Know Before You Go With Traffic Info Sent Directly To Your Phone Or Computer

It's now easier to 'know before you go' by getting highway traffic information for the Spokane area and the seven-county WSDOT Eastern Region directly to your home email or your cell phone.


The team at the Spokane Regional Transportation Management Center (SRTMC) keeps an eye on traffic around the region and now, you can sign up to receive these up-to-the-minute messages about road conditions, traffic collisions, and construction to help plan your travels

To get connected, click here to set up an account for your email address or wireless phone. Once you've done that, hit the "Go" button and you'll see a full menu of all the updates you can subscribe to.

The new updates are listed under the "Eastern Traffic" section and the "Eastern" section under Construction Reports. Just select the boxes for the updates you want to receive then click on the "submit" button.

Messages are sent out as incidents occur or conditions change.

Francis Striping Monday

On Monday, March 4th, beginning at 9 a.m., crews will restripe Francis from Market Street to the vicinity of Freya. This re-striping is weather dependent. When this is complete Francis will be one lane in each direction. As a result, drivers should expect congestion and possible delays on Francis Avenue and Market Street, especially during the morning and afternoon commute hours. In addition, westbound drivers on Francis should be alert for flaggers directing traffic near the BNSF railway crossing.

This traffic configuration will be in place for several months.

Packed House For Urban Growth Area Expansion Hearing

A hearing last night on a county proposal to expand the urban growth area (UGA) was packed. There was testimony about how extending the UGA would put taxpayers at risk for the cost of extending public services. And those who said they own tracts of land that could be developed if the proposal goes through. SRTC Transportation Advisory Committee member Kitty Klitzke was at the meeting and asked County Commissioner not to extenda the UGA. The Spokesman-Review summarizes the meeting.

State Admits Mistakes On Seattle Bridge

The new 520 floating bridge in Seattle isn't even open yet and it's already requiring some fixes. A design error caused pontoons that keep the bridge afloat to crack. And that's going to add up to tens of millions of dollars in repairs- which the public will pay because the design was done by Washington State Department of Transportation engineers.

So how was a mistake like this made and what will happen to the engineers that made it? The Seattle Times has details.

Bucked Up Kids Emphasis Patrol

Local law enforcement agencies are increasing enforcement to make sure children are buckled in accordance with Washington law. Every day in the US an average of five children (age 14 and younger) are killed and 548 are injured in vehicle crashes. Child car seats reduce the risk of injury by 71% for infants and 54% for toddlers. Between 1975 and 2007, NHTSA estimates that child car seats saved the lives of 8,709 children. This emphasis patrol is just one strategy aimed at reaching Washington's goal of zero traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2030.


Parents frequently place children in seat belts too soon. Seat belts are designed for adults and do not properly protect children until they are 4’9” tall. Under Washington law, people who transport children are required to adhere to the following basic rules to protect children in the event of a crash:

- Babies until at least age 1 and at least 20 lbs must use rear-facing seats. For best protection, leave child rear-facing until age 2 or longer.

- Keep them in a five-point harness for as long as they fit within the height and weight restrictions for the harness system.

- Children age four and older who have outgrown their five point harness remain in booster seats until 4’9” tall.

- All kids up to age 13 ride in the back seat of the vehicle where practical to do so.

Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children up to age 14. Nearly 73% of car seats are not installed or used correctly and nearly half of the children under the age of 14 who were killed in crashes were completely unrestrained.

Dublin Bicyclists Double In Eight Years!

Wow, what's up with the Irish? According to this Feb. 6th Irish Times article, the number of cyclists in Dublin has doubled in just eight years! Nearly one in every 10 (8.8 percent) journeys taken in the capital now is on a bike, according to data from a recent survey.

The survey also found that pedestrian traffic is up. Why the big change though? Read the article.

Could The Inland Northwest Have It's Own Inland Port?

According to "Midlands Connect," ground is being broken on a new inland port this week in Greer, South Carolina. The port will provide a place to transfer shipping containers between trucks and trains and provide a direct rail link to the Port of Charleston.

South Carolina is a long way away so why should we care? Because the aim of the local Inland Pacific Hub (IPH) project is to eventually have our own inland port. The Inland Northwest is already a hub for commerce for the region/ Because of its central location, it's perfectly positioned to be a key link to competitive commerce in the northern hemisphere. And not only do we have an ideal location, we also have the basic building blocks already in place, such as the Port of Lewiston, Spokane International Airport, an excellent system of Interstate and other highways, two Class I railroads, and an extensive network of fiber that links millions of people together technologically.

And with trade between our region and Pacific Rim countries increasing, it seems like an obvious advantage. While WSDOT led the first phase of the IPH project, and SRTC had the second phase, the initative has now morphed into a phase led by local civic, elected and business leaders to implement strategies to make a local inland port a reality.

Public Meeting For Old Trails/Inland Roads Project

Apparently I forgot to include the location for this meeting when I posted this announcement the first time, so I'm reposting: Spokane County invites you to an Open House on Monday, March 4th to review and comment on a plan to reconstruct and pave Old Trails Road and Inland roads. The project would start at the intersection of Seven Mile and Inland roads and continue two miles to the end of the existing gravel road on Old Trails Road. The proposal involves paving a two-lane roadway with six-foot wide shoulders.
Spokane County Engineering and Roads staff will be available to answer questions from 6-8 p.m. and preliminary plans for the project will be on display at the Riverside State Park Headquarters Building, located at 9711 W. Charles Road, Nine Mile Falls, WA.

Controversial Scanners Being Replaced At Sea-Tac

The controversial “backscatter’’ full-body scanners installed at Sea-Tac Airport are on their way out. Apparenlty they will be replaced by 'less invasive,' safer scanners starting in early April. The Seattle Times has the story on why the change, after just a couple years of using the scanners.

Why'd The Moose Cross The Highway? No One Knows But Canadian Researchers Hope To Find Out

So if you want to know about highway safety, who are you going to ask; an engineer or a moose? A moose apparently. Researchers from the University of Saskatchewan have been tracking moose, gathering data to learn more about their movements, especially around highways. Apparently there are some theories about why the animals are often in close proximity to highways, and the information gathered could help provide answers.

CBS News Saskatchewan has the video below.
 

Urban Growth Area Public Hearing This Week

A public hearing on expanding Spokane County’s Urban Growth Areas (UGAs) is scheduled for Wednesday, February 27th. The hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Hearing Room on the lower level of the Public Works Building, located at 1026 W. Broadway Avenue.


The options under consideration would add nearly 6,000 acres of land for suburban-style subdivisions and 1,000 acres for commercial and industrial use. Many of the areas under consideration are currently held in parcels of 10-to-20 acres. Some of the areas under consideration are included in the proposal because the landowners requested urban designation.

The Board of County Commissioners is basing the expansion on projections that the county’s population will grow from 480,000 residents in 2013 to more than 612,000 by the year 2031.

So what's that have to do with transportation? You've got to build and maintain roads to reach subdivisions.

Is Your Soulmate Waiting For You On An STA Bus?

I'd never read the Craigslist 'Missed Connections' section until I saw this article, but you may want to check it out sometime just for the entertainment value. Missed Connections is where people post about other peopel they either saw but were too shy to talk to or maybe knew in the past but have lost touch and are looking to reconnect. It's pretty much the Craigslist version of the local Inlander's 'I Saw You' section.

Anyway, the magazine Psychology Today decided to map out where we’re missing connections most often analyzing the ads state by state. It turns out “bus” is the most frequently cited spot for missed connections in Washington and Oregon.
The Seattle PI has the story.

Mmmmm Cheese. How My Favorite Food Could Help To Keep Icy Streets Safe

Cheese may give salt a run for it's money when it comes to our favorite food to use to de-ice roads. What the... ? Yep, some local governments, concerned about the environmental threat of runoff from salt used to clear icy streets are turning to more nature-friendly substitutes such as cheese brine, sugarcane molasses and beet juice.


But how do they compare? The Great Falls Tribune takes a look.

New Highway Signs and Highway Lights

Electronic highway signs on Interstate 90 and U.S. Highway 2 are getting an update this year and WSDOT is installing the first in a new generation of overhead highway lights. Here's what's happening around the region in transportation this week from the Spokesman-Review's "Getting There" column.

Report Spokane City Potholes Online Now

Attaching a picture like this won't get your pothole
filled any sooner, by the way.

If you hadn't heard already, the City of Spokane launched a new online way to report potholes last week. 

Just go to http://myspokane.spokanecity.org/mobile/getchrome.html and enter information about the size and location of the pothole. You can also “pin” the location on a map and send along a photo. The reported information will go directly to the City’s Street Department to be scheduled for repair.

The service works on:

• iPhones and iPads with operating systems 5 or 6.
• Droid devices with “ice cream sandwich” or “jelly bean” using a Google Chrome browser.
• Computers with Internet Explorer or Google Chrome browsers.

A short tutorial video on how to use the website is available at http://youtu.be/fGKhjTZnTbI.

If you prefer though, you can continue to report potholes by calling the Street Department at 625-7733. Crews prioritize pothole repairs based on size and location, with the largest potholes on the busiest streets being repaired first.

Minneapolis Proposes Turning Road Into 'Greenway'

Minneapolis is considering banning cars and converting a low traffic street into a 'greenway' for bikes and pedestrians. The North Minneapolis Greenway would run more than 30 blocks north to south and homeowners along it would lose access to the street, which could cause some issues, to say the least.

GearJunkie has a closer look at the idea.

Proposed State Transportation Funding Package Unveiled

House Democrats in Olympia rolled out a nearly $10 billion transportation package yesterday that would boost taxes on gasoline, increase car tabs and even charge a bicycle fee to raise money.


Overall, the package would put billions of dollars into highway projects and ferry operations and terminals.
The Seattle Times takes a close look at the proposed package.

Transportation Technical Committee Meeting Agenda

The next Transportation Technical Committee (TTC) is next Wednesday, February 27. The TTC is a group of technical staff from our member state and local jurisdictions that provides project input and helps assure a coordinated and well-considered regional transportation system. The TTC participates in SRTC's transportation planning program by conducting technical reviews of activities such as work programs and consultant contracts.


The agenda for the meeting is here. Feel free to attend.

Obama Says He Has A Plan To Fund Infrastructure Plans

There was a lot of sniping following last week's State of the Union Address that President Obama's two proposed programs to fix the nation's infrastructure are nice fairy tales but basically a pipe dream due to lack of money to fund them. Not so, says the White House. The big guy's got a plan to back up his talk.

Here's how he's hoping to fund his "Fix It First" policy and "Rebuild America Partnership."

County Motor Vehicle Licensing Office Moving

Spokane County's Motor Vehicle and Vessel Licensing Office will be closed Friday, February 22nd and Monday, February 25th so the office can move from the north corner of the County Courthouse annex to the first floor of the Spokane County Courthouse.


This move is the third phase in the development of the “Customer Service Center” on the first floor of the Courthouse. The Assessor’s customer service personnel and the Auditor’s Recording Office moved into the customer service center during phase one and phase two.

The move is a step in the County's plan to improve customer service on the County campus by locating all  primary customer services on the first floors of Courthouse and Public Works buildings.