Washington State Moving Ahead With Complete Streets

Ryan Packer reports for The Urbanist on the details of the Move Ahead Washington law, also known as SB 5974, approved by the Seattle Legislature in March 2022. As explained by Packer, Move Ahead Washington is ambitious in its scope, requiring the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to “identify gaps that exist in pedestrian or bike networks, and work with local jurisdictions to fill them” for every state transportation project that started design after July 1 of this year with a cost of over $500,000.

In the law’s own words, “In order to improve the safety, mobility, and accessibility of state highways, it is the intent of the legislature that the department must incorporate the principles of complete streets with facilities that provide street access with all users in mind, including pedestrians, bicyclists, and public transportation users…”

As noted by Packer, the law could have had a huge impacts on large projects completed before Move Ahead Washington took effect, such as the repaving of Seattle’s Lake City Way, also known as State Route 522. Other projects are already subject to the law’s mandate for complete streets, however, such as a project on the aging Omak Bridge across the Okanogan River in north-central Washington.

“Previously the bridge was planned to be refurbished and widened by removing sidewalks, with a separate pedestrian and bike bridge built just to the north. Now, in part due to this guidance, WSDOT is recommending a full replacement of the bridge with a bike and pedestrian facility included,” reports Packer.