Smart growth is the foundation of effective transportation policy, and Seattle’s nationally recognized urban village strategy, adopted in 1994, provides the essential foundation for Seattle’s climate-friendly transportation policies. The passage of the 2015 Levy to Move Seattle and the 2016 regional Sound Transit 3 levy, are accelerating and expanding investments in transit, bicycling, and pedestrian infrastructure and service. And, King County has committed to an all-electric bus fleet by 2040. The overall approach to reducing GHG emissions from transportation is to leverage changes in technology and our increasingly dense city to fundamentally change how people get around. The future of transportation is smart, shared, electric, and ultimately autonomous, and our policies are driving these changes in Seattle in ways that align with our goals to improve connectivity, health, and safety. We are implementing a coordinated strategy of:
• Expanding transit, bicycling, and pedestrian infrastructure and services,
• Expanding charging infrastructure to foster increased adoption of electric vehicles, • Guiding growth to walkable and transit-accessible neighborhoods, and
• Providing price signals that reflect the true cost of driving and incentivize shared and electric transportation choices.
Highlights of recent transportation actions are provided below.
Transportation Choices
Local and regional investments in transit and bike and pedestrian infrastructure have led to significant reductions in single occupant vehicle (SOV) use in Seattle. The period when Seattle has experienced some of its most rapid growth, 2010-2017, has also seen significant progress in commuter mode shift toward more sustainable modes of transportation. During this seven-year period, downtown Seattle has added 45,000 jobs and become more residential, but only 2,255 new drive-alone trips have been added to downtown streets. The overall SOV mode share of commuter trips declined by 10 points to 25 percent and the share of transit trips has steadily increased from 42 percent to 48 percent. Meanwhile, walking to work increased 1.8 basis points to 7.7 percent and the bike share grew to over three percent.
Electric Vehicle Charging in the Right of Way
Visible and ready access to charging infrastructure is essential to expanding vehicle electrification. To meet that need, in 2017, a pilot program was initiated to permit the installation of publicly-available electric vehicle charging stations on non-residential streets in urban villages, urban centers, and commercial streets. To date, over 60 applications have been received from three applicants, including Seattle City Light, who installed the first station in February 2018. The pilot program has strict siting and data sharing guidelines, and applications are reviewed against criteria which will ensure alignment with City policy goals including supporting shared vehicle use and meeting travel needs not well-served by transit. Pilot program results will be reviewed in mid-2018.
Seattle City Light Charging Program
In response to customers’ increasing desire for electric vehicles and to understand how best to manage the impact of vehicle charging on the electrical grid, Seattle City Light is designing and implementing two charging infrastructure pilot programs. The programs will expand public fast charging availability and support residential charging at home. Through the right of way charging pilot program described above, City Light is installing 20 public fast charging stations to increase access, while also ensuring that charging is distributed more equitably around the city. The residential program will offer customers access to inhome charging at a manageable monthly cost and is expected to launch in the fall of 2018. Pending legislation will determine if program funding will leverage a lease or incentive model.
Electrical Code
In 2017, the Seattle Electrical Code was amended to ensure new parking is built to facilitate future electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The code requires adequate electrical capacity to serve one electric vehicle charging station per parking space and that construction documents show the location of equipment and conduit for future installation of electric vehicles charging stations.
New Mobility Playbook
How we get around is undergoing a sea change, and Seattle is preparing for a transportation future that is shared, electric, and autonomous. As transportation becomes increasingly shared, active, self-driving, electric, and data-driven, Seattle is planning ahead to ensure the fast-paced changes in mobility help us create a safe, equitable, sustainable city serving our diverse needs. The 2017 New Mobility Playbook sets out a course for how Seattle will ensure that future of transportation in Seattle aligns with our city’s goals and values and will position Seattle to encourage and guide innovation in transportation technology, reorganizing our streets to grow healthy communities and vibrant public spaces.
Shared Mobility Hubs
Seattle’s Shared Mobility Hub program will aggregate transportation connections, travel information, and other mobility amenities into a seamless, understandable, and on-demand travel experience. The Seattle Transportation Department is developing a dense network of shared mobility hubs throughout the city, co-located with major transit facilities and in places where frequent transit services intersect. A key objective for shared mobility hubs is to advance the use of electric car share and ride hail vehicles by accommodating fast charging at or very near hub locations. Municipal Fleet
Seattle was one of the first cities in the country to buy conventional hybrids (early 2000s) and the battery electric Nissan Leaf (2011), install hybrid systems on ambulances, and use a 20 percent biodiesel blend from sustainable feedstocks in all heavy-duty vehicles. The Green Fleet Action Plan guides the City’s efforts to meet the goal to reduce municipal fleet emissions by 50 percent by 2025 by increasingly electrifying the fleet, using cleaner fuels when electrification is not feasible, increasing efficiency in how vehicles are used, and setting standards for vehicle procurement. The City’s fleet includes over 200 electric vehicles and over 300 hybrid vehicles. Between 2013 and 2016, GHG emissions from the municipal fleet decreased by 11.5 percent and total fuel use decreased by five percent.