Midweek Roundup: The Year of the Eastside
by Nathan Dickey from Seattle Transit Blog on (#6TDRY)
January 26, 1929: Repaving of 3rd Avenue, viewing north toward Marion Street (similar view today viaGoogle Street View). The Seattle Tower, visible on the right, would open two months later. Item 3252, Seattle Municipal Archives.Transit & Streets:- Starting March 31, 2025, Metro's Fare Resource Advocates will ask riders for proof of fare payment (Metro Matters)
- The supposedly climate-friendly $1.2 trillion Infrastructure and Jobs Act, passed in 2021, mostly funded road expansion (The Urbanist)
- WSDOT's latest study update of its Intercity Bus Program charts a path to increased service and coverage (The Urbanist)
- A rare win for non-driver street users: strengthened negligent driving law now in effect in Washington State (Seattle Bike Blog). Speaking of negligent driving, it turns out there can be consequences for driving more than twice the speed limit and killing someone (KUOW). Meanwhile, SPD began investigating the first pedestrian death of 2025 on Friday (The Seattle Times, $).
- Katie Wilson asked: Should We Panic Over the Council Kneecapping" the Transportation Levy?" (The Stranger)
- A roundup of transit projects in 2024 and what's ahead for next year (The Transport Politic)
- With major light rail openings, increased density, and job growth, 2025 may be the Year of the Eastside (The Urbanist).
- Loud NIMBYs predictably push back against Harrell's modest Comprehensive Plan Update (The Urbanist). Also covered on PubliCola.
- In the PNW, developers are going vertical with senior living facilities (Urban Land)
- Parents need more places to let kids play outside, safely (Bloomberg CityLab)
- After some delay from the NY Governor's office, congestion pricing in NYC started this week (Streetsblog NYC)
- Katie Wilson pens an Op-Ed supporting progressive taxation at the State level (The Urbanist); Aaron Ostrom opines a similar argument (the Seattle Times, $)
- Tammy Morales has left the building (Seattle City Council Blog)
- Research once again shows water is wet: extreme car dependency is driving Americans to unhappiness (The Guardian)
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