Two different bike safety projects in Seattle started development in 2020: A concept to complete the bike lane loop around Green Lake and a project to connect Beacon Hill to the downtown bike network. But even though the City Council specifically declared the Beacon Hill project to be a top priority project, the Green Lake bike lanes are nearing the end of construction while the Beacon Hill bike lanes are facing an extra year of delay.

The city recently completed bike lanes on the Jose Rizal Bridge, and the Beacon Hill project is planned to connect the heart of the neighborhood to the new bridge bike lanes as well as the Mountains to Sound Trail. After exploring a couple different options, the city decided on protected bike lanes on Beacon Ave S and 15th Ave S. This was the most direct and flat route and was favored by the majority of people surveyed.

The original schedule had SDOT finishing up design for the Beacon Ave S/15th Ave S bike lanes now and then beginning construction in winter 2023. But Ryan Packer reported for The Urbanist that construction has been delayed until 2024, the latest it could possibly start while still getting funding from the expiring Move Seattle Levy. Pushing it so close to the edge of the levy also makes the project vulnerable to unexpected delays or changes in available funding.

Seattle must give Beacon Hill at least the same level of urgency as Green Lake. In fact, given the city and state’s long history of neglecting street safety in Southeast Seattle, leaders should be giving projects like this one extra urgency and attention. That was the City Council’s reasoning in 2019 when they prioritized this project, as they made clear in their resolution (PDF). The resolution specifically notes that “longstanding disinvestment in safe streets infrastructure means that Black and Latinx riders are disproportionately likely to be killed by a car compared to white counterparts” and that “this disinvestment is especially notable in South Seattle neighborhoods, including Rainier Valley, Georgetown, South Park, and Beacon Hill.” The resolution then specifically called on the Mayor and SDOT to use Move Seattle Levy funds to build a handful of southend routes, including this route on Beacon Hill as part of the 2020 budget. (more…)