Archive for the ‘Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update’ Category

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On a mission, but to where?

Friday, October 5th, 2012 by

I don’t know about you, but I ride my bike because it reliably gets me where I need to go. Sure, sometimes the journey is the destination. But when you’re on a mission, if you don’t know where you’re going, how do you know if you’ve arrived?

That’s why we set clear goals when we make plans. We do it all the time, from tasks as simple as making a grocery list, to undertakings as complex as updating a city-wide plan for bicycling.

The City of Seattle is on a mission to update Seattle’s Bicycle Master Plan, but has yet to decide exactly where this mission is going to take the future of bicycling in our city.

For example, the current draft plan has a goal of building a “high quality bicycle network that connects to places people want to go and provides a time-competitive travel option”. That’s a good intention, but unless we know how many miles we’re going to build by when, how do we know if we’ve accomplished our mission?  And unless those goals are ambitious, Seattle is never going to be the great city for bicycling we know it can become.

Tell the City Council to set measurable and ambitious goals in the Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update

In order for Seattle to accomplish our shared vision of becoming a city where everyone, from an eight-year-old child to her eighty-year-old grandmother, has the freedom to safely bike to where they need to go, we need an updated bike plan that calls for 200 new miles of world-class bikeways by the year 2020. By “world-class”, we’re referring to neighborhood greenways, cycle tracks, buffered bike lanes, and trails. The plan should also include the goals of:

- Increasing the number of trips made by bicycle in Seattle to 20 percent;
- Reducing the number of crash-related deaths to zero;
- Installing functional and high-capacity bike parking in Seattle’s urban villages and neighborhood business districts that exceeds current demand, not just meets it; and
- Bringing safe and comfortable bikeways to within a quarter-mile of 95 percent of Seattleites by the time the plan is completed.

We need an updated bike plan that calls for 200 new miles of world-class bikeways by the year 2020.

Sure, these are ambitious goals, but based on what cities across the nation are doing right now,we know they are achievable. And if we are ever going to rise to the level of cities like San Francisco, Chicago, Minneapolis, or Portland, we need to set goals like this today.

The Seattle Department of Transportation is hosting three open houses next month on the Bicycle Master Plan Update. Please save Nov. 7, Nov. 8 and Nov. 13 for a chance to review some of the draft plan content and weigh in on where the City is taking the future of bicycling in Seattle.

Posted in Advocacy, Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update | 1 Comment »

Mark your calendars for the annual meeting and get a briefing from SDOT

Monday, October 1st, 2012 by

Whether you are new to Cascade or a longtime member, there is always something to learn about your club. At our Annual Membership Meeting, held every October, you will have a chance to meet and greet board candidates as well as see a “state of the club” address given by Cascade Staff and Board.

The Annual Membership Meeting will be held Tuesday, Oct. 9, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the South Lake Union Discovery Center, 101 Westlake Avenue North, Seattle.

THE PROGRAM:

6 – 6:30 p.m.
Meet and greet board candidates
This is your last chance to cast your ballot for board of directors candidates and proposed bylaws changes.

Meet Maggie Sue Anderson

Meet Brent Hadley

Meet Steinar Hjelle

Meet Joe Platzner

6:30 – 7:15 p.m.
Annual member meeting

7:15 – 8 p.m.
Seattle Bike Master Plan presentation
A representative from the Seattle Department of Transportation will give a presentation about the 2013 Seattle Bike Master Plan update. Hear where we are in the process, what’s been done over the past year to lead us here, and when and how citizens can provide their input and help shape the document that will guide the City of Seattle’s efforts and investments in bicycling in the years to come.

This is an great opportunity for Cascade Bicycle Club members to have a briefing directly from SDOT. Your opinions and thoughts can make a difference in moving the city along the road to becoming a national leader for bicycling. If the presentation and discussion are going strong, we may go past 8 p.m., so bring your questions to the presentation.

The membership meeting is a great way to get to know your club, its staff and its leaders, and vote for the future Board of Directors. Even if you’re not a member, you can come learn why Cascade is the largest and most effective bicycle club in the country.

We hope to see you there!

Posted in Club news, Meetings & turnout, Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update | No Comments »

Progress on the Bicycle Master Plan update; draft calls for leading-edge infrastructure

Monday, September 24th, 2012 by

As you may know, the Seattle Department of Transportation is in the process of updating its Bicycle Master Plan (BMP).  Since its adoption in 2007, the BMP has served as the blueprint for making improvements to Seattle’s bicycle network. And while the BMP has been an effective start to improve the City’s bicycle system over the past five years, an update to the plan is necessary to revisit goals, and to include fast-evolving best practices and new thinking in bicycle infrastructure, safety, and design that will result in an even more connected bicycle network for all Seattle residents wishing to bicycle as a viable form of transportation.

Planner Kevin O’Neill and his team are currently working on a draft plan, and attended the Seattle Transportation Committee last week to provide the committee with a briefing on the BMP updating process.

Slated for City Council adoption in early 2013, the BMP update will include updated goals, objectives, and visions.

O’Neill revealed that the updated BMP will include five goals versus the current two major goals of increasing ridership and reducing collisions. The additional goals will address connectivity, equity, livability.

And while the current BMP does not state an explicit vision or mission statement, O’Neill presented the Committee with a proposed vision statement that reads, “Riding a bicycle is a comfortable and integral part of daily life in Seattle for people of all ages and abilities”.

“A vision statement captures the desired future outcome of the plan,” O’Neill explained.

Recognizing perhaps that Seattle is being outpaced by other cities in terms of developing and maintaining a safe, connected bicycle network for riders of all ages and abilities, the draft objectives of the BMP update call for a “high-quality bicycle network” with “outstanding leading-edge bicycle facilities”, including on-street protected bikeways.

Amazon's example of leading-edge bicycle infrastructure: the proposed 7th Avenue cycle track

Taking a step toward such “leading-edge” bicycle infrastructure is Amazon with their proposed 7th Avenue cycle track — a physically separated and dedicated bike lane — as part of their public benefits package. As revealed in their updated benefits package on Friday, Sept. 21, Amazon will design and fund a new cycle track along 7th avenue which will separate people on bikes from vehicles and pedestrians, and have bicycle-friendly furnishing and wayfinding signage.  Amazon’s public benefit package also includes  safety improvements and infrastructure for people on foot.

In his presentation, O’Neill stated that public comments have requested aggressive implementation targets and the plan will provide a (new) framework for tracking progress in achieving BMP goals.

O’Neill stated that it is up to the City Council members to decide just how aspirational and aggressive the performance measures should be in terms of network and project completion, noting that performance measures are dependent on data availability and aggressive performance measures will have financial implications.

Meanwhile, SDOT reached out to the public via an online and phone survey as well as a mapping tool, asking the public for its input in the BMP updating process. Well over 3,500 Seattleites responded, expressing concerns regarding safety, and expressing a need for bicycle infrastructure that separates bicycles from arterial vehicle traffic and car doors.

Seattleites also expressed safety concerns due to a lack in road maintenance and a need for increased education.

SDOT continues to work on the BMP update with interested parties, and reach out to the public in fall 2012. The final update should be ready for City Council adoption in early 2013.

Posted in Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update | 1 Comment »

A postcard from Pro Walk/Pro Bike

Thursday, September 13th, 2012 by

Greetings from Long Beach, California — land of sun and great bikeways!

A separated bikeway (cycle track) running through Long Beach's downtown business district -- a great place to be.

I have been here since last Friday, first for the Alliance for Biking and Walking‘s leadership retreat, and then for the national Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference. First of all, I highly recommend the Alliance Leadership Retreat for anyone who wants to help grow the movement. It was very powerful to be surrounded with 115 other advocates, all of whom want to help create better communities for walking and biking.

But it’s also very powerful to be surrounded by planners, engineers, elected officials, and other types of decision-makers who all want to share important experiences and lessons with each other and to learn how to create more bike-friendly communities across the country. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of people here at the Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference who have come from across North America and Europe to teach, to learn, and to form partnerships with people around the common goal of making our cities better for people on foot and people on bikes.

But there is another common theme running through this year’s conference — and that is “Pro Place”. It is not enough that our communities simply accommodate walkers and bikers better, but we also need  our communities to be places where people want to be. It’s the difference between simply being able to bike through our communities, and actually having our communities be places worthy of biking through. Places where you want to dismount the bicycle and slow down for a bit. Places where we are comfortable being the social creatures we are and actually talking in person with one another in our own neighborhoods and business districts.

Maybe I’ve seen one too many inspirational speakers this week, but I am inspired. And exhausted. And I am again and again reminded that we can still do so much better.

Ciao for now,

Max

 

Posted in Advocacy, Around town, Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update | No Comments »

Mark your calendars – It’s bike count time!

Tuesday, August 21st, 2012 by

We are excited to announce the fifth year of the Washington State Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project. Since 2008, Cascade Bicycle Club, on contract through the Washington State Department of Transportation, has enlisted hundreds of volunteers each September and October to count bicyclists and pedestrians in dozens of communities around the state. This year, we are recruiting volunteers to conduct counts in 40 communities around Washington.

Sign up for a two-hour count shift here!

Collecting data about bicycling and walking is critical to improving transportation systems to support these modes. Compared to other transportation modes, bicycling and walking have historically received little attention when it comes to data collection and analysis. The count data that volunteers will collect on September 25, 26, and 27 will play a valuable role in planning, designing and funding bicycle and pedestrian projects, while helping us to better understand the factors that influence the levels of bicycling and walking in our communities.

The 2012 statewide bicycle and pedestrian counts will be held on September 25, 26 and 27, during morning and afternoon peak periods (7 – 9 a.m. and 4 – 6 p.m.). We are looking for volunteers to conduct counts in the following cities: Bellevue, Bothell, Bremerton, Burien, Ellensburg, Federal Way, Ferndale, Gig Harbor, Issaquah, Kelso, Kent, Kirkland, Lakewood, Longview, Lynden, Mercer Island, Milton, Mountlake Terrace, Oak Harbor, Olympia, Orting, Parkland, Puyallup, Renton, Richland, Seattle, Shoreline, Spokane, Snoqualmie, Tacoma, University Place, Vancouver, Walla Walla, Wenatchee, and Yakima. The success of this project relies on our volunteers, and we thank those who have been involved in past years. If you are available for a 2-hour shift to count the number of bicyclists and pedestrians in one of the communities listed above, please sign up for a shift (or three), here.

We will follow up with each of the volunteers as we get closer to the count dates with instructions and count materials.

Please note: The following cities will be coordinating their own volunteers and counts.  If you would like to volunteer in one of these cities, please e-mail the person listed as the city contact.

For information on the state bicycle and pedestrian counts, contact Tessa Greegor.

 

Seattle City Wide Bicycle Counts: September 12

In addition, the City of Seattle is looking for volunteers to conduct neighborhood bicycle counts at 32 locations on Wednesday, September 12, 2012 from 6:30 AM – 9:00 AM. These counts  will be SDOT’s final volunteer-based bicycle counts at key locations throughout the entire city. The results will be used to help ensure consistency with SDOT’s new count methodology and to monitor progress toward increasing the number of bicycle trips as called for in the Seattle Bicycle Master Plan.

If you are willing to help, or would like more information, please contact Doug Cox at (206) 684-8264/ douglas.cox@seattle.gov. All volunteers will receive instructions and forms once their count location is confirmed.

Happy Counting!

 

 

 

 

Posted in Advocacy, Seattle Bicycle Master Plan Update, Upcoming events, Volunteer | 4 Comments »

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