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Transportation Commission

BEL-TRC-2025-10-14 October 14, 2025 Transportation Commission City of Bellingham 55 min
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The Transportation Commission approved five Community Streets Program projects for construction in 2025, marking the completion of the program's first year focusing on the Cordata, Meridian, King Mountain, Irongate, Barkley, and Silver Beach neighborhoods. After extensive data collection and analysis of 20 study locations, staff recommended projects on Tremont Avenue, Magrath Road, Sylvan Street, Silver Beach Avenue, and Peters Street, with a total budget of approximately $180,000. The commission engaged in substantial discussion about the program's scoring methodology, the balance between data-driven decision-making and community perception of safety concerns, and the need for additional traffic calming options beyond speed humps. The meeting also featured updates on several major policy initiatives, including the speed limit setting policy that will go before City Council in late February 2026, expansion of paid parking zones in downtown and Fairhaven, and progress on the Bellingham Plan adoption process. Staff provided updates on the Transportation Report on Annual Mobility (TRAM) and the ongoing challenges with implementing the Commute Trip Reduction program due to legal review requirements. Chair Addie Candib shared concerns about the invasive nature of the WCOG household travel survey, raising questions about data collection methodology and participant retention. The commission discussed upcoming work plan items including automatic traffic safety cameras, Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan goals, and officer elections.

**Community Streets Program Projects (APPROVED 7-0):** The commission approved five projects for construction: Study ID #3 (Tremont Avenue, Corona Court to Guide Meridian, 3 speed humps, ~$67,000), Study ID #10 (Magrath Road, McLeod Road to Tree Farm Lane, 2 speed humps, ~$44,400), Study ID #13 (Silver Beach Avenue, Sylvan Street to North Shore Drive, combined treatment with Sylvan Street), Study ID #12 (Sylvan …

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**Community Streets Program Methodology:** Commissioners engaged in extensive discussion about balancing data-driven analysis with community perceptions of safety. The scoring system ranked projects from 1-40 points, with the highest-scoring project (Tremont Avenue) receiving only 23 points. Staff explained that 70 residents petitioned for a study on Chautauqua Street, but data showed only 100 vehicles per day and no significant speeding issues. Commissioner Jamin Agosti argued that Level of Traffic Stress (LTS) measures perception of safety problems and that 70 residents identifying concerns constitutes a real problem regardless of speed data. Staff maintained that the program's budget should address documented safety issues, while pointing residents with perception-based concerns to neighborhood project resources. **Traffic Calming Options:** Discussion centered on expanding beyond speed humps and traffic circles as default treatments. Commissioners advocated for "quick build" solutions using flex posts and paint for lower-cost inter…
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**Miles Silverman (Public Comment):** Opposed fire department requirements for 11-foot minimum travel lane widths citywide, arguing this would undermine traffic calming through lane narrowing and prevent high-quality separated bicycle infrastructure. Advocated for smaller fire trucks as used in European cities to maintain flexibility in street design. **Commissioner Jamin Agosti:** Strongly advocated for addressing community perception of safety concerns even when data doesn't support engineering interventions. Argued for cheaper quick-build solutions using flex posts and paint to address more locations within budget constraints. Emphasized that LTS measures perception, making resident concerns valid regardless of speed data. **Commissioner Jonathan Huegel:** Questioned deviation from the ranking system, expressing concern…
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**Miles Silverman, on lane width requirements:** "If drivers feel unsafe driving too quickly, then they will drive at a safe speed for everyone else, providing benefits for safety for pedestrians, noise pollution, air pollution, all of that stuff." **Commissioner Jamin Agosti, on community perception:** "70 people in the community telling us that there's a problem on the street is a problem, whether or not people are going 19 or 22 miles an hour... I think a perceived concern is proba…
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**February 2026:** Speed Limit Setting Policy before City Council **January 2026:** Traffic Safety Coalition workshop on speed limit policy **November/December 2025:** TRAM update to Transportation Commission **November 3, 2025:** First public hearing on Bellingham Plan **November 17 & December 8, 2025:** Final Bellingham Plan adoption meetings **January …

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The Community Streets Program completed its first cycle with five approved projects representing $180,000 in traffic calming investments for Group A neighborhoods. The program methodology was refined based on lessons learned, including the need to examine crash data more closely to distinguish between legitimate safety concerns and non-traffic related incidents like backing into mailboxes. Staff will develop additional criteria for minimum safety scores to qualify for engineering interventions. The paid parking …
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# Navigating Safety Concerns and Community Streets Projects The Bellingham Transportation Commission convened on October 14, 2025, for what would become a deep dive into the city's approach to neighborhood traffic safety and the challenging balance between data-driven analysis and resident concerns. Meeting in the Pacific Street Operations Center, commissioners wrestled with fundamental questions about how to prioritize safety improvements when community perceptions don't always align with engineering data. ## Public Concern Over Lane Width Requirements The meeting opened with public comment from Miles Silverman, calling in to express concerns about a potential fire department requirement for 11-foot minimum travel lane widths throughout Bellingham. Speaking with evident passion about road safety, Silverman argued that such a requirement would undermine the city's ability to use one of its most effective traffic calming tools: narrower lanes. "In my experience, when I've driven on roads with narrower lanes, it feels less safe to drive faster, whereas when I drive on roads with wider lanes, it feels safe to drive faster," Silverman explained, highlighting how lane width affects driver behavior beyond just accommodation of emergency vehicles. He emphasized that with Bellingham currently working to lower speed limits on arterial roadways, maintaining flexibility in lane design was crucial for comprehensive traffic safety. His concerns extended to bicycle infrastructure, noting that concrete-separated bike lanes—like those in Seattle and Toronto—require space that often must come from somewhere. "Where are you going to use the space to provide those concrete buffers?" he asked, pointing out that the choice often comes down to taking space from either bikes or cars, with the latter being preferable for overall safety. Chair Addie Candib invited Silverman to wrap up as his three-minute comment period concluded, and he used his final moments to suggest that the fire department consider smaller fire trucks, citing successful European models. ## The Heart of the Matter: Community Streets Program Results The evening's main business centered on Shane Sullivan's presentation of the Commu…
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### Meeting Overview The Bellingham Transportation Commission met on October 14, 2025, with their primary focus on approving the Community Streets Program (CSP) project list for construction. The commission evaluated 20 traffic safety studies and selected 5 projects for implementation, while also receiving updates on speed limit policy work and parking management expansions. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Community Streets Program (CSP):** A 4-year rotating program that addresses traffic safety concerns on residential streets through community input and data-driven analysis, focusing on one geographic area of the city each year. **Point-to-Cost Ratio:** A metric used to compare the safety score of each project against its estimated construction cost, helping prioritize which projects deliver the best value per dollar spent. **Speed Humps:** Asphalt traffic calming devices that cost approximately $22,000 each and are the preferred treatment for addressing speeding concerns on residential streets. **Level of Traffic Stress (LTS):** A measurement scale from 1-4 that evaluates how stressful a street feels for pedestrians and cyclists, with LTS-1 being comfortable for all ages and abilities. **85th Percentile Speed:** The speed at or below which 85% of drivers travel, used as a key metric for determining if speeding is a problem on a given street. **Traffic Circles:** Permanent traffic calming installations at intersections, previously installed under earlier traffic calming programs as an alternative to speed humps. **Cut-Through Traffic:** Vehicles using residential streets as shortcuts to avoid congestion on main roads, often creating safety and livability concerns for neighborhoods. **Quick-Build Solutions:** Low-cost, temporary traffic calming measures using materials like flex posts and paint that can be implemented faster and cheaper than permanent infrastructure. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Addie Candib | Transportation Commission Chair | | Shane Sullivan | City Traffic Engineer, PE, PTOE | | Tim Hohmann | Assistant Director of Public Works-Transportation | | Jamin Agosti |…
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Transportation & Infrastructure Land Use & Planning Public Safety Government Operations City Council City Of Bellingham Public Works Transportation Commission Walk And Roll Bellingham Wcog Wta Aaron Miller Addie Candib Andrea Reiter Cindy Dennis Dylan Casper Jacki Quinn Jamin Agosti Jonathan Huegel Mike Wilson Miles Silverman Shane Sullivan Steve Haugen Tim Hohmann Behavioral Health Bellingham Plan Budget Finance Community Engagement Community Streets Program Land Use Policy Parking Public Safety Speed Limits Traffic Calming Transportation Policy