If you biked the UW Burke-Gilman Trail detour today, that was likely the last time you will have to do it.
The key stretch of trail from 15th Ave NE to UW Station is set to open today (exact time TBD, stay tuned for updates UPDATE: It’s open!), UW Transportation Services said in an email Friday.
The trail segment closed for construction in October, just three months after the bridge to Husky Stadium opened. It has been under construction for the entire operational life of UW Station.
Even without the trail, bike access to light rail has been high. Now the Burke-Gilman will be the easiest and more direct route between the U District core and UW Station.
And Pronto Cycle Share announced last week that they will have a bike share station at UW Station by the end of the month. Anything UW, Sound Transit, SDOT and Pronto can do to speed up this station move would go a long way.
Aside from essentially doubling the width, the trail work fixed some tricky spots and blind pathway intersections in the old trail. It also created separate walking and biking spaces to reduce conflicts and added lighting. Even before UW Station, this section of trail could be very crowded. So though the detour was a pain, this should prove to be a big update.