How to Walk/Bike/Ride more easily? West Seattleites speak out

(Additional details of Monday night’s meeting added 9:40 am Tuesday – scroll down)

Story and photos by Jason Grotelueschen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

About 40 attendees from Delridge and other West Seattle neighborhoods gathered at Delridge Community Center tonight to discuss Mayor Mike McGinn‘s Walk/Bike/Ride initiative – its goals and potential effects on the area.

Here’s how the initiative is described by the mayor’s office:

Walk/Bike/Ride is a multi-year initiative that supports projects and programs making walking, biking, and riding transit the easiest ways to get around in Seattle. It serves all people, regardless of age, income, ethnicity, or ability. It uses transportation investments to create quality places and reclaims our streets for communities.

It was the third of four community meetings around the city this month (Bitter Lake and South Beacon Hill happened earlier; Northgate is next week) at which organizers are seeking answers to the question: “What needs to change in your neighborhood in order to make walking, biking, and riding transit easy?”

Tonight’s event in the Delridge CC gym kicked off with an introduction from the mayor’s transportation policy analyst Rebecca Deehr, followed by a presentation from Barbara Gray from the Seattle Department of Transportation (above), and a lively Q&A session.

Before and after the session, attendees conversed in an adjacent “open house” area featuring information about SDOT’s Transit Plan, Bike Smart Seattle , Seattle’s Pedestrian Master Plan, Streets for All Seattle, Metro’s RapidRide and other regional initiatives.

Tony Mazzella from SDOT answered questions and handed out “survey ballots” to attendees (if you couldn’t make it to the meeting, you can complete this online ballot to share your opinions). The ballots are intended to help the city prioritize transportation projects such as sidewalks, bus stops, transit options and bike lanes that support the overall goal of encouraging alternative means of traveling in and around the Seattle area.

The Q&A session covered a lot of ground, but concerns about several recurring issues emerged:

. Problems with safety and a lack of bike/pedestrian-friendliness on major roads like Delridge Way and Highland Park Way, and at several key intersections.

. Issues with maintenance and usability of connecting roads.

. Too much distance to major pedestrian hubs like The (Alaska) Junction and Morgan Junction, and a lack of comparable hubs in the Delridge area.

. Lack of “east-west” transit options for getting between Delridge and those commerce hubs.

According to Deehr from the mayor’s office, the mayor considers the 2011-12 budget process to be an important next step in “seeing how much we can prioritize these infrastructure improvements.” She says the office hopes that citizens “consider Walk/Bike/Ride as a way to advocate for change in their neighborhoods.”

(Tomorrow morning, we’ll add additional Q&A notes from the meeting.)

ADDED 9:40 AM TUESDAY: Some highlights from the Q&A session are below. In most cases, responses were fielded by Barbara Gray from SDOT or from other attendees, and notes were being taken to bring back to the mayor’s office:

. UPKEEP OF ROADS, SIDEWALKS, STAIRS: Several attendees asked questions about the city’s commitment to the quality of roads and sidewalks in Delridge and Highland Park and surrounding areas. “Putting a bunch of new lane markings on terrible roads isn’t going to help,” one commenter said, with nods of agreement from around the room and follow-up comments about “deep grooves in the pavement .” Commenters agreed on several trouble spots such as Highland Park Way (“that asphalt sidewalk is a ‘death trap’ with branches and moss – between West Marginal and 16th,” one person said), and Holden Street near 12th and 16th (“very bad for pedestrians.”) Also noted was the unique topography of the neighborhood (“very hilly” with “stairs everywhere”) and a perceived lack of maintenance that makes existing trails/stairs and sidewalks unusable in too many spots. Gray agreed that work needed to be done, and cited the efforts of community activists like Chas Redmond (who was in attendance) in raising awareness and improving walkability of neighborhoods. Attendees and officials at the meeting agreed that while dollars for new projects are important, it’s even more important to “maintain what we already have” and not ignore it.

. MISSING SIDEWALKS: While maintenance is key, several attendees noted that there are large areas of the neighborhood that don’t have sidewalks at all. Gray acknowledged this and discussed the city’s efforts to maximize its budget for sidewalks. Also suggested was the idea of adding wheelchair/bike trails to the areas that “already have stairs, and could easily be expanded” such as along Graham to the Longfellow Creek watershed.

. SLOW DOWN, PARK SMART: Many attendees raised concerns about safety (“It’s not safe for my kids to ride bikes on most of these roads,” one said) and cited the number of fatality accidents in the past year as evidence of that (particularly on/near Delridge Way). Gray agreed with attendees that it’s important to control drivers’ speed, and to enforce existing “must park 30 feet from stop signs” regulations to improve visibility for everyone using the roads. “Buffered bike lanes” and another methods of “separating vehicles from bikes and pedestrians” were repeatedly mentioned during the discussion.

. THE “GROCERY PROBLEM”: Many agreed that while they try to use transit and alternative commute options for work, they “need a car to get groceries” because of a lack of transit options for getting from Delridge to “the grocery stores near California Avenue.” Gray mentioned the mayor’s overall goals of creating vital “urban centers” closer to where people live (one commenter said “I’d never have to drive if I had a grocery store, library, and dog park within walking distance”), but acknowledged the challenges with “east/west” transit in West Seattle. Another commenter suggested the possibility of a “grocery bus” that would circulate between the neighborhoods and the major grocery stores, with the cost largely subsidized by the stores themselves. Another suggested a “transit center” (perhaps located near the West Seattle Bridge) similar to the one that serves the Northgate area, as a closer alternative to the Alaska Junction (which is “the only transit hub we have in West Seattle,” he said).

. HELPING EVERYONE: Attendee Jake Beattie, executive director of the Seattle bicycle advocacy group Bike Works, lauded the goals of Walk/Bike/Ride but noted that “as I look around the room, I’m not sure that all of our people are represented.” Gray agreed that a key part of Walk/Bike/Ride was to engage with communities of color and low-income areas (a community meeting for Rainier Beach is planned in the fall, for example). Beattie also asked about an “education component” to the program, and Gray responded that it’s a huge part of the initiative – residents need to be aware of what options they have, and how to use them.

. WORKING TOGETHER: In response to a question about how the initiative solves the problem of various departments “not working together when they need to,” Gray said that the Walk/Bike/Ride initiative involves numerous stakeholders like DPD (Dept. of Planning and Development), the mayor’s office, SDOT, Parks, Seattle Public Utilities, Public Health, Dept. of Neighborhoods, City Light, and others. She said that it often takes a “major project or initiative like this” to clarify roles and strengthen cooperation.

21 Replies to "How to Walk/Bike/Ride more easily? West Seattleites speak out"

  • ltfd June 15, 2010 (12:05 am)

    Fix.
    The.
    Roads.

  • JA June 15, 2010 (3:21 am)

    Give.
    Us.
    Sidewalks.

  • velo_nut June 15, 2010 (5:30 am)

    Need.
    Star Trek.
    Transporter.

  • CurlyQ June 15, 2010 (6:49 am)

    Dedicated bike paths throughout West Seattle, like the Burke Gilman. Even with the “sharrows” I never feel safe biking on California or Fauntleroy.

  • Ken June 15, 2010 (7:41 am)

    I have jury duty in July. I am looking at the bus schedules and metro trip planner.

    I have asthma. I either have to climb up a steep hill for a half mile or ride the bus for 2.5 hours. This is to the courthouse… Jury duty doesn’t even pay enough to cover parking.

    Mike can kiss my butt. The bus system is designed to bring commuters in from the burbs and take them back with minimal interaction with city dwellers.

    Mike wants to force the young and healthy to walk and in the process will force the rest of us to stay home or make diamond parking even richer.

    Major cities on the east coast have transit systems that actually work. Seattle has an exurb centric system that forces us to drive and park.
    It’s a county system so it servers the county, not the city.

    Fix inter neighborhood travel for those who can’t bike.

  • Chrisssy June 15, 2010 (9:53 am)

    One issue with the busses, even for commuters: unless you’re commuting into downtown, you have to transfer, which adds time and complication to schedules.

    Work in Bellevue? You’re looking at an hour on the bus, in each direction… and the only “direct” route from WS goes via the airport.

    Work in Redmond or Kirkland? I don’t even want to think about it!

    As much as a “hubbed” system works, it doesn’t. Aren’t there sufficient commuters to warrant direct / express routes to places like Bellevue and Redmond, in an effort to get people out of their cars for those vital commuting hours?

  • mike03 June 15, 2010 (10:17 am)

    an hour to get to bellevue sounds pretty good when compared to > 1hr to get to my work which is 9miles from white center.

    dedicated east/west bike routes like burke gilman for the south/west would be really nice. I can’t believe how pleasant riding the burke gilman is.

  • Kayleigh June 15, 2010 (10:20 am)

    How about running the buses more often during commute hours? Coming home from downtown on a 54 or 54X during commute times can be really crowded, and standing on the bus really sucks.
    .
    Oh, and maybe cleaning the inside of the buses more often so they aren’t filthy and the smell doesn’t give me the dry heaves?

  • Jake June 15, 2010 (10:38 am)

    I agree that dedicated bikeways would be great. The only way that will happen in West Seattle, though, is to remove (car) lanes and street parking. I’d like to see the WSB comments if someone seriously suggests removing any auto capacity! We can’t have it both ways.

  • Mona June 15, 2010 (10:39 am)

    Some how I don’t see myself riding my bike, walking, or riding the bus when I am having my upcoming chemo therapy treatments at Virginia Mason on First Hill. Come on, Mike, some of us really need to get places in our cars!

  • Jake June 15, 2010 (10:40 am)

    By the way, the hub system works very well for me. I transfer between buses downtown all the time – mostly on my way to Fremont or the U-district. Most mornings, I can get from West Seattle to UW in about 1/2 an hour. Don’t fear the transfer!

  • JAT June 15, 2010 (10:57 am)

    I’m a regular transportation cyclist and I’m agnostic about dedicated bikeways; they’re very rarely well executed, take a look at the cycle/pedestrian path under the viaduct on Alaskan Way / East Marginal – it’s a glorified sidewalk…

    What makes cycling on the roads work is mutual respect. Ride predictably, let cars by when its feasible, don’t break the law, and for the most part motorists will treat you well. (for the most part…)

    As for taking away “auto capacity”, there’s a huge difference between on-street parking and a travel lane, we give over so much of our road space to the mere storage of cars. Look at Admiral Way eastbound at the intersection with California: two parking spaces were removed and the intersection works so much better now (except when people park there anyway) – when a right turning motorist needs to yield to crossing pedestrians they no longer tie up all the eastbound traffic.

  • JAT June 15, 2010 (10:59 am)

    And all this blame placed on Mike’s shoulders seems a bit myopic. Traffic blows because we all want to drive ourselves everywhere. Sartre may have said “Hell is other people”, but Pogo said “We have seen the enemy and he is us.”

  • Tom / Bikejuju June 15, 2010 (11:05 am)

    There are a couple of schools of thought with regard to bikes and transport planning. The “vehicular cycling” school feels that cyclists should grow skilled enough, and drivers patient enough, to “share the road” with sharrows, etc. The other school of thought argues for dedicated and separated bike lanes like the the new lane down Fauntleroy, or the paths like the Burke Gilman or the Alki bike path. Building these dedicated bikeways cost more, including the “cost” of reducing some other part of the road right-of-way, like parking space, car lanes, or sidewalks. But in my opinion, dedicated, safe bike ways are also what get people on bikes. More than half of American car trips are under two miles!

    I’ll feel like our infrastructure is complete on the day I can ride bikes with my fifth grader from Gatewood to the Farmer’s Market, or to get a bagel in Admiral (or to downtown!) in a safe, segregated bike lane, without being in danger of getting doored, run down, or flipped off by the car-owners, on the roads I build with my taxes.

  • Colleen June 15, 2010 (1:06 pm)

    I’m still trying to understand how McMayor wants to find money for this, but basic road upkeep like the series of potholes and patches called Calif Ave South of the Junction doesn’t warrant a look, repaving or any sort of money.

    I also agree with Chrisssy about dedicated east routes. Working on Mercer Island, when I was taking the bus a good day meant it took 2 hours to get from Mercer Island to West Seattle, a 10 mile distance. Not to mention the 10 bucks a day round trips.

  • MattS June 15, 2010 (1:18 pm)

    I have a question for you bikers out there. I wouldn’t mind starting to ride my bike from WS to downtown for my commute but I can’t figure out a spot to get cleaned up. I sweat buckets when I ride my bike up and down hills, and my co-workers would protest loudly if I show up smelling foul. Is there a place downtown to store your bike and take a shower?

  • J June 15, 2010 (3:04 pm)

    Build separated bike paths and I will ride. I’ll also take buses more often if I don’t have to stand around waiting for 1/2 hour to 45 minutes for a 10 minute bus ride.

    Grocery delivery is another approach to the grocery problem. But the produce stands we want to support aren’t likely to be able to do that, or to pay for the grocery circulator bus.

  • owen June 15, 2010 (3:14 pm)

    MattS, if you work on the south end of downtown there’s bikestation. I think it offers free bike parking and a bike repair shop. Not sure about changing rooms and showers. If not, you may want to look into a shower-only membership at a gym near your work.

  • JAT June 15, 2010 (4:26 pm)

    MattS – you sweat buckets when you go down hills? that’s hardcore! the Bikestation charges a fee for storage (they have a variety of subscription plans) and they do have showers. A lot of employers have showers, if you’re a member of the YMCA the downtown Y has showers. As for where to store your bike most buildings’ parking garages have bike racks of varying degrees of security (in my bldg they’re right next to the lot attendant’s booth; that feels pretty good; in the Rainier Bank Bldg (no idea what it’s called these days) there’s a locking cage you need a building key-card to enter,…)

  • Mary June 15, 2010 (5:13 pm)

    Count me with Mona and Ken. I’m currently doing chemo on First Hill, and have severe rheumatoid arthritis that makes it darn difficult to stand for more than a moment or two, not to mention extremely limited walking.

    I used to be a transit rider, but I don’t have the physical ability, endurance, or health. I do have a car that gets me everywhere and give thanks daily for that “luxury”. The many steep hills preclude effective use of wheelchairs and scooters for all but the flattest areas, which is not Seattle’s fault. (Not much of the city is graded to the ADA maximum of 13% – not at all realistic!) The car does fine, though!

    Then there’s folks like friends of mine, a young couple with two children under 2 years of age. The mother has some health problems of her own. Taking the bus for them is a huge ordeal involving multiple scooters, diaper bags, and car carriers.

    On antoher note, we do need improvement in both sidewalks and streets, as well as bike lanes, but why can’t we spend some money on the cops we need but keep procrastinating hiring? Our neighborhood safety is at risk, and that affects the willingness to take public transit as well.

  • Tim Nagae June 25, 2010 (12:49 pm)

    My name is Tim Nagae from Community Television Network, Ann Arbor, Michigan. We produce a local TV show called, “Eco Sense,” which is about energy and environment. The next Eco Sense show will feature the issues of walking and biking with panelists, Eli Cooper of the City of Ann Arbor’s Transportation Specialist and Nancy Shore of the Ann Arbor GetDowntown Program. We have just made a short video, “Why Bike & Walk,” promoting biking and walking activities in town, which will be used during this studio show. The following link is that video that the Ann Arbor Energy Office has just posted.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLs_XuRMaTM

    I am sending you this video in case you are interested in watching it. I hope you enjoy this video. Thank you.

    Tim

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