Comments

2

That family could rebuild the home of their dreams by selling meteorite pebbles.

4

Considering the 30 year struggle over the Ballard Missing Link (because of opposition by shitty businesses like Salmon Bay Sand & Gravel), it's pretty incredible that Seattle was able to build the Green Lake bike loop as quickly as it did. Good work!

5

is everyone enjoying day two of the fall 2022 phase of
Operation Clockfuck?

šŸ™ƒ

(ā€œRemember on Sunday to set the clock
back one hour, and
then on Tuesday to
NOT set the country
back 50 years.ā€)

āŒ›ļø

8

Oh come on, next thing you'll tell us is that seaplanes will be taking off in twice their already record number from South Lake Union ....

9

@5: Thank you, fluxum, for beating me to it. No matter what the outcome of this election cycle, I plan to drink heavily on Tuesday. Like John Fogarty, I See a Bad Moon Rising.

10

PA2 - For the record, Iā€™m not against bike license fees - more protected lanes for bikes would make it safer for bikes and vehicles.
I thought there was a compromise bringing the bike lane to 46th, but oh well, so much for that!

11

"Climate activists in Amsterdam made their way onto an airport tarmac to block private jets from taking off and landing. Imagine if something similar were to happen here! Anyway, hereā€™s a list of seven Seattle-area airports that accommodate private jets."

Same tactic as Trump: a wink and a nod to avoid any personal responsibility for crimes suggested. Thanks for showing your cowardice, Matt. If you had even one testicle you would actually say what you mean.

12

@6,

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 90% of bicyclists also own a car and so already pay our "fair share" of fees and taxes.

https://www.oregonlive.com/commuting/2009/10/survey_90_percent_of_oregon_bi.html

(these numbers are Portland/SW Washington specific and I couldn't find anything specific to Seattle, though I can't imagine it's being vastly different)

As to those few cyclists who don't own a car, they also pay all sorts of other taxes that go toward road maintenance and upkeep. In fact, these folks actually significantly overpay relative to the impact that their vehicles have on roads requiring the maintenance & upkeep.

13

"Amsterdam airport police running after hundreds of climate activists blocking private jets while on bicycles is objectively funny"

It's sort of strange as well for them. I was in Amsterdam a few years ago. And I watched a city maintenance crew clear a tent encampment away from the Dam square monument with a water cannon. The Schiphol fire department should be able to make short work out of a couple of bicycles.

14

@6: "There are dozens of alternative streets that bikers can legally use"

But that trail is like the Camino de Santiago. It's a holy route with religious significance which was ordained by an angel apparently. You can't just go moving something like that over one block when it has centuries of tradition behind it. (sarcasm mode: off)

15

Also, in terms of cyclists obeying traffic laws, sure I wish they did so, at least in high traffic areas where they could be endangering people by failing not doing so. That said, I'm far more outraged, both when driving and cycling, by idiot drivers playing on their phones rather than paying attention to the roads. I'd wager a shit ton of money that they're responsible for far more carnage and mayhem than bicyclists running stop signs & shit.

16

@16,

"...at least in high traffic areas where they could be endangering people by failing to do so" that should read, obviously. Blah.

17

@6 FFS. SBSG has been there for 115 years. You know where they park their trucks? On the other side of the Burke Gilman off 42nd. If being next to a bike trail hasn't put them out of business already, it won't now. If Pacific Fishermen can't figure out how to run a shipyard next to a bike lane, maybe they should check in with Western Towboat, Trident Seafoods, and Snow Boatbuilding who all seem to be able to manage it.

There's a reason people want to put a bike trail on Shilshole, and that's because it's the best place for it. There's like 10 driveways on the water side of Shilshole between the Ballard Bridge and Market, and no cross streets. Ballard Ave and Leary both have 6+ cross streets even before you get to driveways. And you know what, bikes use Shilshole Ave now because it's the best street in the area for riding a bike. The big difference if there's a bike lane is that I'll be out of your way when you're driving down the street. And that's good for everyone.

18

As a pedestrian I think both cyclists and drivers need to go the fuck away.

20

"As a ground denizen, I think pedestrians, cyclists and drivers need to go the fuck away."

-an ant

21

@12 - no shit. Not to mention that we are not only paying road taxes through the tabs on the cars that most of us still own as well as our general taxes, when we're cycling we're not even doing the wear and tear on the streets that we're paying for.

I know you all saw that cyclist run that light that time, so you think that all of us should be executed. Try this: Sit yourself down at any intersection in the city, and count how many cars come to a full stop before they make a right turn on red. You probably won't need more than your fingers in an hour or so. You might be surprised to see that drivers are huge scofflaws (and it kinda stands to reason that it's a much bigger deal when driving two tons of car than it is on 20 pounds of bike).

22

@21: I get the logic of your post but when you are a law abiding, careful driver and your last near heart attack was due to a cyclist ignoring comment sense and the rules, causing you to nearly hit them - it's irrelevant that other drivers are assholes. When it comes to near misses that are not your fault, that will make a deeper impression than any statistic.

23

@6: Salmon Bay Sand and Gravel has been in that location since 1907, when bikes outnumbered cars in Seattle and the company used horse and buggy to haul their loads. Seems like they forgot their history.

24

@22 The last 10 vehicles on the road that scared the shit out of me ignoring common sense and traffic laws were all cars. And before you ask, all of those were when I was driving, not biking.

25

@6 misses the real point of all the money spent delaying the bike trail...FREE PARKING. Salmon Bay Sand & Gravel's property stops a foot from their door. The rest of the distance from their door to the street that they use to park rail cars and actual cars isn't their property and they're afraid they'll lose that parking.

26

@24- exactly. And in my case most of them were when I was on my bike. Thereā€™s no comparison between the consequences of a bike nit coming to a complete stop and a car turning left in front of you at speed. Not even close.

27

@17: "There's a reason people want to put a bike trail on Shilshole,"

Which people? Cyclists? The world doesn't revolve around you. And there are many more businesses other than SBSG that don't want you there. True, there are some businesses that have learned to live with bicycle traffic. The problem seems to be that bicycle traffic can't learn to live with anyone else. So I say: You leave. Move uphill a block and learn to coexist with pedestrians and street traffic.

This is one of the few remaining stretches of working waterfront in the city. It would be a shame to see what it will be replaced with if businesses pack up and leave.


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