Benefits abound as the Missing Link reaches its next design phase

Whether you bike, walk or drive, completing the Burke-Gilman Trail will improve how you get around Ballard.

Moving swiftly so as to complete the Missing Link by 2019, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) unveiled the "60%" design phase of the project in late September.

In addition to a 10-12-foot wide multiuse trail, people can expect the following improvements to come from this transformational project:

Market Street (Segment 1)

• Enhanced bicycle connections to current and future greenways and bike lanes
• Integrated design with the new Nordic Heritage Museum
• Rechannelized NW Market St. to improve car safety
• Improved pedestrian crosswalks and sidewalks
• Better access to and additional parking for the Ballard Locks and Lockspot Cafe
• Mountable curbs to improve truck mobility
• An improved intersection at 24th and Market that saves times for people driving over current conditions

Shilshole Ave. NW (Segment 2)

• Added traffic signals and rapid flashing beacons
• New motion-activated LED signage to warn trail users of vehicles
• Enhanced driveways to improve predictability of entry/exit points
• Improved freight access to NW 54th St.
• Better stormwater infrastructure to protect adjacent businesses
• New intersection design at Shilshole Ave. NW and NW 54th
• Reconfigured, back-in angle parking to maximize capacity
• Added left turn lane onto 17th Ave. NW improves freight and car mobility
• More street trees

NW 45th St. (Segment 3)

• Relocated railroad crossing to improve safety for people biking
• Two-way cycletrack is replaced with a multiuse trail
• Two-way car traffic is restored for improved access
• New buffer zone/traffic island separates vehicle traffic from trail traffic
• Improved connectivity to the Ballard Fred Meyer
• Removed street/trail crossing at 11th Ave. NW to improve safety
• More street trees

Don’t miss out on upcoming opportunities to learn more and make your priorities heard:

Design Open House #2

Thursday, October 12, from 5 to 8 p.m. (presentation at 6pm)
Ballard-Eagleson VFW Post, 2812 NW Market Street

Public Self-Guided Walking Tour

Saturday, October 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Meet up with Cascade staff at noon outside Lockspot Cafe, or pick up a guide at any of the staffed spots and tour at your convenience!

Following these community events, the SDOT team will take the public's feedback and dive further into the details. The goal is to nearly finalize the design by the end of this year, and break ground in 2018.