May News: Stories of Success from Move Ahead Washington

Dear friends,

We hope you’re enjoying the return of warmer days. As you get outside, don’t forget to hop on your bike — Bike Everywhere Month runs through the end of May. Then, get ready for Ride Transit Month starting June 1! We can’t wait to celebrate the importance of transit with you. Stay tuned for more details next week.

In our May newsletter, you’ll find the recording from our recent Move Ahead Washington Transit Talk, photos from the 2 Line opening day celebrations, a must-read book by our friend and mobility justice advocate Anna Zivarts, and more! 

Keep moving,

– Transportation Choices Coalition

Hosting a Transit Talk — Watch the Recording!

Yesterday, we held our first Transit Talk of the year to explore what the Move Ahead Washington transportation package has made possible, and why it’s important to protect and expand funding for transit, walking, biking, and other investments in a clean and livable future.

TCC’s Executive Director Kirk Hovenkotter moderated the conversation with our fantastic panel of speakers including Representative Joe Fitzgibbon (34th Legislative District), David Mendoza (Director of Policy and Government Relations, The Nature Conservancy), Angie Peters (General Manager, Valley Transit), and Cheryl Chow (Youth Activist, Citizens’ Climate Lobby).

Watch the recording here.

Releasing Our First Move Ahead Success Story: A Win for Transit Access in Whatcom County

Whatcom Transportation Authority staff and representatives from the Lummi Nation. Photo courtesy of WTA.

Two years into Move Ahead Washington, communities from Palouse to the Peninsula are benefiting from unprecedented investments in transit and active transportation. Our Move Ahead story series highlights the successes and positive impacts we have heard from agencies and riders across the state.

Our first story comes from Whatcom County. After Move Ahead’s passage, Whatcom Transportation Authority established a brand-new, $500,000 Transit Access Fund to support access to transit through the development of active transportation infrastructure near bus stops. In its first cycle, the Transit Access Fund is funding two significant projects.

One is the Route 50 Lummi Nation project. Though the Lummi Nation Tribal Administrative Building is the heart of that community and is accessible via Route 50, the amenities for transit riders were sparse. Riders had no shelter, access for wheelchair users was challenging, and there were no opportunities to safely park a bike for riders making multi-modal trips…

Keep reading. 

Celebrating the Opening of the 2 Line!

TCC Staff at the Overlake Village Station. Photo by Original Studios.

We had so much fun celebrating the opening of the new 2 Line on the Eastside. From a packed ribbon-cutting ceremony to fantastic community events at all eight of the new stations, thousands of transit fans (and some transit newbies) showed up in force. The 2 Line will connect thousands of people from Bellevue to Redmond and get them to jobs, healthcare, entertainment, and more. And, sometime next year, it will extend all the way to Seattle!

At the Overlake Village Station, we gave out more than 450 “I Rode Day 1” t-shirts in just a couple of hours. We talked to folks from the Eastside ready for a shorter and more comfortable commute, transit trekkers who came down from Bellingham for the day, a woman purchasing her very first Orca Card, and amazing advocates from all over the state.

Check out our photo gallery from the celebration courtesy of Original Studios.

Engaging with the Seattle Transportation Levy

Press conference for Mayor Harrel’s final transportation levy proposal.

Last month, we encouraged you to weigh in on the draft Seattle Transportation Levy proposal, and ask for more money for transit, walking, and biking. We’re happy to report that your advocacy, along with the efforts of our partners across the city, was successful! Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell’s final Transportation Levy proposal includes:

• An additional $20 million to make buses faster and more reliable
• An additional $20 million for safe bike routes
• An additional $26 million for sidewalks to transit
• A commitment to accelerate sidewalk spending and build over 250 blocks of sidewalks within the first four years of the levy

We’re excited about these additional investments and look forward to working with the Seattle City Council to build upon the strong foundation of the mayor’s proposal. The next public hearing will be on May 21 at 4:30 PM.

Our message to Council is simple: Seattle voters want a levy that is ambitious about the basics. And for a city that wants to lead in the 21st century, the basics are safe walks to transit, bus lanes that speed up buses, active public spaces, and protected bike lanes, along with smooth roads and strong bridges. We know these investments will make Seattle safer and more accessible. The Council should work quickly to make the levy even stronger and then send it to voters. 

Celebrate Ride Transit Month This June!

Ride Transit Month is almost here! We have many ways for you to engage with us this year, from the return of Transit Bingo to fun events like Transit Trivia and Ride Transit Night at the Ballpark. We can’t wait to celebrate transit with you all throughout June!

 There are two ways for you to get involved right now:

1. Are you interested in submitting a Ride Transit Month proclamation to your local city or county council? We’re here to help!
2. Do you have ideas for Seattle Transit Trivia rounds or questions?

Let us know! Reach out to McKenna Lux at mckenna@transportationchoices.org.

Rent a FREE Adaptive Bike or Trike in Seattle

May is Bike Everywhere Month, and there’s still time to get in on the fun! We especially want to highlight this resource for folks in or near Seattle:

During the summer, Outdoors for All offers FREE adaptive bike and trike rentals at an Adaptive Cycling Center in partnership with SDOT. The program is located at Building 406 in Magnuson Park and it offers one of the largest selections of adaptive bikes in the country! There are options for riders with physical, developmental, or cognitive disabilities and for folks who used to ride a standard bicycle but no longer feel comfortable for balance and safety reasons.

Learn more here. 

Tell Us Why Transit Service Matters to You!

Transit service in Washington is under threat from Initiative 2117. To show what’s at stake, we’re collecting stories from transit riders about why transit matters to them. Will you share your story? Please tell us why you take transit, what impact it has on your life, and what it would mean to lose transit service. Thank you!

Share your transit story. 

WA road deaths jump 10%, reaching 33-year high. What are we doing wrong? — The Seattle Times

“Kirk Hovenkotter, executive director of the statewide Transportation Choices Coalition, said a solution has less to do with motorist behavior than street design.”

READ MORE

Next stop: Sound Transit East Line now links Bellevue to Redmond — Cascade PBS

“People crowded each station entrance to watch the ribbon-cutting and cheered all the way down the tracks as two trains pulled in. Riders were excited as they filled cars, many with no specific destination in mind.”

READ MORE

Letter to the Editor: Hey transit board, improve the Tri-Cities system, don’t dismantle it — Tri-City Herald

“Ridership for the Benton Franklin bus system is approximately 8,300 per day. That’s 8,300 riders who cannot afford a car with high gas prices and insurance rates.”

READ MORE

Yes, hiking. No, traffic. Trailhead Direct offers car-free travel from Seattle to the mountains  — KUOW

“The transit-to-trails service provides rides every half hour to the super popular Mount Si, as well as the return, after a two-year absence, of hourly trips to the Issaquah Alps.”

READ MORE

Kitsap Transit ferry crews recognized for commitment to safety — Headways

“In 2023, our vessel crews assisted a boat owner whose vessel was on fire, de-escalated a situation where a man attempted to steal a fast ferry, assisted in the evacuation of the Washington State Ferries’ vessel Walla Walla after it was grounded in Rich Passage, and administered Narcan to a passenger aboard one of our ferries.”

READ MORE

When Driving Is Not An Option

Our friend Anna Zivarts at Disability Mobility Initiative recently released a new book, When Driving Is Not An Option. Anna is a longtime mobility justice advocate and I’m confident this book will inspire so many people. As a bibliophile and transit advocate, I knew I had to make this book my staff pick! I had the pleasure of listening to Anna speak about her book at Town Hall Seattle and am so excited to dive in and read. Transit is my primary mode of transportation, and I know that centering the needs of transit riders, specifically, those who cannot drive, will have profound benefits on all our communities. Will you join me this month in reading Anna’s new book?

McKenna Lux
Events & Engagement Manager

Help Defend Our Transportation Future!

We won billions of dollars for transit, walking, and biking with Move Ahead Washington, but now a right-wing megadonor threatens to reverse our hard-won gains with I-2117.

We’re in this fight, but we need your help! Together, we can protect the transportation future we need and deserve. Please donate to support our work.