An Open Letter to the Seattle Department of Transportation

December 9, 2014
Scott Kubly
Director, Seattle Department of Transportation
Seattle Municipal Tower
PO Box 34996
Seattle, WA 98124-4996
Dear Scott,

On behalf of the Cascade Bicycle Club (Cascade) and our 16,000 members I want to thank you for quickly moving forward with the construction of a protected bike lane on Roosevelt Way NE from NE 47th Street to the University Bridge, as part of the upcoming arterial repaving project.

The protected bike lane and inclusion of curb and bus bulbs as well as crosswalks will make the most dangerous segment of Roosevelt Way NE safer and more comfortable for all modes of travel.

Cascade believes SDOT should improve safety for all users in the corridor by extending the protected bike lane northward for the entire repaving project, up to NE 65th Street.

These planned improvements cannot come soon enough. Data shows that Roosevelt Way NE is one of the most dangerous streets in the city, with the segment from NE 45th Street to the University Bridge seeing the most collisions in the corridor.

With limited funding to implement the Bicycle Master Plan (BMP), this arterial repaving project represents a significant opportunity to cost-effectively expedite implementation of the BMP in a key corridor.

Through the 2014 BMP, the city committed to building an “all ages and abilities” bikeway network to connect all neighborhoods in the city. The BMP prioritizes the construction of a protected bike lane on Roosevelt Way from the University Bridge to Northgate. The upcoming repaving of Roosevelt is an incredible opportunity to leverage allocated resources and expedite the BMP in this corridor and it should not be missed.

Thank you for the work you do to make Seattle a great place to ride a bike.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 206.300.5932 or jeffa@cascade.org.

Sincerely,

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Jeff Aken, Cascade Advocacy Director