The project is in early stages of design and outreach, so this is a good time for input. We’ll have this on our July 11 meeting agenda, and may have SDOT staff attending. You are welcome to come. 6:30 pm at HomeStreet Bank, 41st SW & SW Alaska.
The Seattle Bicycle Master Plan has Avalon slated to get protected bike lanes as part of the city-wide network of bike routes. It’s a key route in and out of West Seattle, and like the other streets that are at angles to the grid, it provides the easiest grade up and over one of West Seattle’s steep ridges. We support this network of bike routes and the improvements that would make it comfortable and safe for many more people to ride than do so now. People of all ages and abilities, including parents carrying kids on bikes, and people well past their racing days.
We really want to have bike routes that work for commuters to downtown, and also for kids, families, older riders who have a hard time on steep grades or in busy traffic. At the same time, we want vital local business districts like Luna Park’s in our neighborhoods. We want to be able to walk, ride bikes, take a bus or drive to places like The Shack, Duos, and Luna Park Cafe. There is need for customer car parking and truck deliveries to the little business district near Spokane that may or may not need a compromise on protected bike lane going downhill. We absolutely need the uphill protected bike lane, and there is room to do that on the west side without any loss of car parking. The car parking would move out from the curb to provide a “parking-protected bike lane.” On the east side, going downhill, there is no problem doing a protected bike lane most of the way down. We’d love to see the protected bike lane continue to Spokane, with a safe way to cross to the Alki Trail and to the West Seattle Bridge Trail. However, it might be necessary to do something else from Yancy to Spokane. We are open to other options that SDOT engineers might come up with for that stretch.
You may know that we were successful in getting a Neighborhood Street Fund grant for bike/ped improvements to the intersection at Spokane/Harbor/Avalon/Alki Trail. This is now in design and scheduled for construction next year. It will make that intersection a lot safer for westbound riders on the trail crossing to go up Admiral or turning left to go up Avalon. Also includes signage and bike-left-turn improvements at Manning, for the route down Admiral Way to Avalon.
This NSF project will tie into the Avalon paving project.