• clara
• March 20, 2025

Last year, our advocacy for a strong Seattle Transportation Plan and a Transportation Levy big enough to fund it paid off!

This month, the City Council removed the hold on levy funding they placed last fall. That means the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) now has access to all the levy funding we voted for last fall – the largest investment ever in walking, biking, placemaking, and safety.

With levy funding added to other city budgets, there are a LOT of exciting projects we’re watching take shape this year that will make significant progress in our shared vision for safer, more accessible, and connected streets across Seattle.

Here are some of the big construction projects that will transform how we use Seattle Streets in 2025:

1. S Henderson St: This safety project will improve access to the Rainier Beach light rail station, Rainier Beach community center, pool, library, Rainier Beach High School, and Be’er Sheva Park. Highlights include protected bike lanes from the Chief Sealth Trail to Seward Park Ave S and much-needed crossing improvements at Rainier Ave S and S Henderson St.
2. N 130th St: Phase 1 of this important safety project will redesign N 130th St from Stone Ave N to 1st Ave NE by reducing vehicle traffic lanes and adding protected bike lanes to improve access to the future Pinehurst light rail station (opening in 2026).
3. Rainier Ave S: While a big redesign of Rainier Ave S is going through planning and design phases, SDOT recognizes the immediacy of safety concerns and will be installing a number of spot improvements along Rainier Ave S including at the I-90 onramps, S McClellan St, and S Andover St, and crossing improvements at the neighborhood greenway on S Kenyon St, in front of Rainier Valley Leadership Academy at S Spencer St, and five other intersections.
4. Duwamish Valley Bike Connections: By this summer, SDOT expects to complete 3.5 miles of bike routes connecting from the heart of South Park to Georgetown and through SODO to downtown, and will be in construction and planning for even more vital connections to existing bike routes to the west, east, and south (with a small but disappointing gap through the Georgetown business district). Individually, each of these projects is noteworthy and transformative. Together, they represent the culmination of over 20 years of community advocacy and will completely change how people can get around in the Duwamish Valley, one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in Seattle to bike in.
5. Key Downtown Basic Bike Network Gaps Filled: After the exciting opening of the waterfront bike path this month, the new trail will be connected to other existing bike routes – north to the Elliot Bay Trail along Alaskan Way in July, and east through Pioneer Square along Yesler Way to the rest of the downtown basic bike network. Other improvements will come in future years, including closing gaps on 8th Ave, 4th Ave, and 12th Ave.
6. Beacon Ave S: By June, this safety project along Beacon Ave S and 15th Ave S will bring long-awaited improvements to one of South Seattle’s key corridors and will include traffic calming, pedestrian improvements, transit upgrades, and 1.7 miles of protected bike lanes from the Jose Rizal Bridge through the Beacon Hill business district to Jefferson Park, and in future years will continue south along the entire spine of Beacon Hill. This project highlights the power of sustained advocacy to bring transformative changes to Southeast Seattle.
7. New Sidewalks: With last year’s transportation levy advocacy wins, this year marks a 40% increase in Seattle’s rate of new sidewalk construction! While the push for sidewalk funding is ongoing (the levy’s promise of 350 blocks of sidewalks in 4 years is still only 3% of Seattle’s 11,000 blocks of missing sidewalks), new sidewalks projects improve access to schools, transit, and services. It will include traffic calming, pedestrian improvements, transit upgrades, and 1.7 miles of protected bike lanes from the Jose Rizal Bridge through the Beacon Hill business district to Jefferson Park. In future years, it and business hubs will allow people with disabilities to move safely and freely in our city and make those streets safer and more accessible for everyone.
8. Neighborhood Traffic Calming: Residents have highlighted an uptick in speeding traffic in neighborhoods across Seattle. Increased funds for neighborhood traffic calming means speed humps, stop signs, safe crossings, and more to discourage speeding and keep people safe. We’re looking forward to the completion of the traffic calming project on Lake Washington Blvd, as well as new projects on Greenwood Ave N (Holman Rd N to Phinney Ave N), MLK Jr Way S (S Ryan Way to S Henderson St), and more.
9. Alki Point: After many years of local neighborhood advocacy, the Alki Point neighborhood greenway will finally be completed this year, along with traffic calming on 60th, 61st, and 62nd Ave SW between SW Admiral and Alki Ave SW. This holistic neighborhood traffic calming will ensure that we aren’t just pushing speeding traffic from one street to the next, but instead ensuring safety throughout the neighborhood.
10. Creation of new programs at SDOT: Last year’s transportation levy also directed SDOT to create three new programs, and we’re pushing for them to be as bold as possible toward achieving the goals behind their creation.
    1. People Streets: After many years of SNG advocacy, Seattle finally has a new program for the first time in history to reimagine streets as places for pedestrian plazas, small business seating, gardens, play spaces, and more.
    2. Low-pollution neighborhoods: Mayor Harrell’s promise of low-pollution neighborhoods could mean many things. We’re pushing for bold options for neighborhoods seeking to reduce or eliminate transportation-related emissions and undo pollution harms.
    3. Neighborhood-Initiated Safety Projects: This equity-focused program was crafted and proposed by SDOT’s Transportation Equity Workgroup to highlight community ideas and will increase the equitable distribution of safety-focused spending.

Looking forward to this year as much as we are?

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