Highland Park Way SW Connection Project

Updated April 15, 2025 

What's Happening Now?

Haga clic aquí para la versión en español.

What we heard from the community

Last May and June, we heard from nearly 2,000 people through our survey and conversations at community events. Thank you for sharing your thoughts about our initial concepts! We gathered all the feedback in our Outreach Report.Woman standing behind a table with project materials on it. She is smiling and talking to a person who is writing a comment about the project. They are standing under a tent decorated with rainbow flags. There are poster boards on easels illustrating the different project design options.Team member Colleen Woods talking to community members at the White Center Pride Street Festival. Thank you to the Highland Park Action Coalition and the Highland Park Improvement Club members who shared their booth with us! Photo: SDOT

What we heard from community feedback 

Here are the key themes from our conversations with you:   

  • Concerns About Traffic
    • Many worry that removing a driving lane may increase congestion and make driving through the area more difficult. 
  • Path Usage
    • About 40% of survey respondents use the existing path – 368 bike, 318 walk, 65 use it to get to the bus, 19 use a mobility device, and 14 use a scooter. 
    • Some feel the existing path needs repairs, while others shared that its current condition— not well kept, dark at night, too close to the road, and people drive too fast—makes it unsafe and unpleasant to use.  
  • Interest in Improved Options 
    • Of the three proposed concepts, the multi-use path for walking, biking, and transit received the most support with 36% of survey respondents, though some have concerns about pedestrian safety due to fast-moving cyclists. 
  • Local Safety Suggestions 
    • Some people suggested other ideas including speed cameras, a center barrier in the road, and more consistent path maintenance.

What's next

Thanks to the recent approval of the 2024 Seattle Transportation Levy, there's funding to move this project forward. We'll keep working with the community to improve the corridor for people walking, biking, and rolling. Once we have an updated design ready, we'll share it with you and gather more feedback.  
To stay informed about the project, please  sign up for email updates. You can also reach us at HighlandHolden@Seattle.gov or (206) 900-8741. 

Project Overview

The Highland Park Way SW Connection project is intended to provide an improved path for people to walk, roll, and bike between Highland Park and the Duwamish River Trail, while improving safety and calming traffic along Highland Park Way SW. 

Our 2024 Seattle Transportation Plan (pages B-43 and B-45) recognizes the need for better walking, biking and rolling facilities along this corridor connecting a high equity priority neighborhood to the regional Duwamish River Trail network. This project is also important from a safety perspective as it is part of our High Injury Network identified in our latest Vision Zero Action Plan (page 55) and we have a history of motorists driving 40+ MPH relative to a posted speed limit of 25 MPH.

Project Goals

  • Improve safety for all road users.
  • Calm traffic along Highland Park Way SW to help prevent collisions.
  • Create better connections for people who walk, roll, bike, and take transit between Highland Park and the Duwamish River Trail, thereby making progress towards our Climate Action goals.

Current Conditions

There is an existing path on the east side of Highland Park Way SW. It runs from SW Holden St to West Marginal Way SW with a section of grass serving as a landscape buffer between the path and the street. The path varies in width from 3.5 to 7 feet and the landscape buffer varies in width from 2.5 to 9.5 feet.   

The path needs repairs and is very close to the street in some places, making it less comfortable for people walking, rolling, and biking – particularly when people drive over the speed limit, which happens quite often in this area. Seattle Police collision reports and recent traffic data also indicate that people have driven off the street, crossed the centerline into oncoming traffic near and at the curve, sideswiped other vehicles, and even crashed into a person biking. 

A person walking on the existing path along Highland Park Way SW. To the left of the path are two with two northbound driving lanes and two southbound driving lanes. There are cars driving in both directions.

Highland Park community member walking on the existing path along Highland Park Way SW. This section of the path just north of SW Holden St, where the path is about 6 feet wide, and the landscape buffer is about 2.5 feet wide.  

Illustration and Map of Current Conditions 

Street level diagram showing Highland Park Way Southwest. From left to right there is a route 131 bus stop, two southbound driving lanes, two northbound driving lanes, another route number 131 bus stop, and finally a landscape buffer with the existing pathway.

A map of Highland Park Way Southwest from Southwest Holden Street to West Marginal Way Southwest with an additional graphic below showing the zoomed in part of the project area at the intersection of Highland Park Way Southwest and West Marginal Way Southwest. In the map and the graphic, the existing path with a landscape buffer is shown, along with the location of the Duwamish River Trail and the location of the West Duwamish Greenbelt trailhead. The existing landscape buffer and path extend along Highland Park Way Southwest from Southwest Holden Street to West Marginal Way Southwest.

Community Engagement

In 2023, we met with community groups in the area, including the Highland Park Action Coalition and West Seattle Bike Connections. We also received input through the Seattle Transportation Plan (pages B-43 and B-45), which recognizes the need for better walking, biking and rolling facilities along this corridor.

In the spring of 2024, we gathered input on some early project concepts through different outreach activities including a survey and attending community events.  

We heard from more than 2,000 people during the outreach period. The concepts that were shared and the feedback we received is summarized in our Outreach Report. We will continue to engage community members and collect feedback throughout the design process. Please sign up for our email updates to stay informed! 

Timeline

Once we secure funding, we will move into the early design phase for this project.   

Document Library

Transportation

Adiam Emery, Interim Director
Address: 700 5th Ave, Suite 3800, Seattle, WA, 98104
Mailing Address: PO Box 34996, Seattle, WA, 98124-4996
Phone: (206) 684-7623
684-Road@seattle.gov

Newsletter Updates

Subscribe

Sign up for the latest updates from Transportation

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is on a mission to deliver a transportation system that provides safe and affordable access to places and opportunities for everyone as we work to achieve our vision of Seattle as a thriving, equitable community powered by dependable transportation.