Author: Ryan Packer

March 16, 2021

Meet Shelly Baldwin, new Director of the Washington Traffic Safety Commission

The Washington Traffic Safety Commission is a public agency that flies under the radar. In February, the commission got a new leader when Shelly Baldwin, previously the Legislative and Media Relations division director at the WTSC, was appointed head of the commission by Governor Inslee. Last year, the previous Director, Darrin Grondel, who had been…
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tagged: vision zero
March 15, 2021

Pike Pine Renaissance clears latest hurdle on track to construction in 2022

Update: SDOT’s SEPA checklist listed a 2023 start date but the department has confirmed a planned construction start of Fall 2022. Good news! In 2017, when protected bike lanes were installed in Downtown Seattle for a short stretch on Pike and Pine Streets, the city was already planning permanent replacements for those bike lanes. Since…
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tagged: pike pine renaissance
March 11, 2021

Washington House passes e-bike sales tax exemption

On Tuesday, by a 57 to 39 vote, the Washington House of Representatives passed HB 1330, exempting electric bikes and up to $200 in bike accessories from state sales taxes. In a tweet, Rep. Sharon Shewmake (D-Bellingham), who introduced the bill, called it a “bipartisan bill that will be good for the climate”. 9 House…
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tagged: ebikes, shewmake
March 10, 2021

Bigger detour scheduled at 23rd and I-90 as detour legibility issues persist

As soon as Monday March 15, people walking, biking, and rolling on the Mountains to Sound trail at 23rd Ave S & I-90 will have a more circuitous detour as crews pave the east side of the 23rd Ave crosswalk and close the entire trail near the intersection. The entire sidewalk on the east side…
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tagged: judkins park station, mountains-to-sound, rainier ave
March 9, 2021

New coalition forms to oppose new highway spending over sidewalks and transit

At a press event in Tacoma at a bus stop next to fast-moving traffic, with no actual sidewalk available for people to use to access the bus stop, Disability Rights Washington & Front and Centered outlined their priorities today for the statewide transportation package moving through the legislature this year: “No new highways until we…
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March 5, 2021

Burke-Gilman detour planned as work on N 34th Street PBL begins

The Seattle Department of Transportation announced today that as soon as Monday they’ll be starting work on the long-anticipated N 34th Street protected bike lane between Stone Way and Fremont Ave. The immediate impact of this is a planned 3-week closure of the Burke Gilman trail between Stone Way and Troll Ave during which people…
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tagged: burke-gilman, N 34th St