential solutions.”
The city noted that the Mercer Island Police Department learned of the incident through social media, didn’t receive any 911 calls or reports regarding the incident and didn’t have any direct involvement with the incident.
WSDOT communications manager RB McKeon said that safety is always the agency’s top priority.
“WSDOT and WSP have walked the site to assess conditions and identify potential mitigations, including possible signage and vegetation maintenance. We will continue working with WSP and other partners to address any jurisdictional issues and determine whether additional measures are appropriate,” McKeon added.
WSP is asking the public to provide information or videos about the incident that it can take action on, Johnson said.
Contact WSP at: https://wsp.wa.gov/
