Transportation

The City of Seattle will be removing an East Union Street bus only lane set aside for the Route 2 this weekend, ceding to requests from nearby property owners who have complained about traffic changes in the area. Bus riders are chagrined.

Pivoting away from full-scale bus base retrofits that go all-in on battery electric buses means that Metro won't face a fiscal cliff until the early 2030s, according to budget writers. Metro's General Manager also framed the move as one that helps to preserve core bus services.

People on bikes can finally connect from Little Saigon to Jefferson Park in their own protected lane, with future connections planned to the north and south. Concerns about lost parking on 15th Avenue S almost doomed the project.

A thriving Mount Baker Transit Center requires pedestrian upgrades, a revitalized commercial district, and plenty of housing nearby. Unfortunately, the City of Seattle is investing elsewhere, with North Rainier an afterthought.

Assuming bottomless motorist demand and no mode shift to transit made the Seattle Department of Transportation's study of Denny Way bus lanes effectively worthless. Route 8 upgrades deserves real consideration.

The Seattle Department of Transportation is eyeing seven neighborhoods with high rates of pollution, low car ownership rates, and high collision intersections, such as South Park, Lake City, and Capitol Hill, for its low-pollution pilot program. The list will ultimately be whittled down to three program sites.

Costs are going up on all Sound Transit 3 projects, with West Seattle Link now expected to cost up to $7.9 billion, Everett Link $7.7 billion, and Ballard Link more than $20 billion. Sound Transit has been able to identify cost-saving opportunities in Everett, but Seattle is in a tough position.

The City of Redmond cut the ribbon on the Redmond Central Connector trail on Friday. The trail's final 1.6-mile segment opened earlier this summer, finally connecting Downtown Redmond directly with the 42-mile Eastrail corridor that will ultimately stretch from Renton to Snohomish County.