Friday Roundtable: Celebrate Lake Washington Boulevard
Seattleites walk, run, and roll along Lake Washington Boulevard. (Michael Smith)Over the past three months, thousands of Seattleites have enjoyed a car-free section of Lake Washington Boulevard (LWB) each weekend. The inadequately titled Bicycle Weekends" program closes 3 miles of lakefront roadway to cars so everyone can walk, bike, roll, and play along the water. Mayor Wilson expanded the program this year to include every weekend between Memorial Day and Labor Day (excluding one weekend for Seafair). The previous Mayoral administration picked ten seemingly random weekends each summer.
Thanks to the consistent and expanded schedule, Lake Washington Boulevard is busy every weekend. As someone who lives near this stretch of LWB, I've had the privilege of observing hundreds of happy and relaxed Seattleites of all ages and abilities enjoy this park each weekend. I have personally visited the lakefront more than previous years because I no longer need to check a schedule to see if it will be car-free on a given day.
LWB is used by Seattleites of all ages. (Michael Smith)The schedule change has also reduced the number of drivers who drive around the barriers onto LWB. One possible reason for this is drivers now know to avoid LWB every weekend. In previous years, someone may have planned their route to include LWB, only to find out it was closed to cars when they were en-route. Some drivers made the reckless decision to drive past the barriers anyway. To be clear, this does not pertain to residents, guests, and deliveries going to houses on LWB from the nearest intersection.
To celebrate this incredible community resource, Seattle Streets Alliance, Bike Works, and Outdoors For All are hosting the Lake WA Blvd Bash next Saturday, August 15. The event will feature live music, food, games, and more at the Ferdinand St boat launch (10-15 minute walk north of Seward Park). More details are available here.
In addition to next Saturday, Lake Washington Boulevard will be car-free every weekend until Labor Day.
This is an open thread.