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Find out what’s next for Healthy Streets in Seattle

by on October 12, 2022
People enjoy riding bikes and jogging with their dog on a Healthy Street in 2021. Photo: SDOT.

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We introduced Healthy Streets during the pandemic in 2020 as a way for Seattleites to get outside safely and stay active in local neighborhoods throughout the city. Healthy Streets are open for people walking, rolling, biking, and playing, and closed to pass-through traffic.

We’re updating our Healthy Streets across Seattle based on the trends we’ve seen in terms of community use and public feedback. Next, we will:

  • Make some locations permanent Healthy Streets
  • Return some locations to neighborhood greenways, which they were prior to the pandemic
  • Further review some Healthy Streets and conduct more outreach to determine next steps. These locations will remain Healthy Streets until further notice.

At each location, there may be a combination of permanent Healthy Streets, neighborhood greenways, and/or areas for further review and outreach.

Here are the locations of current Healthy Streets. The plan for each can be found on the web pages below:

Below is a map that shows the plan for Healthy Streets locations throughout the city moving forward. You can also visit our website for the latest information.

Map of planned permanent Healthy Streets moving forward. Permanent ones are shown in solid purple, under review in dashed purple, permanent construction completed in orange, in construction to become permanent in dashed orange, neighborhood greenway in green, and multi-use trail in brown. The map shows 15 locations in purple dots, throughout north, central, and south Seattle.
Citywide map of Healthy Streets, Neighborhood Greenways, and Multi-Use Trails. Graphic: SDOT.

Over the next few weeks, we plan to visit all existing Healthy Street locations to check on the condition of signs and repair or replace them as needed. We’ll also remove signs on Healthy Streets that will become neighborhood greenways like they were before the pandemic. Over time, we’ll begin installing the updated signs for permanent Healthy Streets locations.

A kid wearing a Lucha Libre mask draws with markers at a recent community event on a Healthy Street in Lake City. Numerous attendees are visible in the background, with SDOT outreach materials in the foreground, on a sunny day.
A kid wearing a Lucha Libre mask draws with markers at a recent community event on a Healthy Street in Lake City. Photo: SDOT.

You helped us learn what works, and what doesn’t. Thank you!

We talked to people and distributed surveys to understand how Healthy Streets are working today, and what people would prefer for Healthy Streets in their neighborhood moving forward.

We observed and reviewed each Healthy Street with this input top of mind to help inform our decision-making.

People liked Healthy Streets for reasons including:

  • Improved safety
  • A more enjoyable neighborhood
  • More open space
  • Encouraging sustainable transportation
  • Promoting healthy habits

But some people shared concerns and challenges, including:

  • Difficulty getting around
  • Ineffective signs
  • Safety-related issues
  • Feeling excluded

How to stay informed:

A person bikes along the Keep Moving Street at Alki Point in West Seattle on a sunny day in 2021. A large "Street Closed" sign and traffic barrier are in the foreground, with view of the water in the background.
A person bikes along the Keep Moving Street at Alki Point in West Seattle on a sunny day in 2021. Photo: SDOT.

Thank you for your interest in Healthy Streets.

Filed Under: Accessibility, Biking, Community Involvement, Pedestrians, Safety, SDOT Tagged With: , , , , ,