Everyone Wants to Know How Seattle’s Dockless Bike Share Experiment Is Going

GeekWire | Monica Nickelsburg | April 3
https://www.geekwire.com/2018/everyone-wants-know-seattles-dockless-bike-share-experiment-going/

“City planners and researchers are eager to get feedback on Seattle’s novel dockless bike sharing pilot to determine whether it is a viable mobility solution or an oversaturated fad. The Seattle Department of Transportation launched a survey (first spotted by Curbed) to find out how riders feel about the three bike share services that arrived in their city last summer. SDOT wants to find out information about who uses bike share, how they use it, and what they don’t like about the services. Meanwhile, the University of Washington’s Sustainable Transportation Lab just concluded its own survey of bike share users to better understand the interaction between these services and demand for public transportation.”

University of Washington Computer Science School Lands $3 Million in State Funding to Double Program

GeekWire | Monica Nickelsburg | April 3
https://www.geekwire.com/2018/university-washington-computer-science-school-lands-3-million-state-funding-double-program/

“There are tens of thousands of open technology jobs in Washington state because there aren’t enough candidates trained in the necessary skills to fill them. The University of Washington has been racing to close that gap for years and will pass a critical milestone in 2018, thanks to $3 million in new funding awarded in the state’s supplemental budget. The funds will allow UW to more than double the number of computer science degrees awarded each year, growing the program from 300 students to about 620. “Because UW tuition is significantly less than the cost of educating a student in computer science or any other engineering field, the only way we can grow is when the legislature provides additional support,” said Ed Lazowska, one of the UW’s leading computer science professors, in an email.”

Hikers Rejoice: Buses from Seattle to Trailheads Now Go to Mount Si

KING 5 | Liza Javier | April 4
http://www.king5.com/article/news/local/hikers-rejoice-buses-from-seattle-to-trailheads-now-go-to-mount-si/281-535345624

“King County’s popular shuttle-bus service from Seattle to hiking trails in the Issaquah Alps returns in April, with expanded service to more trailheads, including Mount Si, from additional locations in Seattle. Starting April 21, the shuttle service, called Trailhead Direct, provides weekend and holiday service every 30 minutes at the Mount Baker Transit Station in South Seattle. A second route launches May 19 to Mount Si and Mount Teneriffe at Sound Transit’s Capitol Hill Link light rail station. The transit shuttles run a loop between the Issaquah Transit Center (where there’s plenty of parking), Margaret’s Way trailhead, Poo Poo Point trailhead, and East Sunset Way trailhead.”

Seaplane Service from Seattle’s Lake Union to Vancouver Starts April 26, But It Won’t Be Cheap

Seattle Times | Dominic Gates and Rachel Lerman | April 5
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/seaplane-service-from-lake-union-to-vancouver-starts-april-26-but-it-wont-be-cheap/

“A new daily seaplane service between downtown Seattle and downtown Vancouver, B.C., begins later this month. The one-hour flights between Seattle’s Lake Union and Vancouver’s Coal Harbour, on turboprop planes carrying just 10 passengers, are targeted at business travelers in the high-tech corridor. Tickets will cost $285 one-way. The service, a joint venture between Seattle’s Kenmore Air and Vancouver’s Harbour Air, will start April 26.”