Seattle Bike Blog

Redmond is building a 520 Trail tunnel under NE 40th St, route detoured until 2021

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 14, 2020

Redmond is constructing an underpass for the 520 Trail at NE 40th Street, so the trail route will be detoured through May 2021.

The closure started this week. Users are directed to side streets near the Microsoft and Nintendo campuses between NE 36th and 51st Streets. Most of the detour route has painted bike lanes.

The tunnel is also across the street from the site of the future Redmond Technology light rail station, so it will allow station users to bypass one crosswalk.

The tunnel will also feature a walls-and-ceiling art project with palm trees and a rainbow. So that’s pretty cool, though I’m sure it will still feel like a tunnel under a busy road next to a freeway. But still, it looks fun.

tags: 520 trail, redmond

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Bellevue has launched its own car-light ‘Healthy Streets’ program

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 13, 2020

Seattle has been making headlines nationally for announcing that the city would make its Stay Healthy Streets program permanent, so you may have missed that Bellevue has started its own people-first street program it’s calling simply “Healthy Streets.”

The Eastside city rolled out two of these temporary projects last week in the Northeast/Crossroads/Lake Hills area. Hopefully this is just the start for Bellevue and other communities around the region, especially communities with streets that lack sidewalks and easy access to open space.

From the City of Bellevue: (more…)

tags: bellevue, bellevue healthy streets, covid-19

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Car driving is down 91% from pre-outbreak levels on the city’s new Stay Healthy Streets

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 12, 2020

It made national news last week when Seattle announced that the Stay Healthy Streets (“SHS”) program would be transitioning from an emergency program to a permanent program. For example, a CNN headline read: “Seattle to permanently close 20 miles of streets to traffic so residents can exercise and bike on them.”

And yes, the Stay Healthy Streets are great. But I think some people may be a bit confused about what “closed” actually means here. Local traffic is still allowed, including deliveries, service vehicles and people accessing homes. And, of course, they only work so long as people choose to follow the rules. There is no physical barrier preventing someone from driving through, though that may be something the city should consider for some locations if the voluntary method does not work.

But at least so far, the signs alone have been very successful. Traffic volumes are down 91% on the Central District SHS compared to 2017 levels after the neighborhood greenway was installed. That 91% decrease far outpaces the the 57% decrease in overall car traffic since the outbreak began, a sign that the signs are working.

(more…)

tags: cascade bicycle club, jenny durkan, sdot, seattle neighborhood greenways, stay healthy streets

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Smith resigns as Cascade/WA Bikes Executive Director

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 11, 2020

Smith (right), from his farewell letter.

Richard Smith has resigned after nearly three years as Executive Director of Cascade Bicycle Club and Washington Bikes.

The news comes as the sister organizations are operating with half their usual staff and cancelled nearly all their major events this year due to the outbreak.

Before Smith joined as ED in September 2017, the organizations went nine months without an ED, choosing instead to have top-level staff lead together. This time, Technology Manager Christopher Shainin will serve as Interim ED while the Board and leadership staff develop a new strategic plan and conduct a search for a new ED. That process is expected to take six to eight months.

Shainin is currently the Governance Chair of Inspire Washington and has a long history of holding non-profit leadership roles. He will lead the club through a very unusual period in their 50-year history. This will be the first year without the Seattle to Portland Classic since the initial 1979 event that launched Cascade Bicycle Club (though the second event was altered by the eruption of Mount St. Helens).

Below is Smith’s letter announcing his departure, effective last Friday: (more…)

tags: cascade bicycle club, christopher shainin, richard smith, washington bikes

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Looking to buy a bike? Cascade created a map showing which shops are open and what precautions they are taking

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 8, 2020

It’s time to buy a bike. Especially with the news today that JUMP’s red bike share bikes are no longer online, owning a reliable bicycle has never been more useful or important in Seattle. With transit likely to be an unappealing option to many people for the duration of the outbreak and the cost of owning and operating a car so high (not to mention dangerous and environmentally destructive), biking is the most reliable, safe and affordable way to get around.

OK, so you’re convinced. Now what?

Seattle Bike Blog has largely avoided doing bike-buying guides because gear is not really our focus and there are just so many options and variables to consider. So instead, my advice is nearly always to check out your local bike shop first and see what they have and get advice from their staff. Buying from a local bike shop not only supports a business that you will rely on for maintenance down the road, but it also gives you access to their warranty. Yes, this costs more than buying direct online, but it is worth it.

Bike shops have been deemed essential businesses all along in Washington State, though they have taken steps to operate safely amid the outbreak. Some shops are asking customers to sign up for an appointment, and others have created online storefronts, for example. You should go to the shop’s website or call ahead before swinging by. You can find which shops are open near you and see what efforts the shops are taking during the outbreak using this map Cascade Bicycle Club put together:

One major change in the bike buying process is that a lot of shops are not offering test rides. Normally, I would always recommend taking a bike for a test ride before buying it, but these are not normal times. You may need to make the leap and buy a bike without riding it first. Just make sure you can return it if it really doesn’t work for you.

There are all kinds of bikes at all kinds of price points for all kinds of riding. This is great because it means people can find a bike that fits their needs perfectly, but it’s also pretty overwhelming for people new to biking. That’s why your local bike shop can be such a big help. They can cut through the overwhelming amount of information on the Internet for you.

Below are some general tips I give people to point them in the right direction when they ask for advice on buying a transportation bike. This means something reliable and utilitarian for getting around the city and getting things done. If you’re looking for a racing-style bike or a modern mountain bike, you’ll need to look elsewhere for advice. And remember that as with any set of tips, there are always exceptions to this advice: (more…)

tags: bike shops

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Seattle has no bike share now, Lime says it will relaunch bikes at some point

By

Tom Fucoloro

| Posted

May 8, 2020

Neither the Uber nor Lime apps show bikes available.

For the first time since July 2017, no bike share bikes are available in Seattle.

As a consequence of the major investment deal yesterday between Uber and Lime, JUMP and its red bikes now belong to Lime. Though users could unlock the bright red bikes using the Uber app yesterday, today they disappeared. The JUMP app has also been discontinued, and the bikes do not appear on Lime’s app.

So this is a rather depressing and sudden end to Seattle’s free-wheeling, wild and twisting adventure as a hub of private dockless bike share experimentation over the past three years. Companies have ballooned in size and folded. Others pivoted to scooters and left town. And all along, company leaders have played an aggressive growth and acquisition game that has seen them gain huge amounts of venture capital investment at times. But it seems that investor dreams of finding a bike share “unicorn” are long over. Lime, which had been valued around $2.4 billion in early 2019 is now reportedly valued around $500 million.

Lime already pulled its e-bikes from Seattle streets in December, and the company has been essentially shuttered worldwide during the COVID-19 outbreak. Jonathan Hopkins at Lime told the Seattle Times that the bikes would be removed temporarily, but would return at an unknown future date. But given the state of the company and its clear focus on scooters instead of bikes, it’s far from certain the bikes will return. (more…)

tags: bike share, jump, limebike

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