WA Dropping Law That Requires New License Plates Every Seven Years

The Washington state law that requires vehicle owners to buy new license plates after seven years is going away. Now you can keep your license plate as long as you want it and it's in good condition.

And some traffic signals that are supposed to change based on traffic demand aren't working correctly at several intersections in the City of Spokane. That's about to change though.

The Spokesman-Review's "Getting There" column has a round up of transportation happenings.

Final SRTC Board Meeting of the Year

How does this happen? How did it get to be December already? Well it did, and that means the last SRTC Board meeting of the year is next week. The agenda is here. Check it out and feel free to attend if something catches your eye. All SRTC committee meetings are open to the public and there's a "public comment" item on every agenda in case you have transportation-related thoughts you'd like to share.

Ales 4 the Trail

Let's face it, you don't really need an excuse to drink beer, but if it makes you feel better, here's one that's for a good cause.

Celebrate Spokane's Centennial Trail with an "Ales 4 the Trail" event next Monday, Dec. 8 from 3-8 p.m. at River City Brewing, 121 S. Cedar St. in Spokane.

One dollar from every pint sold will benefit Friends of the Centennial Trail, the advocacy voice for our Centennial Trail. Your support helps fill in the gaps, fix asphalt cracks/heaves and advocate for Trail care and maintenance year after year.

Open House On US 2/SR 206 to Day-Mt. Spokane Road Project

US 2 and Day-Mt. Spokane Road intersection

Mark your calendar if you live or drive through the US 2/SR 206 to Day Mt. Spokane Road area. The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is hosting an open house on Tuesday, Dec. 16 from 6-7:30 p.m. at Mountainside Middle School, 4717 E. Day-Mt. Spokane Rd. to talk about some proposed changes to that corridor.

In particular, some of the proposals you might be interested in include possibly putting a traffic circle at Day Mt. Spokane Road and Highway 2. There are also some work planned for the medians, such as preventing left turns to and from business accesses, installing some bike and pedestrian infrastructure and paving part of Yale Road.

There isn't much on the WSDOT website about this yet so I'll keep you updated when I see more posted or receive more information.

Bus Rapid Transit Taking Off Around the World

If you've been paying any attention to Spokane Transit's plans for the future lately, you've probably heard mention of "bus rapid transit." Bus rapid transit (BRT) is longer distance transit service with few stops. Wikipedia says it's sometimes described as a "surface subway," combining the capacity and speed of light rail or metro with the flexibility, lower cost and simplicity of a bus system.

So why do I mention BRT? Because a post on Jarrett Walker's Human Transit blog from yesterday talks about a new study that shows that growth of BRT around the world has been explosive in recent years. It's growing fastest in Latin America, followed by middle-wealth countries like China, India, Mexico, and Brazil. 

Why these locations? For a number of reasons that you can find in the article here. Also, you'll be surprised I think at just how fast BRT has grown in a decade.

Honda Expands Airbag Recall

Under pressure from federal regulators, Honda is expanding a recall of driver’s side air bags to all 50
states, according to the Spokesman-Review.

The air bags, made by Japanese supplier Takata Corp., can explode with too much force, sending metal shrapnel into the passenger compartment.

Takata insists that current recalls covering 8 million U.S. cars in high-humidity areas are sufficient. But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wants the recalls expanded nationwide after some incidents outside the high-humidity zones.

Freight Mobility Plan Aims to Boost Washington's Economy

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has just released the 2014 Washington State Freight Mobility Plan, which says investing in our freight system is key to growing local and state economies.

Washington’s multimodal freight transportation system supported 44 percent of the state’s jobs and $123 billion in total imports and exports in 2012, according to the plan. However, the state’s highways, bridges, short-line railroads and waterways continue to face challenges caused by delayed maintenance, increased congestion and global competition.

If you're interested, but don't want to read a full report, or you want to see more of what's inside before committing to reading the full report, here's what the plan features:

• A series of YouTube videos that put a face on workers’ and residents’ use of freight systems. 
• An interactive infographic illustrating the facts and figures of the state’s freight system. 
• An executive summary explaining the key findings and recommendations of the study. 
• The full report, which makes the economic case for preserving and improving the state’s multimodal freight systems. 

Plow App Can Get A Snow Plow To Your House When You Need One

You've heard of the Uber or Lyft apps that let you request a ride to take you where you need to go, when you need to go?

Well now there's a similar app to get a snow plow to come to your house on the east coast. PlowMe lets you request one-time snow removal, or set up automatic service anytime it snows. The app has about 60 private plow drivers around Boston, New Hampshire, Denver and Chicago just waiting to get a request. Then they drive to your house, plow your driveway and shovel your walk if that's what you want, and move on to the next place.

Part of the appeal of this app is that it avoids price gouging on days of big storms by letting consumers specify how much they're willing to pay.

Here are the details.

No Bus Horn Developed To Warn Pedestrians Distracted by Phones

Buses in Manchester, in the United Kingdom, are getting a kinder, gentler horn to alert pedestrians engrossed in their phones. Instead of a loud traditional horn sound, buses will be equipped with a "horn" that has eight dings, followed by a voice saying ‘take care, vehicle approaching’, then five more dings.

The warning was developed after pedestrians said they found  the traditional horn 'aggressive.' Really?? Well, it is a horn.

You can hear the new horn here. There's also more to the story here.

Secret Santas May Plug Your Meter

Along with writing parking tickets, Spokane City Parking Enforcement crews will be performing random acts of kindness during the holiday season, plugging parking meters for some visitors to Downtown Spokane.

According to a City press release, every year City crews plug random parking meters starting on Black Friday through New Year’s Day. It's an effort to encourage people to come downtown during the holiday season to celebrate and support downtown businesses. In December 2013, parking enforcement officers gave more than $400 worth of free parking to downtown visitors.

The City’s nine parking enforcement officers will operate as ‘secret Santas’ during normal parking meter hours (8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday).

Money to plug parking meters is donated from the City’s parking meter revenue funds.

City to Move Ahead With "Gateway" Project

The entrance to downtown Spokane at
Division and Third Ave.

The city of Spokane is going to move ahead with a project to "beautify" the Division Street entrance to downtown at Interstate 90.

New landscaping and walkways will be combined with a series of themed sculptures to welcome people to the city.

The Spokesman-Review has more details on this project, and why earlier attempts to do the same thing have been scrapped.

Highway Project Trees Removed- Because They Block A Billboard

Dozens of palm trees recently planted as part of a construction project in Miami have just been un-
planted (yes, I know that's not a word)- because they blocked a billboard. And one that may be illegal, at that. And the Florida Department of Transportation said that's okay. In fact, it was their idea to dig the trees back up again. What??

Here's the story from the Miami Herald.

Are Studded Snow Tires Losing Traction In Public Opinion?

There's a lot of debate over just how badly studded tires damage our roadways. But it may not be an issue much longer. Results from a recent survey show that most people make a conscious effort not to buy studded snow tires.

The survey also showed a difference in opinion on studded tires between the east and west sides of Washington state. And between age groups, with younger people using studs much more than older drivers. But why?

The Spokesman-Review has more on the poll.

Work Off That Turkey

Do you just lie on the couch all weekend after Thanksgiving is over? Not this year! Washington Bikes wants you to join them to work off the turkey, stuffing and gravy. 

After you burn some calories in the cold, ride organizers will refuel you with hot cider and swap tips and stories about cold-weather riding.

Date: Saturday, Nov. 29, 2014

Time: 1pm

Location: Meet at the Rotary Fountain, Riverfront Park

Cost: $20 in advance or at the ride (arrive by 12:45 if you aren't pre-registered; they can take cash, check, or credit card). Ride registration is a tax-deductible donation to Washington Bikes, your statewide voice for better bicycling.

Registration: http://wabikes.org/2014/11/18/two-wheels-turkey-bike-ride-spokane-20-miles/ 

​

Letter Writer Defends Traffic Circles For Pedestrian Safety

Spokesman-Review Letter to the Editor
Traffic Circle Vetted

To John Yates and others in Spokane who speak without knowledge regarding our neighborhood traffic circle:

The Lyons Avenue and Cincinnati Street traffic circle project began after my husband was struck by a car in 2011. He was a pedestrian crossing this intersection. As a resident, I went to my neighborhood council and received permission to use money from the red light fines to make our residential street a safer, less traffic-used area. The red light funds are not taxpayer money. They come from those who have failed to follow the law.

Next, the traffic circle was unanimously voted for by the people on this street and those nearby. We, the people on Lyons, are happy to see the changes made because this is not an arterial. We were disappointed the engineers created a less-aggressive traffic circle than what we expected. The circle could have been more similar to Seattle’s thousands of residential traffic circles, involving reflectors and a 45-degree-edge curb.

If you would like to travel down a street at speeds greater than 25 mph or avoid a traffic circle, I welcome you to use Francis Avenue, which is an arterial.

Alice Moon
Spokane

Vodka Leftovers May De-Ice Our Roads

Vodka isn't just for drinking anymore- it could help to de-ice our roads soon! Because road salt is hard on our roads, vehicles and the environment, researchers at our own Washington State University are using barley residue from vodka distilleries to develop environment-friendly deicers to combat highway snow. Why not? It was just going to go to waste anyway.

Time has the details on this.

Bio-Bus Runs On Human Waste

The bus route between Bristol and Bath in the United Kingdom should be called the number 2. That's because it's the first "bio-bus" that runs on human waste.

With a full tank, the bus can travel up to 186 miles, while producing up to 30% fewer emissions compared to diesel-powered buses. And get this- one person's annual waste could power the bus for around 37 miles.

Want to know more? I'm not sure I do, but here's the story from KXLY News. 

AAA Predicts Travel To Be Down This Thanksgiving

Now THIS is my idea of holiday travel!

AAA is predicting a decline in travel this holiday week. The motor club says 43.4 million Americans are likely to travel 50 miles or more from home over the five-day period starting Wednesday.

That's a 1.5 percent decline from last year. The decrease is even greater for air travel, which is expected to be down by 3.7 percent to 3.14 million air travelers this year.

Automobiles will carry 38.9 million travelers, down from 39.5 million last year.

AAA said lower gasoline prices might entice travelers, but a lot of Americans are still uncertain about the direction of the economy and that is causing more of them to forgo travel this holiday.

Government Offices Closed, But Free Parking and Bus Rides

It's a short week for us government folks. Get your government business done by Wednesday, otherwise you have to wait until next Monday.

All area government offices will be closed this Thursday and Friday, November 27 and 28, for Thanksgiving.

  

If you're going to try to get some shopping action in after eating on Thursday, parking meters do NOT have to be plugged on Thursday. For the rest of the Thanksgiving weekend, normal meter use rules apply.

If you want to just skip parking at all, Friday is free ride day on Spokane Transit buses. Go wherever you want to go- all day- free. Info at www.spokanetransit.com.

Pay Your Parking Meter By Phone In Spokane

Drivers can now ‘plug’ certain City parking meters using their smartphones in Spokane. A test period for the pay by phone technology launched today.

The test includes 41 meters on the block adjacent to City Hall and Riverfront Park.

To use pay by phone parking, you must download the QuickPay App onto your smartphones. A link to the app can be found at SpokaneCity.org.  If the maximum time limit is purchased for a parking meter, smartphone users are allowed a one-time paid extension of 15 minutes on that meter. After the maximum limit including the extension expires, drivers must move their vehicle. Drivers who attempt to use the pay by phone feature after the maximum time limit allowed will receive a message that they have exceeded the stay allowance at that meter. When setting up QuickPay on a smartphone, users can choose to receive notice of payment and time expiration via text, email, or both.

When the test period is over, the pay by phone feature will be gradually extended to all 3, 000 meters in the City.