Public Meeting SBAB
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Patrick Lee URDP 300 Alon Bassok 12 May 2014 Public Meeting The Seattle Bicycle Advisory Board (SBAB) monthly meeting took place on May 7, 2014 at the Seattle City Hall. The SBAB serves as the voice for bicyclists all over the city who advice city leaders and planners on safety issues and ideas for future improvement of the city’s bicycle infrastructure (cycle tracks/greenways) For the May meeting, an estimated 30 people attended, including the board’s eleven elected representatives, SDOT speakers, and other attendees. The following is a brief summary of the agenda for this particular meeting: I. Public Forum II. Seattle 2035 Update III. SDOT update on Central Neighborhood Greenway: Phase I IV. SDOT update on Mercer Corridor Project: West Phase During the meeting, everyone who wanted to be heard had a chance to be heard. Those who were not on the board had a chance to participate through the public forum and board members through asking for clarification and giving feedback to SDOT on their projects during the presentations. The presentation on the revised Seattle 2035 Comprehensive Plan was purely information, informing the public on what changed and the proposed courses that the city should take to manage growth over the next two decades that the City Council will adopt in June 2015. The next portion of the meeting was the SDOT update on the Central Neighborhood Greenway through the Central District running parallel to 22 nd /23 rd Avenue. Here, SDOT presented ideas to improve safety along the greenway as well as asking for feedback for proposed changes to motorized vehicle traffic at several intersections for the sake of pedestrian/bicyclist safety. One particular intersection that caused debate was 25 th Ave E and E Yesler St. The SBAB advised SDOT that crosswalks were not enough to ensure the safety of
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Transcript of Public Meeting SBAB
Patrick Lee
URDP 300
Alon Bassok
12 May 2014
Public Meeting
The Seattle Bicycle Advisory Board (SBAB) monthly meeting took place on May 7, 2014 at the Seattle City Hall. The SBAB serves as the voice for bicyclists all over the city who advice city leaders and planners on safety issues and ideas for future improvement of the city’s bicycle infrastructure (cycle tracks/greenways) For the May meeting, an estimated 30 people attended, including the board’s eleven elected representatives, SDOT speakers, and other attendees. The following is a brief summary of the agenda for this particular meeting:
I. Public ForumII. Seattle 2035 Update
III. SDOT update on Central Neighborhood Greenway: Phase IIV. SDOT update on Mercer Corridor Project: West Phase
During the meeting, everyone who wanted to be heard had a chance to be heard. Those who were not on the board had a chance to participate through the public forum and board members through asking for clarification and giving feedback to SDOT on their projects during the presentations.
The presentation on the revised Seattle 2035 Comprehensive Plan was purely information, informing the public on what changed and the proposed courses that the city should take to manage growth over the next two decades that the City Council will adopt in June 2015.
The next portion of the meeting was the SDOT update on the Central Neighborhood Greenway through the Central District running parallel to 22nd/23rd Avenue. Here, SDOT presented ideas to improve safety along the greenway as well as asking for feedback for proposed changes to motorized vehicle traffic at several intersections for the sake of pedestrian/bicyclist safety. One particular intersection that caused debate was 25th Ave E and E Yesler St. The SBAB advised SDOT that crosswalks were not enough to ensure the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists and that other measures need to be taken due to traffic conditions. Some ideas thrown onto the table included installing RFB’s (Rapid Flashing Beacons), reduction of the speed limit to those of a school zone, as well as limiting the ability to make turns at that intersection. However SDOT contends, that unless the traffic volume warrants such measures to be taken, such improvements are not possible due to the cost of purchasing and maintaining safety equipment. Because of this debate, SDOT will further review and monitor traffic in this intersection as well as the other intersections that were discussed to see if action needs to be taken.
The final portion of the meeting was the SDOT update on the Mercer Corridor Project which includes widening streets and creating bicycle paths. During the presentation the SBAB complained about the unsafe conditions for bicyclists due to inconsistent detouring as well as the construction traffic. The SDOT apologized for the inconvenience and promised to improve safety and stated that the “messiest” work has been completed in the area recently. Furthermore, SDOT will follow up with the board concerning safety hazards brought up by the SBAB.
A common thread for all of these discussions between the city and SBAB is safety. Safety is SBAB’s number one concern. Because of the safety issues the board has brought up, the city of Seattle will investigate and work on improvements for bicyclists over the next several months providing updates to board members and the public during the next meeting.
