July 25

Fewer speeders, more bikes along N.E. 125th St.?

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17  comments

UDATE AUG. 5: More on this issue here from The Stranger.

On Monday the city will hold an open house on its plan to redo Northeast 125th Street, a main east-west arterial north of Maple Leaf.

The changes are coming to Northeast 125th between Roosevelt Way Northeast and 35th Avenue Northeast. Right now the street has two lanes of traffic in each direction and speeds exceed the posted limit, according to the Seattle Department of Transportation.

“The improvements are designed to reduce speeds and benefit everyone who uses the street, including commuters, truck drivers, bus passengers, pedestrians and bicyclists,” the department says.

The open house is Monday, July 26, from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. at the Lake City Library, 12501 28th Ave. N.E.  Comments can also be submitted by e-mail to walkandbike@seattle.gov or by calling 206-684-7583.

The proposed changes include:

  • Reconfiguring the motor vehicle travel lanes to one lane in each direction with a center turn lane.
  • Improving pedestrian crossings.
  • Installing bicycle lanes on both sides of the street.
  • Improving major signalized intersections by creating right- turn-only lanes for vehicles (excluding  transit and bikes).

About the author 

Sara W

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  1. Are you kidding me??!! I live right off of 125th and have to travel it every day. I see very few bikes. I feel that if we are going to be catering to bikes then by God we had better start charging them a licensing fee. Bicycleists are some of the rudest people out there. They are on the roadways when it is convenient and then on the sidewalks when it is convenient…they want their cake and eat it too. If they are going to be on the roads then they should have to obey all the same laws motorists do. NE 125th does not need to be reduced to 2 lanes primarily to accomodate bicycles……There is also very frequent emergency vehicle traffic on NE 125th and the reduction of lanes will prove to hinder their flow. Our “Green” mayor needs to start thinking.

  2. Just wait till winter when we get our regular snow dump each year…

    While I am all for biking, bikers have to understand that they TOO have to follow the law. They are quick to point out car infractions, but they sure keep quiet about all the laws they break on the roads.

    On top of that, Mayor McMumbles has to get it into his head that this is a major city and his bike utopia of turning major streets into two lane streets will create more gridlock and waste of gas. Then again that is what he wants.

  3. This is really starting to get ridiculous. 125th is not a street needing this attention. Wish I had read this two hours ago so I could have been present.

    I DO bike, and I also drive.

    I completely agree that the city should have focused more effort on getting a concrete or asphalt bike lane on the uphill 15th climb southbound. There isn’t any real parking along this stretch, and the gravel is just horrible to bike through.

  4. This plan is a serious mistake. 125th is the only east – west arterial in north Seattle that works reasonably well. What are people going to do when it becomes one lane? Use the already congested Northgate Way or go well out of their way to the north to use 145th? This will limit convenient access to I-5 for residents of Lake City, Pinehurst and Cedar Heights. Bike lanes are a good thing but they don’t need to be on every arterial. It would be better to build a separate bike corridor along 127th/130th than to reduce the traffic flow along 125th.

  5. I drive that stretch of 125th twice a day to/from my office in Lake City. If SDOT’s only goal is to control speeding, why don’t they post a motorcop at the bottom of the hill at 24th Ave? That would slow people down. That said, the person who commented that people drive 60mph on that road was grossly exaggerating. Every driver I see is riding their brakes down that hill trying not to speed. Also, I have never seen anyone bicycling up that hill. This project is a waste of time and money.

  6. I think it is a great idea… True, few bikers tackle the uphill part of 125th because of its steepness, but I know many, including myself, will shoot down the hill from Pinehurst to Lake City. This, in itself, is a ride of terror (at least for me). The sidewalk is too crappy to ride on for any sort of speed, so you go in traffic where cars race too fast, and you hope you don’t hit a sewer grate and go flying onto the pavement.

  7. Pinehurst.Resident – I agree that 15th from 145th to Northgate Way NE needs a road diet. Let’s both write SDOT at walkandbike@seattle.gov and share our thoughts. The more people they hear from, the more likely it is to be a reality.

  8. NE 125th (& 130th) from the freeway to Sand Point Way needs to be reconfigured, particularly the driving lanes need to be standardized all along the street & parking standardized. NE 125th between 35th NE & Lake City Way is one lane with parking on both sides; then from Lake City Way to the freeway it’s two lanes on either side. Improving pedestrian access, ESPECIALLY the ability to cross the street is absolutely necessary. There’s no walk signal 15th NE down the hill to between 26th & 27th NE; there are FOUR churches between 15th & 27th NE. So, go for reconfiguring NE 125th; it needs it!

  9. Interesting. I personally think the speed limit is too low, it should easily be 35 or 40. Roads are there to move people not slow them to a stall (idling causes more gas to be burned and more polution to be emitted than moving). A majority of people who live along this street knew what they were getting into in the first place. Fact is no one rides their bike up 125th and very few will tempt it. Its too steep and long. The same thing holds true for 35th ave south of 110th – 95th. No one rides their bike up that hill except for extreme well seasoned cyclists. Fact is many felt safe in a rarely used right lane anyway. There was no need to paint a hole new lane. It’s really a waste of money and resources.

  10. First – that street is more in Pinehurst than Maple Leaf.

    Second – the 15th Ave arterial is in more desperate need of traffic modification than 125th, in my opinion. 15th Ave NE from 125th to Northgate is entirely residential – condos and apartments, but all residential, except a small strip mall. Cars race each other down the street on a regular basis and motorcycles think it’s a raceway. I would much rather see the problem on 15th addressed first since there are more residents directly affected.

  11. The problem with Seattle motorists is that most do not obey traffic rules. I am happy to share the roads with those motorists who do comply. It is the best way to be safe.

  12. The problem with Seattle bike riders is that most do not obey traffic rules. I am happy to share the roads with those bike riders who do comply. It is the best way to be safe.

  13. I live on right off 125th and drive on 125th. I am THRILLED for this project and cannot wait for it to happen. Cars travel at 60 MPH on 125th (the speed limit is 30 MPH). If they travel that fast now, they will still move easily when the lanes are reduced.

    I am most exited that I will be able to feel safer when I walk on 125th (which I do daily). My neighbors are also equally thrilled about this project.

  14. I’m all for bike lanes, too. Most people are. And the 125th project at least gives bikers a 6′ foot lane. Cutting travel lanes down to 11′ for buses that are 10.5 feet wide (according to SDOT) is a different story. Expecting buses to never move more than 3 inches off center is ridiculous and dangerous to all users of the roadway.

    The city-wide push to reduce travel lane width to 11′ will result in more injuries and accidents, not less.

    Forcing buses into single lane configurations during all hours, including peak will result in more idling pollution.

    Bike lanes are great, but don’t ignore the safety and needs of all users. Sharing the road is progress for all.

  15. I for one am thrilled with the proposed changes to 125th. It is a dangerous street for pedestrians and bikes alike right now, impossible to cross, and road rage is very common among drivers.

    Despite the complaints about bike lanes we hear from the anti-bike minority, on Saturday I counted bicyclists riding uphill on 5th in front of Cafe Javasti for about 30 minutes: I counted 19 between ca. 10:30 and 11:00. That is surely a much higher number than before the bike lanes were added (which I also like because they make it safer drivers to get out of cars parked at the curb). Obviously more people will be out on bikes on a sunny July Saturday morning than on a rainy November weekday morning, but still I think the increase in ridership means that people are getting out on their bikes more. That is simply good news all-around: lower foreign-oil dependency, fewer carbon emissions, greater health, etc. Good news, except of course to the anti-bike folks, who think bicyclists are the the collective incarnation of Satan himself upon this earth…

  16. The city (aka, Bike McGinn) continues it’s rampage against drivers, commuters and mass transit riders as they rush to provide bicyclists with more and more dedicated road space.

    It is funny that SDOT states their “only goal” is to reduce speeding. Afterall, who can argue with slowing traffic down by causing more and more congestion.

    I’m sure that’ s what the voters thought when we approved the “Bridging the Gap” levy…NOT. Whatever happened to common sense and improving traffic flow and mass transit? Oh, I forgot we elected a new Mayor, that’s what!

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