A new protected bikeway under construction in Interbay and Magnolia is about to fill a major gap in the region’s trail network and plug the neighborhood into one of the best trail networks in the nation.
A new two-way bikeway connects the Ship Canal Trail at Fishermen’s Terminal to Government Way (and Discovery Park) to the north and the Elliott Bay Trail to the south.
Once complete people will be able to bike from the downtown waterfront to Discovery Park and the Ballard Locks almost entirely separated from car traffic. The project also makes a vital improvement to the western terminus of the Ship Canal Trail, which until now ended just a couple very stressful blocks away from reaching Gilman Ave W. This improvement makes the whole Ship Canal Trail vastly more useful and comfortable.
This project is a slam dunk because it makes so many high-quality connections, which is the biggest challenge to biking in Seattle. Our city has many great stretches of bike infrastructure, but most of them end abruptly without making a meaningful link to another quality route. A bike route is only as comfortable as its least-comfortable segment, and both the Ship Canal and Elliott Bay Trails have been held back by their poor connections to and along Gilman Ave W. (more…)
EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter.
CONTEST: DESIGN YOUR OWN BIKE LANE PERSON
Based on the many, many fun, joyful bike lane “people” in Portland, a couple month’s ago, I asked Seattle’s chief traffic engineer if I could design a bike lane symbol here. His response, “send some ideas.”
Instead of sending just a couple ideas, I’d love to send him a hundred. So, I’m holding a contest for who can design the best bike lane person. I’ll judge submissions based on originality, creativity, whimsy, and storytelling. Winners will win gift certificates to Peddler Brewing.
To win Seattle’s latest app-based game, you have to NOT look at your phone while driving, obey the speed limit, and smooth out your starts and stops.
On one hand, it’s a game. But it’s also a way for people to get feedback on how they are driving, something you rarely get after passing the driver’s test at 16.
The app runs in the background, so you don’t really need to do anything other than download it and sign up. You can then periodically check in on how you are driving and see areas where you need to improve (but not while driving, of course, or you’ll lose points).
The app was first used in Boston, and the city saw app users measurably improve their driving after installing the app. Speeding was reduced by 35 percent, and distracted driving was reduced by 47 percent.
The app also includes rewards for biking and taking the bus, which are the actual safest ways to drive.
Of course, the app only works on people who use it. And who knows how many of the behavior changes will stick for the long term? But it’s good to see street safety efforts aimed at the activity that holds the lion’s share of responsibility for preventing injuries and deaths.
Did you take one look at the massive influx of Giving Tuesday emails in your inbox today and click “Mark All As Read?” If so, you are a stronger person than me. I spent much of the day in the fetal position, mumbling something about Sisyphus and “inbox zero.”
But then I drank some coffee, did some silent meditation to center myself and started wading into the sea of appeal emails by good organizations doing genuinely good work.
So here’s what I’ve got for you: A digest of great bike and safe streets organizations participating in Giving Tuesday with excerpts from their appeals and links to donate. Many of the orgs have matching gifts, so this is a great time to make whatever amount you can spare go further. (more…)
Yours truly giving the rundown at the start of the ride. Photo by Brock Howell.
125 people hauled over 1,0001,631 pounds of food by bike during Seattle Cranksgiving 2017 (UPDATED 12/5).
Over the eight years that Seattle Bike Blog has been organizing this food drive scavenger hunt by bike, the total amount of food riders have donated to Rainier Valley Food Bank is somewhere around 8,000 pounds of food. That’s the weight of several cars, all purchased locally and hauled by bike to share with neighbors.
Big thanks to everyone who came out November 18 for another unseasonably beautiful day.
Big thanks also to Swift Industries, who donated prizes and hosted the afterparty at their Pioneer Square headquarters. They were vital for pulling off this year’s event.
Other prizes were donated by Cascade Designs, Cascade Bicycle Club, Peddler Brewing, Reuben’s Brews and Kelli Refer.
First, here are a couple photos courtesy of Brock Howell: (more…)
A 61-year-old man was killed this morning in SODO, and Seattle Police are searching for the suspect. Someone driving northbound on 1st Ave struck and killed the man while he was biking near S Andover Street, just south of the West Seattle bridge viaduct.
The suspect then fled and is still on the loose. The victim died at the scene.
Seattle Police are investigating the fatal collision as a hit and run, but do not yet have a consistent description of the suspect or the suspect’s vehicle to share. We will update this post when we learn more. UPDATE 11/22: Seattle police released this updated description of the suspect vehicle: “Detectives were able to confirm that the suspect vehicle is a Toyota Prius (not a Prius C, V, or other model) from model year 2010 to 2015. If you have any information on this vehicle, please contact TCIS Det. Sanders at (206) 684-8923.”
Our deepest condolences to the man’s friends and family.
The circumstances of the fatal collision and the victim’s identity have not yet been released.
UPDATE 11/22: Detectives were able to confirm that the suspect vehicle is a Toyota Prius (not a Prius C, V, or other model) from model year 2010 to 2015. If you have any information on this vehicle, please contact TCIS Det. Sanders at (206) 684-8923.
UPDATE: Detectives are looking for a white or silver colored 4 door compact hatchback, very similar to a Toyota Prius. The vehicle will have obvious right front headlight area damage. Anyone with information on this vehicle is urged to contact SPD’s Traffic Collision Investigation Squad at (206) 684-8923 and ask for Det. Sanders.
Detectives from the Traffic Collision Investigation Squad (TCIS) are currently investigating a fatal hit and run collision that killed a bicyclist early Tuesday morning in the SODO neighborhood.
At approximately 5:45 am, a 61- year- old male bicyclist was travelling on 1st Avenue South near S. Andover Street. According to witnesses, the driver of a vehicle, believed to be travelling northbound on 1st Avenue, struck the cyclist and then drove away northbound on 1st Avenue South. The cyclist was declared deceased at the scene. There were conflicting descriptions of the suspect vehicle, and detectives are working to get a better description of the vehicle involved.
1st Avenue South was closed in both directions while detectives processed the scene. This remains an active and on-going investigation. This information is preliminary and subject to change. We will update this post with any new information on this investigation.
A new protected bikeway under construction in Interbay and Magnolia is about to fill a major gap in the region’s trail network and plug the neighborhood into one of the best trail networks in the nation.
