Highways

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell teased a few urbanist-minded initiatives as he delivered his annual state of the city speech on Tuesday, putting support behind a push to pedestrianize Pike Place and launched a new "Northern Lights" vision to remake Aurora Avenue. Exactly when either change would occur remains unclear.

In this video, CityNerd's Ray Delahanty digs into the public health effects of freeways. Pollution impacts fall most heavily on people who live near freeways.

As other states start to reassess their prioritization of expanding highway capacity in the face of ambitious climate goals and other transportation needs, Washington is still in denial mode.

A new report shows most states continue to funnel money toward highway expansion, locking in climate pollution, despite new tools to fund transit and other forms of climate action. This is a losing strategy for both the environment and increasing mobility options. 

To keep buses moving as lanes are set to be shut down on I-5 over a three-year period, the Seattle Department of Transportation is set to convert peak-hour bus lanes to all-day. But the city isn't calling the change permanent.

Declining state transportation revenue and increased project costs are on a collision course. Long-promised highway projects, court-ordered fish culvert removal, and badly needed investments in transit, active transportation, and traffic safety are all fighting for a shrinking pie.

Washington State could be set to pay a significant price for decades of underinvesting in basic maintenance of the state transportation system, outgoing WSDOT head Roger Millar said.

Washington State's transportation chief Roger Millar is out after eight years, as Governor-elect Bob Ferguson prepares to take office. Widely recognized as a leader in progressive transportation policy, Millar will be tough to replace.