Speed, Streets, and Safety for All: Followup Information and Recap
Posted on to News (Updated )
On Wednesday May 7, the NCNA hosted a public meeting regarding traffic safety. Speed, Streets, and Safety for All was generously hosted by the North City Water District in their conference room. The event turnout was a success, with a nearly-full room of about 50 attendees. Urbanist Shoreline was our partner in developing the event content and we thank Katie Lorah for her energy and enthusiasm.
NCNA board members greet attendees at the North City Water District conference room
Dustin DeKoekkoek from the civil engineering firm Toole Design opened the presentation with a summary of current national trends in traffic crashes, noting increases in speed and fatalities, particularly for pedestrians. This trend has been moving upwards since 2010. One very memorable visual showed the relationship between speed and fatalities in car/pedestrian crashes:
NTSB Graphic (source)
City of Shoreline Traffic Engineer Kendra Dedinsky followed with a deep dive into the role the city plays in mitigating this trend. It's a complex and interwoven set of conditions, much of which came from past design decisions that prioritized automobile traffic. Her job with Shoreline Traffic Services is to balance the needs of automobiles, commercial vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, and public transit, within the parameters of safety, budget constraints, and available data.
Many queries were about residential streets. Most interventions are focused on arterials and especially intersections, where the majority of collisions occur. Shoreline has a Traffic Service FAQs web page with detailed answers to the following questions:
- How can I get speed bumps installed on my street?
- What can be done about speeding on my street?
- How can I get sidewalks installed on my street?
- How can I get new crosswalk markings installed?
- I want stop signs installed on all legs of an intersection to control speed and improve traffic safety.
- Drivers are parking in front of my mailbox/driveway – what should I do?
- How does the City address redevelopment related traffic impacts?
- How can our private street transfer ownership to the City so the City can take over maintenance responsibilities?
People with specific service or other requests (such as adding a traffic signal or reporting needed road repair) can be made through the Shoreline Service request page. More info about the Shoreline Sidewalk Prioritization plan is here.
Along with the information in her presentation, Kendra wrote detailed replies to many of the questions. Please view the entire document here.
Kendra Dedinsky and Dustin DeKoekkoek presenting, Kendra fields queries from neighbors.
There is no public infrastructure more universally accessed than our roadways, sidewalks, and transportation networks. It's literally where the rubber meets the road in local government policy and operations.
This process requires capital investment, maintenance budgets, and careful administration. There are many interests to balance, sometimes in competition with each other. We're lucky to have someone as committed to this work as Kendra Dedinsky and deeply appreciate the time and care she's taken to meet residents in person and answer their questions in such detail.
Shoreline was recently awarded a grant to implement safety improvements on NE 175th Street which would reduce it from 4 lanes to 2 lanes in each direction, with a center turn lane and painted bicycle lanes from 5th Ave NE to 15th Ave NE. If funding remains viable, this project will undergo a public engagement process in 2026.
The Shoreline City government works to actively encourage citizen participation. If you have concerns about traffic safety or road projects, see the links above as a starting point. Stay active, stay informed and become engaged. The North City Neighborhood Association is here to help provide connections to the many public services and resources available to our neighbors.
