TIB Project Information

With the 2029 opening of the Stride S2 Line, Sound Transits bus rapid transit system on the I-405 corridor connecting Bellevue to Lynwood, there is an imminent need to improve multimodal access to the future NE 85th St Stride station. While Sound Transit is funding a shared bike/ped pathway from the station west to 6th Street, there remains an 800ft gap of no eastbound bike facility between the Stride station and the Downtown Kirkland Transit Center at 3rd Street. This gap segment fronts Peter Kirk Park, a community hub co-located with the seasonal swimming pool, teen union building, and senior center. The street frontage of the park has minimum-width sidewalk damaged by tree root upheaval, and there is no buffer between the sidewalk and the roadway. The community need for this project is to complete a walking and bicycling connection from Downtown Kirkland to regional high-capacity transit, and to improve the accessibility and aesthetics of street frontage along Peter Kirk Park.

• Kirklands complete streets ordinance (KMC 19.08.055) states: The safe, convenient and comfortable travel of people of all ages and abilities traveling by any combination of foot, bicycle, transit, or motor vehicle shall be accommodated to the maximum extent practical in the scoping, planning, development, and construction, operation and maintenance of all transportation facilities, including the creation of new transportation linkages in order to create a more connected community-wide transportation network. This project supports all transportation modes by replacing upheaved sidewalk with newly paved sidewalk setback from the roadway with street tree buffer, it creates a new sidewalk-level protected bike lane to enable a complete eastbound bicycle link from 3rd St to the future Stride station, it improves access to both existing local transit service for the routes 230/231 by replacing damaged sidewalk and access to future transit services at the Stride NE 85th St station with new connection, and it preserves existing on-street parking which is highly utilized by patrons of downtown businesses and Peter Kirk park.