Kirkland Greenways Launches Effort to Find Safe Routes for Bicycling

A fledgling effort to find safe routes for bicycling by the recently formed group Kirkland Greenways will be addressed at three upcoming neighborhood meetings, as well as at the city’s “Walk and Roll Safety Fair” on June 7.

The idea behind the plan, similar to a successful effort in Portland, is to encourage the city to designate certain low-volume, low-speed roads as greenways for bicycles, and create a network of them linking neighborhoods, schools and downtown Kirkland.

The group was started by south Rose Hill residents Glen Buhlmann and his wife Caron LeMay, whose world was rocked by the death of Kirkland bicycle commuter Bradley Nakatani in December of 2011, hit by a driver police say was driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

“His death really impacted our family,” says Buhlmann. “We both worked for technology companies, both bike commuted and were both safety conscious. I had convinced myself that I was being safe, and that made me feel vulnerable.

“We decided to get involved and make Kirkland safer, for all modes of transportation.”

Proponents say Portland’s greenways network has decreased traffic accidents involving bikes and vehicles.

The Kirkland Greenways group has been making the rounds of neighborhood groups describing the plan. It has meet with the mayor and pitched the idea to the city Transportation Commission.

“The reaction has been, overall, positive,” Buhlmann says. “They all seem interested and excited. This isn’t about closing streets or taking cars off the streets.”

Rather, a greenway would be a route largely away from arterials where the volume of vehicle traffic is low and speeds limits are low. It could be marked with signs, both traditional stand-up signs showing the route and painted on the street surface.

The group hopes the city will incorporate greenways as it updates its Master Transportation Plan. That will be part of the city’s overall Comprehensive Plan update, scheduled to begin in earnest this summer and fall and adopted sometime in 2014.

You can learn more by attending any of the following scheduled meetings:

• Tuesday, May 14, at the South Rose Hill/Bridle Trails neighborhood association meeting.  This meeting will take place at Lake Washington United Methodist, from 7-9 p.m.

• Monday, May 20, at the North Rose Hill Neighborhood Association meeting. This meeting will take place at Fire Station 26, 7-9 p.m.

• May 29 at the  Finn Hill Neighborhood Association meeting, Finn Hill Middle School, from  6:30-7 p.m.

• Kirkland Greenways will also have a booth at the Walk ‘n’ Roll Safety Fair on Friday, June 7, at Juanita Beach Park from  3-7 p.m.