Seattle Bike Blog

It’s time for the Bike News Roundup, a list of some stuff floating around the web lately that caught our attention. First up, Grist dives into the anarchist roots and capitalist evolution of bike share: Pacific Northwest News Executive Constantine … Continue reading →

Just 12 days after someone driving struck and seriously injured two kids crossing the street at Rainier Ave and Henderson St, SDOT crews were out making significant temporary safety improvements to the wide intersection. The sense of urgency follows a … Continue reading →

The good news is that some of the busiest and bumpiest sections of the Burke-Gilman and Ship Canal Trails in the Fremont/Queen Anne area are getting repaved this week. The planned detours could be interesting, though. For example, what neighborhood … Continue reading →

Though it’s been scaling back its efforts for a while now, Spin has officially announced an end to its bike share service in Seattle. Citing an increase in fees and the decision not to include scooters in the city’s updated … Continue reading →

Seattle Police have released a surveillance video of a person in Sodo seen snipping bike share brake cables on more than one occasion, and they’re asking for the public’s help identifying the suspect. For months, brake cables on bike share … Continue reading →

Details from Rainier Valley Greenways: We have had enough of kids and people of all ages being injured at the intersection of Rainier Ave S and S Henderson St. Just this year, three children have been hit at this intersection. … Continue reading →

Ian MacKay is on a 7 MPH bike tour across Washington State for the second time. As of press time, he and his riding partners are a day’s journey beyond the Grand Coulee Dam heading west on their trip from … Continue reading →

Wilson Ave S is a true rarity in the hilly neighborhood above Seward Park: It is relatively flat and direct. Well, OK, the whole street isn’t flat. But the 0.8 miles of the street that the Seattle Department of Transportation … Continue reading →

A nickel. In 2018, there is essentially nothing that costs a nickel. But that’s all it costs for qualifying low-income users to unlock a Lime pedal bike under the company’s newly-expanded Lime Access program ($5 for 100 rides). And qualifying … Continue reading →

SDOT has been planning an extension of the Sodo Trail to reach Spokane St under the West Seattle Bridge for a while now, but that work could take a major turn if Sound Transit chooses a West Seattle light rail … Continue reading →

SDOT has grouped a bunch of Green Lake and Wallingford area paving projects together, designing and planning construction of them all at the same time. Because paving projects essentially wipe the street design clear, they are our best opportunities to … Continue reading →

Connecting the 2nd Ave bike lane to the International District and the Southeast Seattle bike routes beyond is proving to be very difficult. This connection is the single most important missing piece of the downtown bike network, and the City … Continue reading →

I just had by far the least stressful bike ride through downtown Bellevue in my life. The newly opened 108th Ave NE bike lanes span the Eastside city’s downtown from NE 12th Street in the north to Main Street in … Continue reading →

The Seattle City Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday calling on SDOT to complete a connected bike network downtown by the end of 2019. As we reported previously, the network includes sections of 8th Ave, 9th Ave N, Pike and/or Pine … Continue reading →

The Seattle City Council unanimously passed a budget action Monday for new city rules on bike share companies that will expand the number of bikes in operation, increase the fees for bike share operators and put in place new regulations … Continue reading →

It’s time for the Bike News Roundup, a look at some of the bike stuff going around the web lately. This is an open thread. First up, I was on Fox News recently, failing to apologize for Seattle’s “jihad” on … Continue reading →

The third annual edition of Seattle Bike Bingo begins July 31, and participating businesses are all stocked up on the $4 cards. A summer tradition organized by Bicycle Benefits, Bike Bingo is a pretty simple game. Buy a card, then … Continue reading →

WSDOT Secretary Roger Millar delivered a keynote speech to the nation’s highway and transportation officials that directly challenged the central focus of transportation investments in nearly every state: Building and expanding freeways. “We like to talk about traffic congestion as … Continue reading →

Work on a neighborhood greenway connecting Crown Hill to North Seattle College is underway, according to SDOT. The construction will last six months and includes new traffic signals crossing Holman Rd at NW 92nd Street and Greenwood Ave at N … Continue reading →

Kathleen Emry is calling it quits. After 21 years of owning and operating the quaint FreeRange Cycles bike shop in Fremont, she has handed over the keys to Shawna Williams. Emry had been talking about a potential retirement for a … Continue reading →

Alex Hayden was a husband and father of two who Gray Magazine described as “kind, funny, creative, and a true editorial photographer” in a memorial post. Someone driving a pickup truck struck Hayden from behind while he rode in the … Continue reading →

The downtown bike network has been significantly delayed so far under Mayor Jenny Durkan’s administration, but there is hope to turn things around and get major pieces of the network constructed in 2019. Seattle Neighborhood Greenways and Cascade Bicycle Club … Continue reading →

People in Seattle took more than 208,849 bike share trips in May as use of the bikes increased steeply throughout spring. In total, people took 1.4 million rides between late July and mid-June, according to the Seattle Department of Transportation … Continue reading →

Construction of the huge new Expedia campus along the Seattle waterfront includes a rebuild of a section of the Elliott Bay Trail as the path transitions from industrial Interbay to the waterfront. The new trail will soften what today is … Continue reading →

Work to repair river bank erosion will require crews to close the Sammamish River Trail for periods of 30 minutes or less starting Wednesday. Work will continue for the rest of summer. The erosion zones are just east of I-405 … Continue reading →

People in Seattle have taken one million Lime bike share trips in about 11 months, the company announced Monday. This astounding number of rides comes from just one of three companies currently operating in the city. And because the company … Continue reading →

The Seattle Bicycle Advisory Board is a group of volunteers individually-approved by the City Council to help guide the city’s bicycle investments and policies. You do not need any kind of special insider knowledge or professional skills to apply. In … Continue reading →

While I was on family leave this winter, a seemingly routine repaving project in Northeast Seattle somehow became a flashpoint that has divided neighbors, spilling gallons of red and green sign-making ink and even drawing competing streetside protests. It has … Continue reading →

No new companies have received permits to operate bike share services in Seattle since the autumn, but Uber-owned Jump is hoping to be next. The city is waiting to approve more companies until their revamped bike share permit is ready. … Continue reading →

UPDATE: The Lower Spokane St Bridge is back open again to all pedestrian, bicycle and vehicle traffic! Thank you to everyone for your patience and understanding. — seattleDOTbridges (@SDOTbridges) June 26, 2018 The lower West Seattle Bridge has reopened following … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter. TOP THINGS TO KNOW & DO Summer is here and so are summer’s major event rides. This Saturday you can join the following … Continue reading →

The lower West Seattle swing bridge closed Wednesday evening for emergency repairs, SDOT announced just hours before crews were planning to take the bridge out of order. The bridge will be in the open position for marine vessels, unusable for … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter. TOP THINGS TO KNOW & DO Today is the 30th Annual Fremont Solstice Parade, which comes with the well-attended unofficial pre naked/painted bike ride. … Continue reading →

The number of people biking on 2nd Ave in downtown Seattle is up an average of 19 percent year-over-year since the July 2017 launch of private bike share services. And the trend appears to have accelerated as SDOT opened a … Continue reading →

Regardless of your opinion on the city’s employee head tax to fund affordable housing and homelessness solutions, repealing the tax one month after unanimously passing it is effectively handing Council power to wealthy people and businesses. The repeal in the … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following op-ed is written by Chris Covert-Bowlds, M.D., a person who bikes, is a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility, and supports I-1631. Washington state bicyclists should support I-1631 — the Protect Washington voter initiative. With a carbon … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter. TOP THINGS TO KNOW & DO The Evergreen Mountain Bike Festival is on Saturday and Sunday. Go to Duthie for the jump show, skills clinics, … Continue reading →

The $1 Spin, Lime and ofo bikes around Seattle are very popular, appeal to wide demographics and are very often used to access transit. These are some of the findings from Seattle’s bike share permit pilot, setting the stage for the … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter. TOP THINGS TO KNOW & DO Yesterday was the last day of Bike Month. They’ve finally done it: the John Wayne Trail is … Continue reading →

Our daughter Fiona will not have a closet in her room growing up because city rules for building backyard cottages require us to build an extra car parking space for a car we don’t own. Debates over building codes and … Continue reading →

Took a rad group of ladies out on an e-bike spin! Most of them had never ridden downtown. They were all smiles. #womxnbike #bikemonth #seabikes @limebike @CascadeBicycle @TranspoChoices pic.twitter.com/jC6uHaQikz — kelsey mesher (@kmesh) May 23, 2018 Womxn are leading the … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks again to Brock Howell of Bike Happy for putting together this comprehensive weekly newsletter. TOP THINGS TO KNOW & DO A cougar killed SJ Brooks, co-founder of Friends on Bikes. The Seattle Times broke down how the 2nd and … Continue reading →

As we work towards a future in Seattle where it is easier and safer for residents to get around on foot, by bike and via mass transit, we need your help. Visit the online community survey to share your priorities … Continue reading →

People do not need bike lanes to ride a bike. People driving cars need bikes lanes to protect them from intimidating or harming people on bikes. The laws in Washington State are clear. Bikes are vehicles, so people are legally … Continue reading →

UPDATE: A GoFundMe has been started to help Izzy through recovery, and the WTF Bikexplorers have started a scholarship fund in SJ’s honor to help more people attend their summit. SJ Brooks was the Founder of the Seattle chapter of … Continue reading →

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Brock Howell of Bicycle Security Advisors. The group is launching a campaign to fight bike theft by getting more people to register their bikes online with Bike Index. Bike theft is a major problem … Continue reading →

The happiest rush hour of the year is just two days away! Bike Everywhere Day 2018 (formerly known as “Bike to Work Day”) is Friday, and the city will be flush with snacks and swag and group rides and smiling … Continue reading →

Happy Bike Week! As Seattle Neighborhood Greenways suggested in a post here Friday, this is a great opportunity to (politely and non-judgmentally) reach out to a friend and offer to help them get on a bike. Maybe that means helping … Continue reading →

EDITOR’S NOTE: With Bike Everywhere Day a week away, Seattle Neighborhood Greenways has some ideas for how you can get engaged to help get the downtown Basic Bike Network back on track. If nothing else, scroll to the bottom to … Continue reading →