Endorsements for Beacon Hill Bike Lanes (Segment 1)
Dear SDOT & related parties,
Beacon Hill Safe Streets is a neighborhood group that is dedicated to ensuring the safety of those traveling in our city by supporting projects and plans that promote a safe, equal, accessible transportation system. We support safe, accessible, quality bike lanes on Beacon Hill and we are thrilled this project has launched that could provide this, as well as improve the safety and reliability of our transportation system for those who walk, drive, and use public transport. This letter addresses our group preferences for Segment 1 of the Beacon Hill Bike Route project, from the Jose Rizal Bridge to Spokane Street. We anticipate further conversation about the segments further to the south.
We as a group did not have unanimous support for a specific route, yet many members have expressed preferences on the quality and standards of the new facilities so we are providing you an “emoticon” chart that helps show our general feelings regarding specific routes and their attributes. In general you’ll find that 15th Ave seems to be the preferred route. However, we are sensitive to the parking limitations and management. We believe 14th Ave could be a strong route as well but has more barriers to overcome. Members have also expressed support for a hybrid 14th/15th route. The 12th Ave Greenway option was generally the least supported and discussed.
We request that SDOT makes available as much data and information as possible, as early as possible, so that we can better provide feedback to the city and share that information with community members. A better understanding of what kinds of pedestrian changes, parking changes, transit improvements or impacts and more will be vital to providing clear support to any one option or plan. We understand that this is very early and more is to come, but want to iterate the need for transparency and additional details in this process. We suggest that SDOT conduct a parking study including a License Plate study to help determine if a Restricted Parking Zone expansion would be warranted.
Our members would like this project to focus on the safety of those who both walk (or roll) and bike, at all ages and abilities. We have a specific desire that the bike facilities are safe for families and people traveling with kids or other vulnerable users and for that reason we prefer clear physical separation between automobile traffic and cyclists and have many concerns that a greenway will not feel suitable for everyone. The pedestrians and transit riders in our group are concerned about losing the improvements built on 14th Ave. S. several years ago near the area of the Beacon International School, specifically those at 14th/College and 14th/Beacon. The bulb-outs and crosswalks are heavily used by students and parents of the school and many other pedestrians in the area. These have greatly improved pedestrian safety.
We also want a route that ensures easy north/south access as well as access to the business district. We want to see transit spot improvements and ensure a continuous protected route at stop locations. We want to encourage pedestrian improvements such as crossing islands or bulb outs that are designed with both pedestrian and bike protection in mind. This area has many students and others walking across 14th and 15th to access schools and parks. We also encourage the city to review all the crosswalks and intersections (such as 14th & Golf) for needed improvements to visibility and to install new signage or lighting where appropriate.
We encourage SDOT to continue working to engage businesses, non-profit and community organizations, and BIPOC people to ensure that as many needs as possible are considered and met. We hope the City can be creative to help respond to and manage parking demand in the area and engage with residents on a plan to help residents and visitors who rely on automobiles, including PacMed and Seattle Public Schools (including employee trips, not just visitors). We know that it can be challenging to work in all the varying needs and issues, and we appreciate your work towards creating a project that works for everyone. We also remind the City to prioritize pedestrian safety and ADA accessibility in any area this project touches. Without access, this project will never work for us all.
Thank you for your time and we hope for your continued support to help Seattleites get around safely!
Robert Getch,
Beacon Hill Safe Streets