Seattle's big bike plan gets a green light
The city of Seattle has approved one of the nation's most aggressive attempts to raise the popularity of bicycles.
The 10-year Bicycle Master Plan calls for 118 miles of new bike lanes and 19 miles of trails, as well as lane markings and signs to create awareness of cycling across the city.
After three years of discussions, City Council members passed the plan unanimously Monday, adding momentum to the cycling movement.
Mayor Greg Nickels has said he hopes commuter cycling will triple. Census figures showed that about 2 percent of workers traveled on bikes in 2000, and advocates think that's increased to 2 ½ percent now. A new city report said 2,273 cyclists entered downtown on Sept. 19 -- nearly one-third more than a daily total in 2000.
While the master plan was being written, the city went ahead with some of the most obvious improvements. The new Chief Sealth Trail was recently finished on Beacon Hill, and construction is under way on a new mile of the Burke-Gilman Trail in Ballard, near Golden Gardens Park. Also, pavement is being marked with so-called "sharrows" -- icons of a bicycle, reminding motorists to share the streets.
David Hiller, advocacy director for the Cascade Bicycle Club, which worked with the city to develop the plan, said it isn't perfect but deserves an "A."
"It's aggressive," City Councilmember Jan Drago said. "The best thing about it is we've got money to implement it. It's not just sitting on a shelf."
The city has budgeted $27 million for cycling projects out of a $365 million transportation levy voters approved last fall. The money, and a timeline, set Seattle apart from other cities such as San Francisco, San Jose, Berkeley and Baltimore that also have cycling plans, Hiller said.
But some big projects in the master plan are unfunded, and therefore uncertain, on a city wish list worth $240 million.
Continue reading this article from the Seattle Times:
Seattle's big bike plan gets a green light
