Sep 16
yay! leftovers commented on Biking the Ballard Bridge.
yay! leftovers commented on Biking the Ballard Bridge.
Dan, I don't think you realize the existence of the Interbay bike trail which then connects with the trail that runs all the way through Myrtle Edwards Park. The Interbay trail is a little bit narrow and weird, as it runs between chain-link fences through the train yard, but this combination of trails does connect downtown to pretty deep in Interbay (not all the way to the Ballard bridge, unfortunately) without requiring the biker to spend one second on city streets. And it's totally flat.
The bridge, on the other hand, is a huge problem. And short of a massive capital project, there are not any great solutions. Even those cool elevated options south of the bridge cost millions of dollars AND do nothing to address the hazards that a biker faces actually making their way across the bridge on that poor excuse for a sidewalk. But car dependence is so ingrained in the Seattle psyche that voters probably won't support bike projects on the scale that would be needed to make the ballard bridge bike friendly.
I'm coming to realize that the problem with bike infrastructure in Seattle stems not from the politicians and SDOT folks so much as it stems from the popular sentiment. We saw during the election what happens to politicians who are seen as impinging on Seattleites' ability to drive everywhere whenever they want (read: handling of the snowpocalypse). And channeling money from roads to a big bike project will be portrayed as an equally unforgivable sin. So the best thing a bike-loving citizen can do for this town is to get their friends, family and neighbors out of their cars once in a while and on a bike. We gotta start from the bottom up.
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The bridge, on the other hand, is a huge problem. And short of a massive capital project, there are not any great solutions. Even those cool elevated options south of the bridge cost millions of dollars AND do nothing to address the hazards that a biker faces actually making their way across the bridge on that poor excuse for a sidewalk. But car dependence is so ingrained in the Seattle psyche that voters probably won't support bike projects on the scale that would be needed to make the ballard bridge bike friendly.
I'm coming to realize that the problem with bike infrastructure in Seattle stems not from the politicians and SDOT folks so much as it stems from the popular sentiment. We saw during the election what happens to politicians who are seen as impinging on Seattleites' ability to drive everywhere whenever they want (read: handling of the snowpocalypse). And channeling money from roads to a big bike project will be portrayed as an equally unforgivable sin. So the best thing a bike-loving citizen can do for this town is to get their friends, family and neighbors out of their cars once in a while and on a bike. We gotta start from the bottom up.
Sep 16
yay! leftovers commented on I Don't Speak French.
yay! leftovers commented on I Don't Speak French.
Here's another commercial from the series with "electro" music: http://tinyurl.com/qsrc4e
There's also a hip-hop commercial with break-dancers sweeping up a dusty floor. Gross.
There's also a hip-hop commercial with break-dancers sweeping up a dusty floor. Gross.
Aug 4
yay! leftovers commented on The Street Car Wasn't Enough?.
yay! leftovers commented on The Street Car Wasn't Enough?.
@15
Of course the SLUT has nothing to do with this. But Dominic rarely misses an opportunity to voice his sneering contempt for all things Nickels, whether justified or not.
I guess it's just Dom being Dom.
Of course the SLUT has nothing to do with this. But Dominic rarely misses an opportunity to voice his sneering contempt for all things Nickels, whether justified or not.
I guess it's just Dom being Dom.
Aug 4
yay! leftovers commented on The Street Car Wasn't Enough?.
yay! leftovers commented on The Street Car Wasn't Enough?.
@10
Yes, I'm sure the mayor is actively working to shut down our ports. That sure sounds like something that stinky jerk would do, doesn't it!
Will, you seem to spiral further out away from reality with every passing day.
Yes, I'm sure the mayor is actively working to shut down our ports. That sure sounds like something that stinky jerk would do, doesn't it!
Will, you seem to spiral further out away from reality with every passing day.
Aug 1
yay! leftovers commented on The Miricle of Air Conditioning.
yay! leftovers commented on The Miricle of Air Conditioning.
you know what else is a "miricle" of modern science? spellcheck.
Jul 31
yay! leftovers commented on Mayoral Straw Poll.
yay! leftovers commented on Mayoral Straw Poll.
@16
That's a very nice call to action and all, but maybe we've forgotten this whole past decade that we've spent negotiating with the state on this. This tunnel shit didn't just fall out of the sky overnight. This was the result of years and years of back and forth. Too many years, if you ask almost anyone around here. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people risk their lives each day driving along the viaduct, hoping the regions tectonic plates can just chill out for a little while longer, or at least until they're off that god-forsaken pile of concrete and rebar.
That's a very nice call to action and all, but maybe we've forgotten this whole past decade that we've spent negotiating with the state on this. This tunnel shit didn't just fall out of the sky overnight. This was the result of years and years of back and forth. Too many years, if you ask almost anyone around here. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people risk their lives each day driving along the viaduct, hoping the regions tectonic plates can just chill out for a little while longer, or at least until they're off that god-forsaken pile of concrete and rebar.
Jul 31
yay! leftovers commented on Mayoral Straw Poll.
yay! leftovers commented on Mayoral Straw Poll.
@11
You hit it on the head. 99 is a state highway. The state has already made it clear that a surface/transit option alone is not going to work for them (i wish this wasn't the case, and i think so does Nickels). And i'm still not clear on how McGinn is going to head down to Olympia as a newly elected mayor and somehow bring the governor and the state legislature to their knees on this...
You hit it on the head. 99 is a state highway. The state has already made it clear that a surface/transit option alone is not going to work for them (i wish this wasn't the case, and i think so does Nickels). And i'm still not clear on how McGinn is going to head down to Olympia as a newly elected mayor and somehow bring the governor and the state legislature to their knees on this...
Jul 28
yay! leftovers commented on Piping Hot Cup of Joe Mallahan.
yay! leftovers commented on Piping Hot Cup of Joe Mallahan.
I wish this guy would tell his campaign people to stop putting up his signs on public property. I'm sure they know that this is illegal, but seeing as nobody feels compelled to put up his signs (or those of any other candidate for that matter) in their yard, this is the only way to get some visibility. It's just comes across as tacky and desperate.
Jul 17
yay! leftovers commented on But Where Did The Cars Go?.
yay! leftovers commented on But Where Did The Cars Go?.
@26
Fair enough. But if Frank Chopp isn't all powerful, he's pretty fucking close. The only reason his Great Wall of Chopp didn't move forward was that it was clearly, by all accounts an out-of-this-world stupid design. Anything closer to reality and we'd probably have a very different looking viaduct replacement plan right about now.
Also, for what it's worth, the Embarcadero isn't a very nice place to hang out. I'm hoping the surface street that they're planning now will create a much nicer bike/pedestrian environment than what they've got down in San Francisco.
Fair enough. But if Frank Chopp isn't all powerful, he's pretty fucking close. The only reason his Great Wall of Chopp didn't move forward was that it was clearly, by all accounts an out-of-this-world stupid design. Anything closer to reality and we'd probably have a very different looking viaduct replacement plan right about now.
Also, for what it's worth, the Embarcadero isn't a very nice place to hang out. I'm hoping the surface street that they're planning now will create a much nicer bike/pedestrian environment than what they've got down in San Francisco.
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