Tag: biking

Spokane St Bridge closure – recommended detour

As you know, the Spokane Street Bridge is currently out of commission. To ride or walk from West Seattle across the Duwamish River it is now necessary to use the First Avenue South Bridge or the South Park Bridge.

Here is a bike detour route from our Resources page that we recommend. A bit longer but with less vehicle traffic and lower vehicle speeds than SDOT’s detour route. Most of it is signed as a bike route, but signage is lacking at the foot of the First Avenue S Bridge. The RideWithGPS route has audio and printable cues for turns. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/34419471

Here is a current video of that route, from John Graham: https://youtu.be/eLyQXbQ7xfw

More than 2-1/2 years ago, we asked SDOT to make permanent improvements for a safe detour route to the Spokane Street Bridge for just this sort of predictable and likely event.  Our allies at Duwamish Valley Safe Streets, Seattle Neighborhood Greenways, and Cascade Bicycle Club joined us in these requests for the Reconnect West Seattle work. SDOT did not respond, except for minor improvements on 6th Ave S and one track crossing. Now it is an emergency. SDOT is putting together a temporary detour route with temporary protections, and the City is working with King County Metro to offer free bus and water taxi rides for all who need alternatives. While hoping for a more pro-active work for permanent improvements, we are grateful for the current effort. The temporary work and the transit fare relief give options for people biking, and provides a valuable opportunity to test out the planned bike lanes for part of West Marginal Way SW, and bike routes in Georgetown and SODO.

If you try either or both of these routes, or have another to suggest, please let us know what you think.

Cycle History – West Seattle Music Scene

The Southwest Seattle Historical Society and West Seattle Bike Connections are delighted to announce that Cycle History is back for an in-person ride in 2022!
September 18, 2022, 10:00 a.m.
Start from the drive between the north side of West Seattle High School and Hiawatha Community Center.
Come explore West Seattle’s music scene –from jazz to grunge, we’ll have stops to please music lovers, bike enthusiasts, and everyone in between! Musician and West Seattle music historian, Peder Nelson, will tell stories, play clips of music, and introduce a couple of guests from the music community.
This Cycle History ride is an annual project of Southwest Seattle Historical Society and West Seattle Bike Connections. Join us after the ride for the End of the Summer Social at the Log House Museum, 1-3pm.
Ride information and registration here: https://cascade.org/node/79067
This will be a Cascade Bicycle Club free group ride. Please register in advance so we can get going more quickly.

Delridge Bike Fun May 21!

Come join us for three hours of bike fun May 21 10 am to 1 pm at Delridge Community Center.

We are putting on a bike rodeo with Delridge Community Center staff with skills course and bike decoration for young riders. Bike Works will bring their mobile repair van. Outdoors for All will have adaptive cycles for children and adult riders with disabilities to try. Children’s hospital will have some helmets to give away and helmet fitting. Seattle mounted police may visit on their horses. Free snacks!

Free event. Registration is not required.

We need a couple more rodeo wranglers.  Can you help? Email westseattlebikeconnections@gmail.com

West Marginal Way SW / Duwamish Trail missing link

SDOT announced a decision for the Duwamish Trail missing link on West Marginal Way SW: Protected bike lanes will be installed after the West Seattle Bridge reopens in mid-2022.

While sooner would be better, it is good to have this commitment from SDOT to permanently improve safety for bike riders and vehicle drivers on West Marginal Way SW. Reducing the opportunities for reckless right-side passing by impatient drivers should reduce the frequent crashes that tie up traffic for hours and injure people using this route. WMW is an essential freight route. We understand the need to prioritize freight and to accommodate all others who must use this street.
Kudos to the SDOT Vision Zero team. They developed a creative plan and reached out and listened to all who depend on this street for transportation and for safe pedestrian crossing at the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center.
This will fill in a missing link in the Duwamish Trail, a regional bike commuting and recreational route leading to the Alki Trail, West Seattle Junction, South Park, Georgetown, Green River Trail, Tukwila, SODO, Downtown Seattle, and the Mountains to Sound Trail. The route serves marginalized communities in the Duwamish Valley. This route is critical for all bike traffic between northern West Seattle and Greater Seattle at times when the Spokane Street Bridge is closed to bike traffic for inspections and repairs. The improvements will make the route safer for commuting by bike, especially in winter and at night, and more comfortable for people of all ages and abilities.

Bike Everywhere Day Celebration Station – Friday May 21

6 to 9 a.m. 5/21/21.
Come visit our Bike Everywhere Day station where the trails meet at the west end of the Spokane Street Bridge!
In partnership with Commute Seattle, WSBC will be joined by Westside Bicycle and Bike Works, who will be providing bike checks and simple repairs. We’ll have information on bicycling routes, giveaways (including a bike from Bike Works!) and a selfie booth to snap a #FlipYourTrip photo with Sal the Salmon, courtesy of SDOT. Volunteers will be on hand to answer your local cycling questions–from commuting to just getting started. We look forward to seeing you!
Check out Cascades Bicycle Club’s map for other celebration stations and Bike Month activities. https://cascade.org/rides-and…/bike-everywhere-month-2021
Four people standing and chatting, one with bike, at our Bike Everywhere Day Celebration Station. People with bikes meeting in early morning at our Bike Everywhere Day Celebration Station table and tent. Councilmember Lorena Gonzales with e-bike at our Bike Everywhere Day Celebration Station.