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Ryan Packer

@typewriteralley.bsky.social

10K followers 420 following 6.4K posts

Pedestrian Reporting at The Urbanist as Contributing Editor Transportation advocate Probably covering a random public meeting (they-them) 📍Puget Sound https://www.patreon.com/typewriteralley

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · Nov 24

Hi new followers-
Several years ago I decided to start documenting how regularly people in my city of Seattle were getting hurt while trying to get around via walking or biking, in as close to real-time as possible.

In response to consistent feedback I'm going to continue on this platform.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 8h

Thank you, Brittney.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 8h

Thank you, Wes.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 8h

It was this.
www.theurbanist.org/2015/10/07/s...

Saving Shorty’s: It’s An Uphill Battle » The Urbanist

# Today the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board will do what it does on a very regular basis: hear arguments regarding a local building or institution, and decide if that building should receive spec...

www.theurbanist.org

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 8h

Yeah, it was right at city hall.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 11h

This is how expanding I-5 through the Nisqually Delta will be framed when it's inevitably approved

MTC Bay Area @mtcbata.bsky.social · Sep 5

Today’s passage of AB 697 marks a major advance for long-running efforts to start work on a suite of projects to enhance North Bay marshlands and wildlife habitats, reduce flooding, improve traffic flow along Highway 37, and introduce transit service between Vallejo and Novato.

Legislature passes bill paving way for Highway 37 improvements

Today’s passage by the California State Senate of Assembly Bill 697 — sponsored by the Solano Transportation Authority, authored by Assemblymember Lori Wilson of Solano County and passed by the Assemb...

mtc.one

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 13h

Dan is a worm

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 13h

The County Council also just took a 8-0 vote just now approving a small number of property condemnations that will finally allow the RapidRide I between Renton and Auburn to move into construction.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/09/09/k...

King County Council Unsnags RapidRide I Line After Property Disputes » The Urbanist

# After considering a broader slate of property condemnations to keep the RapidRide I Line on track for a 2027 opening, the council is poised to approve a compromise measure much narrower in scope.

www.theurbanist.org

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 13h

The County Council just took a unanimous 9-0 vote to establish the Broadway Facility fund, paving the way to opening a Crisis Care Center on Capitol Hill.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 16h

The King County Council is hearing public testimony on the Capitol Hill crisis care center right now, ahead of a final council vote approving funds for the facility.

Just like in committee, testimony has been heavily weighted against the center so far.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 13h

My week is officially made.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 13h

Got to meet a few minor celebrities today...

Selfie next to the Seattle Channel puppets

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 15h

I really liked not knowing how often people were saving my posts on this website, to be completely honest.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 15h

The "but hardly surprised" inside the em dashes here really encapsulates the vindictive meanness that has been characterizing the Harrell campaign since the primary.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 18h

Bruce Harrell's campaign has decided to start calling Katie Wilson a quitter because she dropped out of Oxford six weeks before graduating.

I was the first person in my family to graduate from college. My parents, hard-working city employees, overcame racial bias and financial hardship to create a better life for my brother and me, just as Joanne and I have done for our children.

For my family, like most Americans, a college education isn’t just a piece of paper; it’s a gateway to financial stability, opportunity, and family pride.

So I was shocked — but hardly surprised — to read in The Seattle Times that my opponent dropped out of Oxford just weeks before graduation because she was turned off by “careerism.”

As the Times notes, her story reflects “no small amount of privilege.”

In Seattle, we celebrate educational advancement and career opportunities.

This program is rooted in an initiative I started while on our City Council for South Seattle youth from disadvantaged communities–the kind of kids whose families work hard to send their children to local college, let alone Oxford–and these kids don’t quit to make a political statement because they value the opportunity.

When things get tough in our city, or when forced to compromise, will Katie quit and walk away?

At a time when Trump is threatening violence in our cities, and our economy is fragile, we need a Mayor who understands and prioritizes the challenges facing our families, and who will fight for our future.

I’ve never taken access to education or opportunity for granted, and I’ll never quit on Seattle.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 16h

Thanks for pointing out how overbuilt and ripe for pedestrianization First Avenue is, Chris!

Chris Daniels @chrisdaniels.bsky.social · 16h

Seattle’s First Ave quiet while we all wait out a rain delay, or something….

@Mariners

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 16h

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 17h

I and J are moving forward. K and R are getting scaled back. Beyond that, anyone's guess.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 18h

Bruce Harrell's campaign has decided to start calling Katie Wilson a quitter because she dropped out of Oxford six weeks before graduating.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 18h

What the records show:
-Major elements of the LWB redesign, like the changes at Orcas Street, nearly went out for construction before being killed by the Mayor's Office
-Parks staff were continuing to negotiate over individual elements of the project as late as early June.

Drawing showing the changes planned for S Orcas Street and LWB

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 19h

Had to sneak in a little fun on the last 70 degree day of the year.

The view of Seattle from the ferry Tacoma to Bainbridge on a sunny day with a Kitsap fast ferry crossing in front

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 19h

New records provide more detail than ever before on what was happening in the six months between a packed community meeting and an announcement that safety upgrades on Lake Washington Boulevard would be dramatically scaled back.
www.theurbanist.org/2025/10/07/l...

Lake Washington Boulevard Safety Upgrades Fully Designed Before Mayor Pulled Plug » The Urbanist

# A major intersection redesign near Seward Park was ready to go to construction with a Mayor's Office review the only impediment, records show. The exchanges reveal what was happening behind the scen...

www.theurbanist.org

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 20h

At this very same meeting, staff briefed the council on two converging factors: Metro continues to lack a long-term revenue source to continue service expansion, and reliability issues are getting worse not better. Oh and the RapidRide program is on ice.

But sure, let's pivot to this.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 20h

Looks like Rod Dembowski wants to fully restart the debate about whether King County Metro should go fare free.

This morning he suggested a potential fare free pilot, citing the benefits of increased ridership against the relatively low farebox recovery rate Metro currently has.

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Reposted by Ryan Packer

Andrew Engelson @andyengelson.bsky.social · 20h

In my latest for @theurbanist.org I look at a debate between Washington fire marshals, home builders, and housing activists over stricter regulations for backyard cottages. Marshals say 5-foot access is needed, while architects and activists say that's overkill. www.theurbanist.org/2025/10/07/f...

Fire Marshals Target Backyard Cottages with Proposal for Wider Pathway Requirements » The Urbanist

# The Washington Association of Fire Marshals is proposing changes to Washington state building code that would require five-foot wide access path to accessory dwelling units, but builders paint the r...

www.theurbanist.org

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 20h

Sounds like Metro and the City of Seattle are playing chicken over a planned downtown circulator bus for the World Cup. The county had allocated $1.5 million for such a service, but had required another partner to fork over at least 60% of the total funding.

Seattle's only budgeted $500K.

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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 21h

Dembowski wanted to know whether Metro was being "strategic" about where it makes service investments, pointing to a high office vacancy rate in Downtown Seattle, and questioned the need to invest in peak-only service serving the urban core.

Many peak-only routes still remain suspended from 2020.

Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 21h

Metro plans to budget an additional 30,000 service hours to weather the impact of Revive I-5 construction closures, ON TOP OF an additional 24,000 service hours to help bus routes that it expects to continue getting stuck in worse traffic.

(Where are those bus lanes, Seattle?)

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