The Neighborhood Safe Speeds Bill (SHB 1217) passed the state House 96-0 a few weeks ago, and now it’s starting it’s climb through the Senate. The Senate Transportation Committee is holding a hearing on the bill tomorrow, so now would be a good time to let your senators know you support this common sense, red-tape-cutting neighborhood safety bill.
If you want to watch the hearing, it will be streamed live at 3:30 p.m. Thursday on TVW. The ratings will probably rival the Grammys…
I can’t think of another week this big for Seattle bike shops. Back Alley Bike Repair opened yesterday in Pioneer Square, Recycled Cycles opens it’s Fremont location today and Fremont’s Cascade Bicycle Studio is transitions to regular retail open hours tomorrow. Meanwhile, Bike Works is undergoing a major renovation to their shop, which should provide more elbow room for shoppers in their cozy Columbia City space.
(open Monday-Friday: 9 – 6)
Yesterday, Back Alley Bike Repair in Pioneer Square opened its doors. Out of the ashes of the once-great Bike Port/JRA partnership comes a Nord Alley bike shop run by the charismatic and excited Ben Rainbow.
The road diet battles in Seattle have a tendency to get nasty, and they are far from over. Even though the Federal Highway Administration has officially (finally) named the road diet as a “proven safety countermeasure,” the projects can be controversial regardless of past successes or engineering analyses.
But while we argue over every mile of proposed road diet, Walking in Seattle ran through pedestrian fatality data and found that of the 101 pedestrians who died between 2001 and 2009, 28 people died on over-designed Seattle roads that seem (at least at first glance) to be potential candidates for road diets:
The call for neighborhood greenways just keeping gaining momentum. Within just the past week, Central Seattle Greenways held its first meeting (post on that coming soon!), West Seattle Greenways has announced its first big meeting and NE Seattle Greenways is holding a formative organizational meeting.
The people behind the West Seattle group have already had some success, as the city has two Delridge neighborhood greenways on their to-do list. However, the group is looking to reach out to more of West Seattle. They are holding a meeting 3 p.m. Sunday at Pearl’s Coffee for people who want to learn more or get involved.
I can’t say I disagree that neighborhood greenways are front-page news in Seattle. With more and more neighborhood groups forming every week, the political strength and excitement is bringing people together behind safe neighborhood streets in a big way.
If you spy a physical copy of the Seattle Times around town, you will see Madison Park’s Bob Edmiston riding down the street on his over-the-top e-bike setup. Though his motorcycle helmet and mega-reflective clothing might not make an appearance on Copenhagen Cycle Chic any time soon, it’s almost a perfect illustration of how much protection some people feel they would need to ride on some of Seattle’s busy roadways.
Remember the Judkins Park residents who posted security footage of a young man stealing a bike from their garage over at CDNews? Well, they got it back, and the suspect was arrested.
After posting the photos, they spotted the bike for sale on Craigslist and arranged a meeting at 12th and Jackson. When the 17-year-old suspect showed up with the bike, police arrested him. Obviously, he doesn’t read CDNews or Seattle Bike Blog…
More details from SPD: Continue reading
Um, your boss just called me and said you should stop whatever you’re working on to read all the great stuff in this week’s Bike News Roundup. Then you should leave early and take a spin on the newly-reconstructed Burke-Gilman Trail, which opened at noon. Your boss is the greatest!
First up, no matter how much you like bikes, you probably don’t like them quite as much as this guy:
THE MAN WHO LIVED ON HIS BIKE from Guillaume Blanchet on Vimeo.
Last year's Seattle Bike Swap
With tons of people hawking new, used and handmade bike stuff, Cascade Bicycle Club’s Seattle Bike Swap has got something for everyone. The vendor booths are all sold out, so it should be wall-to-wall with stuff Sunday from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Oh, and be sure to bring cash. More info from Cascade:
The Seattle Bike Swap, now in its 17th year, is a bike bargain hunter’s paradise with up to 100 vendors under the same roof! Expect great deals on new and used bike-related goods, from complete bikes to small parts. You never know exactly what vendors will bring to sell and what treasures you will find. Don’t miss this one-day-only sale! Continue reading
Image from King County Parks
No number of exclamation marks could accurately express the excitement of this news. The Burke-Gilman Trail will reopen tomorrow at noon after being closed for nearly eight months.
Reconstruction of the vital link went significantly over-budget, and completion was delayed by nearly two months.
The closure was particularly hard for people who depend on the trail to get around because there were no viable detour options, and the state refused to properly accommodate the displaced bicycle riders on 522, the only continuous parallel roadway. Thousands of people on bikes used this stretch of trail every day before the closure. The only options during the closure were to take to the highway (not appealing to most) or to ride a hilly five-mile signed detour. Continue reading
Images from Recycled Cycles
One day after Back Alley Bike Repair opens in Pioneer Square, Seattle will get another new bike shop. Recycled Cycles, the legendary used bike mecca in the U District, is opening a new, smaller shop next to their Fremont warehouse February 15.
The shop will be the second bike shop in the area, moving in just a few blocks from the high-performance-focused Speedy Reedy.
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