Tag Archives: city council

Help push to get the downtown bike network back on track in 2019

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

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Bike share carried 209K trips in May + A look at the city’s updated permit rules

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

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No matter how you feel about the head tax, the Council should not start selling vetoes

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

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Seattle should divest from Dakota Access Pipeline, and we also shouldn’t buy the oil they’re trying to pump

The City Council is set to vote Monday to end its banking business with Wells Fargo as a political act in response to the bank’s funding of the Dakota Access Pipeline. This action is in solidarity with Native American communities … Continue reading

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Council approves lower speed limits, but the work isn’t done

The City Council approved new default speed limits across Seattle Monday, likely clearing the final major hurdle for the changes. “It’s been something that’s very near and dear to my heart,” said Councilmember Sally Bagshaw, who wrote about the issue … Continue reading

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Actions planned before Tuesday City Council meeting on slashed bike plan

This moment right now was supposed to be the time Seattle finally took bold action on bike safety projects, taking our years of planning and making them real. The big electoral victory in November should have given the city both … Continue reading

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City Council decides the fate of Pronto Cycle Share

The Seattle City Council will decide the fate of Pronto Cycle Share during their 2 p.m. today (Monday). Seattle Bike Blog will be there with live coverage, so be sure to check back or follow along on Twitter: @SeaBikeBlog. You … Continue reading

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Behind the scenes of Pronto with the experts who make it all work

When you go to check out a Pronto Cycle Share bike, you probably only see the bikes and docks. You beep a bike with your key fob or swipe your credit card at a kiosk and a bike unlocks. You … Continue reading

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Pronto buyout passes committee amid confusion, heads to full Council vote

At the end of the City Council Sustainability & Transportation Committee meeting Tuesday, the Pronto ordinance appeared to end in a 3-3 tie with Councilmembers Tim Burgess, Lisa Herbold and Debora Juarez voting NO and Rob Johnson, Kshama Sawant and … Continue reading

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Pronto buyout is not only a good deal for Seattle, it’s the only choice that makes sense

Sustainability, access to healthy transportation choices, economic development, congestion reduction, innovation. Public bikes grow and support so many of Seattle’s goals and values as a city that it’s hard to believe we are even thinking about cutting modest losses and … Continue reading

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A sober look at Pronto’s finances ahead of Council meeting

The City of Seattle already cut checks in December and early 2016 totaling $305,000 to keep Pronto Cycle Share operational, Josh Feit at Publicola reports. This revelation will certainly be a topic of conversation during tomorrow’s 2 p.m. Transportation Committee … Continue reading

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Pronto needs city buyout before end of March, how did we get here?

The hard deadline to save Pronto is March 30. With more than 30,000 people taking 144,000 trips in the first year of operations, supporters and City Councilmembers are scratching their heads trying to figure out how Pronto got into such … Continue reading

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With Pronto in the red, city outlines takeover and expansion plan

Story updated with comments from SDOT Chief of Active Transportation Nicole Freedman. The city is just about ready to take over, rework and expand Pronto Cycle Share. Think of it as Pronto 2.0. According to the new plan, 2016 will … Continue reading

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O’Brien will Chair the Transportation Committee

It’s not just for photo ops, Councilmember Mike O’Brien really does bike everywhere. But he’s also not just about bikes. O’Brien has a seat on the Sound Transit Board, and he has been a strong advocate for biking, walking and … Continue reading

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Move Seattle saves the transpo budget + Pronto gets oversight + Red light cameras will fund school safety

When Mayor Ed Murray presented his proposed 2016 budget, he had to assume there would be no replacement for Bridging the Gap, and it was pretty devastating. There was an exciting $5 million one-time expenditure for expanding Pronto Cycle Share, … Continue reading

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2015 City Council endorsements

Before the City Council primary this year, we wrote: the biggest mission for this primary should be to knock out the NIMBY candidates who fear change and want to put the brakes on our growing city and the multimodal streets … Continue reading

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Support the Pronto expansion at today’s 2016 budget hearing

Pronto is just one year old, and already people have pedaled the equivalent distance from the earth to the moon and halfway back. That’s not too shabby considering the average trip on Pronto is less than 20 minutes and only … Continue reading

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Ahead of public hearing, a couple ways to make the 520 Bridge plans better

In case you haven’t noticed, the state is building a new 520 Bridge. And as we noted back in February, the biking and walking elements of their Seattle-side plans have come a long way since the initial drafts. But there’s … Continue reading

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Primary ballots are in the mail! Here’s what candidates say about safe streets

UPDATE 7/20: You can now read candidate questionnaire responses from Feet First and Cascade Bicycle Club. Approximately half the city’s population is running for City Council right now. Lucky for you, the new district elections system means you only have … Continue reading

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Council keeps full-strength Move Seattle levy, adds extra safety emphasis

The Seattle City Council is only one step away from sending a nine-year, $930 million property tax levy for transportation to voters in November. Mayor Ed Murray’s Move Seattle levy made it through the Council’s special committee shaping the measure … Continue reading

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