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Ryan Packer Profile picture
Ryan Packer
@typewriteralley
Pedestrian. Writing at The Urbanist as Contributing Editor. Transportation advocate. Always covering a random public meeting. (they-them)
Jul 6, 2023 • 24 tweets • 5 min read
A number of big projects at the Seattle bicycle advisory board tonight. Tuned in and will be reporting any significant updates. The meeting business kicks off with the sober news that 14 people have been killed by traffic violence in Seattle so far this year.
Jan 30, 2023 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
BIG NEWS: Senator Maria Cantwell's office has announced that Seattle was successful in securing the USDOT Safe Streets for All grant that the city applied for last year.
theurbanist.org/2022/10/11/sea… The grant will be combined with local matching $ to build:
🚦Improvements at 111 signalized intersections
🚶‍♀️Intersection treatments at 6 unsignalized intersections
👨‍🦽 1.5 miles of sidewalks in SoDo, including on 1st Ave S, 4th Ave S, and S Holgate Street.
as well as...
Oct 27, 2022 • 44 tweets • 7 min read
The city council is discussing potential amendments to SDOT's proposed budget for next year! The first amendment is a Lewis amendment bringing back the free waterfront shuttle ($500K). This effort has not been supported by the council in previous years. Strauss, also a big fan of the waterfront shuttle, has an amendment spending $500K on Ballard Ave NW "improving interim conditions" including lighting, around the cafe streets. Making sure the street meets "historic standards".
Oct 26, 2022 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Tuned into a public meeting on @seattledot's plan to extend its northbound bus-only lane on Rainier Ave closer to I-90. Turns out, even when you're talking about the second most-ridden bus route in the county people will still say it's not enough riders for a 24/7 bus lane. Tonight SDOT showed the two options that are on the table side-by-side, with one said to impact drivers using the entire corridor by adding 9 minutes and the other impacting them by adding 5 minutes. Option 1 doesn't take away ...option 2 takes a turn lane ...
Oct 25, 2022 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
The Lynnwood City Council just voted to eliminate the city's $40 vehicle license fee, cutting several million dollars in revenue currently going to their city's public works department, funding street maintenance and ADA improvements. "There is no plan," the director of the Lynnwood finance department said ahead of the vote when she was asked how the city could make up spending, noting the most likely outcome would be cut spending.
Oct 25, 2022 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I'm tuned into the Fremont Neighborhood Council tonight which is hearing from CM Sara Nelson. The Route 40 transit improvement project came up, with a council board member suggesting the plans for a bus lane on Leary are out of date given current transit ridership. "My official position is I oppose this," Nelson said.
"Taking it down to 1 lane for a bus lane that is perhaps not as utilized as the planners were thinking in the past to me doesn't make the most sense."
Jul 15, 2022 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
I'm tuned into the Seattle board of parks and recreation commissioners meeting happening right now. So far two people have commented asking the board to reconsider the unilateral ban on using wheeled devices on Green Lake's inner loop path that is still in effect. Up to four commenters now asking for a reconsideration of the ban. The third person commenting says that the wheels ban has "killed" the environment along Green Lake and is referring to "outlaw" scooter users scooting around few pedestrians.
Jul 14, 2022 • 61 tweets • 12 min read
No elected body has asked tougher questions around the @IbrProgram than the Metro Council. This morning, we'll see if the council is ready to let the $5 billion highway project go ahead. WSDOT Secretary Roger Millar is making comments at the top of the meeting, talking about the process to get to this point. He's framing the proposed Locally Preferred Alternative as something that was developed collaboratively.
Jul 14, 2022 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
At the Belltown Community Council after they invited me to come talk about the cancelled Blanchard Park playground that had been part of the Waterfront Seattle project. Marshall Foster, director of the Office of the Waterfront and Civic Projects is here as well. Cottage with Belltown Community Council banner Earlier this week I published a deep dive compiling what I found on the full history of the site, now proposed as a City Light EV charging station, after sifting through a lot of public records.
theurbanist.org/2022/07/11/pla…
Jul 13, 2022 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Seattle's planning commission is raising the alarm that all scenarios in SDOT's proposed Seattle Transportation Plan "assume a future high rate of trip-making by privately owned vehicles" and are not at all in alignment with what's being analyzed as part of the 2024 Comp Plan. The STP scenarios, in contr... Full draft letter:
seattle.gov/documents/Depa…
Jul 13, 2022 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
This week at @SoundRegion regional transportation grant awards are being announced. I've written about many of the projects set to be awarded funding so I'm going to do a little🧵on the Seattle projects that were picked. SDOT is set to get $5.4 million to improve station access to the new NE 130th Street light rail station, now planned to open in 2026. This is going to include upgrades to the I-5 overpass, a new pedestrian crossing, and [likely] protected bike lanes.
theurbanist.org/2022/06/16/as-…
May 10, 2022 • 41 tweets • 9 min read
Port work session on the environmental impacts of cruise is starting shortly. You can watch here:
meetings.portseattle.org/index.php?opti… The Port of Seattle is expecting the 2022 cruise season to bring in the most revenue for the Port itself than any year recently, likely ever.
May 9, 2022 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Lake Washington Boulevard will be fully open to people walking and biking (closed to motor vehicles) between Mount Baker beach and Seward Park on ten weekends this summer, @seattledot just announced. 2022 event dates: May 20-23, 27-31, June 10-13, 24-27, July map of Lake Washington Boulevard between Mount Baker and Sew At the same time, SDOT is doing outreach on the long term future of the street. "We are designing the outreach and engagement process from the ground up," they say. For the visioning process, the Southeast Seattle community w
May 9, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
A state DOT builds a state highway bridge to a state ferry terminal that looks like this, but it's on the city where the bridge is located to apply for a grant to fit it. Makes sense. 3.5 foot sidewalks on either side of highway bridge with fou This is SR 525 in Mukilteo, where escalating costs have the city considering not moving forward with the project at all, since the state is planning a full replacement bridge but on an uncertain timeline.
May 8, 2022 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
As of May, there is no report you can find online that details how dangerous Seattle's roadways were last year. Portland released their annual report on February 2. Going by past precedent, we might see a report next January. Another way we traditionally get this information is via a presentation to city council. But the chair of the city council's transportation committee hasn't felt the need to be briefed on that info yet this year.
Apr 21, 2022 • 32 tweets • 8 min read
Good morning, there are six hours of @IbrProgram meetings today. I am not going to tweet everything that is happening, but will be reporting on noteworthy things. The project is revealing the Locally Preferred Alternative today. Right away today, the project team is framing the reason the project needs added "auxiliary" lanes, or "ramp-to-ramp connections" as the fact that the interchanges are very closely spaced together. I haven't yet seen a proposal to eliminate any of those seven interchanges. Image
Apr 20, 2022 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Watching Sound Transit suggest utilizing public right of way downtown for light rail station entrances because they're trying to find ways to cut costs. Yes HAHAHA yes sickos meme In addition to the Midtown one the city council saw yesterday, there's a proposal to take over the entirety of Lorena Street for Denny Station. Putting midtown station ent...Denny Station entrances tak...
Apr 19, 2022 • 31 tweets • 8 min read
A bunch of commenters at the city council transportation committee this morning urging the city to advocate for a light rail tunnel under 4th Ave S through the International District rather than under 5th in order to reduce impacts on that neighborhood. The committee is gearing up to talk West Seattle-Ballard link in a few minutes. @dmtrumm at @UrbanistOrg has been leading our coverage of the alternatives and has also concluded that a 4th Ave alignment would be the best way forward.
theurbanist.org/2022/04/14/bes…
Apr 19, 2022 • 22 tweets • 3 min read
The Port Townsend city council is hearing public comment on how to move forward with a street dining program right now. Primarily the people speaking against the idea of enshrining street dining in city code are business owners concerned with loss of parking. The business owner speaking right now just cited a parking study from *2004* that included a calculation of the amount of revenue generated by each parking space in downtown Port Townsend. The city is considering charging $2000 per streatery.
Mar 15, 2022 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Meanwhile back at the freight board, SDOT is giving an off-agenda presentation on the missing Alaskan Way bike connection. As many anticipated, SDOT is proposing to make people on bikes switch sides of the street twice along the waterfront to avoid Pier 66. Here are the cross-sections SDOT is presenting.
Mar 15, 2022 • 28 tweets • 6 min read
The city council transportation committee is hearing public comment right now. First to speak was Emery Dooley, asking for expansion of the bike network, saying bikes provide "huge freedom to women...bike lanes are not just a nice extra, they're absolutely fundamental to equity." Another commenter Julia talked about being involved in a traffic crash and no longer having the ability to drive. "Our current approach to transportation in this city is ableist and classist," they said, also calling for space for people on bikes to be taken seriously.