Starting as soon as Monday, August 15th, the City of Seattle will begin making significant traffic changes to North 34th Street, west of Fremont Avenue North. These changes will create a protected bike lane on N 34th St, between the Fremont Bridge and the Burke-Gilman Trail, as detailed in a Fremocentrist column from November 2015. Some changes to the original plan have been made, after a large and loud outcry from the community.
In order to make room for the protected bike lane, vehicle traffic will now be restricted on N 34th to one-way going west. Also, white posts will be installed to protect the bike lane – and divide it from parked cars on the south side of N 34th St. Good news is that the traffic island – or the PCC Pond as it has been called – at Evanston Ave N will be removed, and crosswalks for pedestrians at the intersections will be repainted.
Construction of all the changes should take up to three weeks to complete (weather permitting,) and No Parking signs along the street warn of restrictions through early September. The City has also announced that, in one year, they will return for a follow-up study on the results of the changes, and promised that immediate issues will be responded to with site visits, data analysis and possible modifications. Funding for these changes has come through the Move Seattle Levy. More information on this project can be found on the Seattle.gov website.