Olympia Dispatch – First Cutoff + Free to Walk Hearing – Week of Feb. 13, 2023

For the first time ever, data on police stops for jaywalking in Washington state conclusively shows what many people have understood for years: Jaywalking enforcement disproportionately impacts our Black and unhoused community members. Black pedestrians are stopped by police for jaywalking at an average rate approximately four times that of their share of the population, and unhoused residents represent nearly half of those impacted by jaywalking stops in Washington.

Even though the Free to Walk bills’ committee hearings are over, there’s still a chance for your voice to be heard.

Email Your Legislators

TCC is currently developing the next iteration of our Strategic Plan, which will chart a path for us to advocate for a safe, affordable, and reliable transportation system for all. As an engaged advocate your input matters to us, and we’re excited to hear from you via our survey—open until February 17th. Each respondent will be entered in our raffle to win an exclusive TCC Transit hat, a Kindle eReader, or Bluetooth headphones! 


What happened this week

Monday afternoon was jam-packed with both Senate and House hearings on various transportation-related bills:

SB 5383 –  Concerning pedestrians crossing and moving along roadways.

While we couldn’t fit in too many testifiers thanks to a jam-packed hearing for another bill on the agenda, our testimony was strong. Plus, it was accompanied by a swath of people signing in PRO. Watch the Senate Hearing

SB 5466 – Promoting transit-oriented development. 

TCC spoke in support of this bill, which makes significant steps toward providing affordable housing investments near high density transit. Watch the hearing.

SB 5572 – Improving traffic safety.

We spoke in support of this ACLU-led bill that would end nonmoving traffic violations and create a grant program to support low-income drivers address equipment failures. Watch the hearing.

SB 5452 – Authorizing impact fee revenue to fund improvements to bicycle and pedestrian facilities. 

TCC supports this bill that would authorizing existing impact fees to be able to fund multimodal infrastructure improvements. Watch the hearing.

Additionally, there will be a work session this afternoon in the Senate Transportation Committee for workforce development in transportation. You can watch it here.

What happened last week

We had a great turnout in the House jaywalking repeal hearing. Hundreds of people signed in PRO for our jaywalking repeal bills (thank you!), and we had incredible advocates testifying directly to legislators. Watch the House Hearing

We also had great media coverage:

• The Case for Legalizing Jaywalking (Mother Jones)
  
• Legalizing jaywalking to reduce enforcement inequities considered at Washington statehouse (KUOW) 
  

To learn more about the campaign to repeal jaywalking laws in Washington State, visit Free to Walk Washington. Ride on!