Seattle Bike Blog

Saturday: The Peace Peloton rides from Madrona to Green Lake, will create a mural on the way

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 20, 2020
The Peace Peloton rides again Saturday, and this time riders will create a mural along the way.

The ride meets from 10 a.m. to noon at Café Soleil at 34th and Union in Madrona, where folks will work to get the mural panels ready. Shortly after noon, riders will head to a secret location to assemble the mural, then continue to Green Lake.

Elmer Dixon, Cofounder of the Seattle Chapter of the Black Panther Party, will speak at the end of the ride about “Reparations and The Need for Controlling the Institutions Within the Black Community.”

The Peace Peloton’s mission is to support Black-owned businesses and to promote economic reform for Black people.

Details from Peace Peloton:
Please join us for a rain or shine, casual, no drop, peaceful, and FUN 10 mile bike ride/demonstration . . . did I mention it’s fun?
1. Bike stage: Café Soleil, 1400 34th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122
2. Time: 10:00a – 12:00p
3. Peace Peloton Mural Curation* (see below for details)
4. Bike Ride Start: 12:15p (10 miles)
5. Midway Ride: Peace Peloton Mural Assembly (confidential location)
6. Ride End: Green Lake Park, 7201 E Green Lake Dr N, Seattle, WA 98115 (Food Trucks)
7. Speaker: Elmer Dixon, Cofounder, Seattle Black Panther Chapter, Topic: “Reparations and The Need for Controlling the Institutions Within the Black Community.”
* Peace Peloton Mural
- Donate $25 to:
  - PayPal – @peacepeloton (write PP Mural in the description)
  - Venmo – @peacepeloton (write PP Mural in the description)
- Receive a blank canvas the morning of the event.
- Decorate your canvas with a message of peace, inspiration, or love to the world.
- We will stop midway along the route and artfully arrange your offering in 10ft intervals for as long as we have canvases.
To better accommodate our business partners and provide the safest and most enjoyable cycling experience for our participants please complete the R.S.V.P. and waiver.
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tags: peace peloton

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Tonight: Phyllis Porter talks biking and activism

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 19, 2020
Tonight (August 19) at 6 p.m., log in to hear Phyllis Porter talk about “her adventures and growth as a bicycle rider and activist including her passion for safe streets for all.”

Porter has been a strong advocate and friend of Seattle Bike Blog for years. She ran for City Council in District 2 last year and has since resumed her work as an organizer and leader for safe streets.

Register for free with Bike Works to get the link. Details:

A talk from Phyllis Porter: Shero of the Seattle Black Girls Do Bike chapter, member of the Rainier Riders Cycling Club, SE Seattle resident, former Bike Works employee, volunteer, Bike Works Racial Equity Taskforce member, Rainier Valley Safe Streets activist, and former candidate for Seattle City Council will talk about her adventures and growth as a bicycle rider and activist including her passion for safe streets for all.

Wednesday, August 19th, 6 – 7 PM.

Q&A to follow presentation.

Register for a link to participate.
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tags: bike works, phyllis porter

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Seattle Bike Repair Mutual Aid connects folks with bike fixing skills to those who need to get their rides rolling

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 17, 2020
From Seattle Bike Repair Mutual Aid.

Do you need to get your bike rolling again? Do you want to put your bike tools and skills to work helping your community? Then Seattle Bike Repair Mutual Aid is for you.

The concept of the project is very simple: Collect info from people who need their bikes repaired and people who want to help, then connect them.

Elise Hirschi and Max Kauffman started the project after attending Cascade Bicycle Club’s Advocacy Leadership Institute program. They have graduated, but decided to keep their class project going. Hirschi also works for Bike Works, though she is working on this project in her free time. They have already made a handful of connections, and they are especially looking for more folks who need bike repair help.

The Federal government has essentially abandoned its people as they struggle to make ends meet during this crisis. Getting people’s bikes rolling is at least a way to help them get around town affordably and safely. We gotta come together and support each other, because things look like they will get worse before they get better. Access to a working bike won’t stand in for a functional and compassionate government, but it could help.

Whether you need some bike repairs or have fixing skills to offer, just fill out the online form. Details from Seattle Bike Repair Mutual Aid: (more…)
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tags: advocacy leadership institute, covid-19, elise hirschi, max kauffman, seattle bike repair mutual aid

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Seattle Parks announces week-long, very steep Burke-Gilman Trail detour for … mowing?

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 14, 2020
The detour route, from Google Maps.

People who bike or walk on the Burke-Gilman Trail in northeast Seattle have dealt with a lot of tough detours in recent years. But the detours are always for a good reason, such as the city or county rebuilding or repaving the trail, or because a landslide has washed out a section of the trail.

But the closure planned to start Monday is different. The trail will be closed for the morning commute until the afternoon so Seattle Parks can mow the slope next to the trail between NE 125th St and 42nd Pl NE. And because the slope is so steep, they are planning to use heavy machinery and must close the trail from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. for a week.

Of course, the same steep slopes that make mowing difficult also make the detour difficult. The 900 or so feet of NE 125th Street climbs a stunning 138 feet. That’s a 15 percent grade climb for 900 feet, which is grueling even for strong and fit riders. I know slope grades are difficult numbers to understand, so I was trying to figure out a way to demonstrate just how steep that is. But then Google Street View did it for me:

The detour is so steep, this person randomly captured by Google Street View decided to walk their bike rather than ride. And to be clear, it is also difficult to walk your bike up this hill.

I cannot remember another time that Seattle Parks has closed the trail for mowing in this location (I searched my decade-worth of emails and news releases and couldn’t find any significant trail closures for mowing anywhere in the region). A detour like this is a major reduction in service for trail users. There are a lot of users who simply cannot climb these hills and who may be on the trail specifically because it is an old railroad bed and is therefore very flat.

Sometimes trail closures are unavoidable. But is this one of those times? I have questions out to Seattle Parks and will update this post when I hear back. (more…)
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tags: Bike Route Alert, burke-gilman trail, seattle parks district

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SDOT is studying options for fixing or replacing aging Magnolia bridge. No, not the one you’re thinking of.

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 13, 2020
Photo from SDOT.

As you emerge from the tree cover on a bridge high above the train tracks, it’s easy to feel like you’ve found a magical secret hidden deep within Seattle. The 33rd Ave W Bridge is an old biking and walking bridge connecting W Government Way in Magnolia (not far from the main Discovery Park entrance) to the Ballard Locks.

When wet and especially when covered in wet leaves, the wooden bridge surface and its steep approaches can be very slick. But apparently, that’s the least of its problems. SDOT has identified “signs of deterioration.” And though it is currently safe to use, the city is starting work to identify options repair or replace it.

Crews will be out August 21 ~~through~~ and 26 studying the soil conditions to help inform the process. The bridge will remain open while they are working.

SDOT plans to have the first stage of design ready later this year, and there will be community outreach about the options this fall. As of now, there’s no word on expected costs. Sign up for project emails here.

More details from SDOT:

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is evaluating the feasibility of options to rehabilitate or to replace the 33rd Ave W Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge. While still safe to use, the bridge is showing signs of deterioration. This evaluation will be based on considerations like demand for walking and biking, short- and long-term residential impacts, bridge maintenance, cost, and environmental impacts. There are no plans to remove the bridge.

This bridge is an important part of Seattle’s biking and walking network, and links Magnolia to Ballard and the Burke-Gilman Trail. The bridge crosses an active railroad corridor, which runs through the city from the Industrial District in the south to Broadview in the northwest.

What’s next?

We’re in the early design phase and are working toward the first milestone (30% design) in late 2020. This fall, we’re hosting an online engagement opportunity where the public will be able to learn about the project and ask questions.

We’ll be back in touch with more information about this event and other ways to be involved in the project.

If you have questions, please email us at 33rdAveWBridge@seattle.gov or call us at (206) 256-5458.
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tags: 33rd ave w bridge, Ballard Locks, magnolia, sdot

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SDOT starts design work on major Beacon Hill bike route – UPDATED

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

August 12, 2020
UPDATE: Here’s the video of the city’s presentation:

Beacon Hill has one street that cuts across the grid to be the most direct route and is less steep than other streets nearby: Beacon Ave S.

Even with hardly any bike infrastructure at all, Beacon Ave is a fairly well-used bike route because it’s just the most direct route. But it can also be a nerve-racking experience to mix with car traffic on a street that changes its layout constantly. Sometimes there’s room for people to pass, then there isn’t, then there’s parking, then there’s a bus stop, then there’s a turn lane. And some sections go long distances without interruptions, meaning people driving can pick up a lot of speed.

But a truly safe and protected bike lane on Beacon Ave would change everything, especially for people south of Jefferson Park. It would also greatly improve the usefulness of the recently-completed connection to Columbia City via S Columbian Way.

Thanks to major pressure from neighbors and safe streets advocates during the 2019 city budget process, the City Council restored funding that Mayor Jenny Durkan cut from the Bicycle Master Plan budget and directed SDOT to invest in a major south Seattle bike lane like Beacon Ave or MLK Way S. So this is the result of that advocacy.

SDOT is currently in the early planning phase, and they are trying to identify the basic route the project will take before getting into the finer details. Though design work is underway, the project is not scheduled for construction until 2023.

SDOT is hosting an online presentation 5 to 6 p.m. today (Wednesday) about the project:

Attend the online presentation 5 to 6 PM Wednesday, August 12
Transcripts available in English, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Tagalog, Traditional Chinese, and Vietnamese
Click here to join via Webex | Password: BeaconHillBike

South Segment

South of S Forest Street, there really aren’t other options. The project team is pretty much set on Beacon Ave as the route, which is great. This includes the section between Jefferson Park and the golf course, which includes a mostly useless center turn lane and a huge, long parking lot. There are several options here for creating protected bike lanes. (more…)
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tags: beacon ave, beacon hill, sdot

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