Ryan Packer
Ryan Packer has been writing for The Urbanist since 2015, and currently reports full-time as Contributing Editor. Their beats are transportation, land use, public space, traffic safety, and obscure community meetings. Packer has also reported for other regional outlets including BikePortland, Seattle Met, and PubliCola. They live in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle.
Upgrades to speed up Route 40 through Fremont and Ballard, and to replace a 100-year-old water main, are well underway. But business advocates have continued to push for transit priority to be scaled back.
An extension of the Georgetown to South Park Trail and a new two-way protected bike lane on E Marginal Way would finally provide a safe connection to the First Avenue S bridge. The project is an early litmus test for the new Seattle Transportation Levy.
Despite the fact that LIHI's proposed affordable housing project has been advancing for nearly three years, public opposition has kicked up in recent weeks. The new campaign contends that such a prime Bainbridge Island site isn't appropriate for affordable housing.
With right turns set to be prohibited from Westlake Avenue onto Denny Way, streetcar vehicles and buses will no longer be stuck behind turning car traffic. The change will also benefit the high numbers of pedestrians who use this major intersection.
More than 300,000 riders used the 2 Line in July, a 47% increase over June. Averaging more than 10,000 daily riders, the 10-station line rivals the busiest King County Metro routes in terms of usage.
Shoreline becomes the largest city in King County to let builders decide how much parking makes sense within the specifics of a site, rather than requiring an arbitrary number. The 6-0 city council vote follows a watershed state bill tackling parking earlier this year.
Five major bike safety projects are all opening within a few months of each other, filling in critical gaps in Seattle's network. But most of the credit for ensuring that Hot Bike Summer happened in the first place goes to previous city leaders.
With monthly ridership now exceeding 200,000 on the 2 Line, Downtown Redmond Link has clearly kicked things into a higher gear. Having a light rail station so well integrated into a growing urban neighborhood is likely part of the recipe for success.