All Access

All-Access Weekly Digest

Standard

Seattle

blue

A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Seattle.

Axios Seattle

Axios Seattle Thought Bubble

Thought Bubble

Seattle Alerts

Alert

Seattle Members

Membership

Whats Next

Axios What's Next

Data: The League of American Bicyclists via NHTSA; Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios (edited)

There were 2.8 fatal bicycle crashes on average for every million Seattle-area residents between 2017-2021 — a 15% increase over the previous five years, per data from the League of American Bicyclists via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Why it matters: Bicycle use exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving many cities scrambling to install new bike lanes and adopt other measures to keep riders safe and encourage cycling.

Such projects have gained renewed urgency as bike-sharing platforms such as Lime in Seattle and Divvy Bikes in Chicago have become popular options for quick A-to-B hops around cities nationwide.

Cycling is tied to myriad associated benefits for city residents, including cleaner air and better public health.

Zoom out: There were 2.7 fatal bicycle crashes on average for every million U.S. residents between 2017-2021 — up 5% from 2012-2016.

New Orleans (9.9), Tucson, Arizona (8.9), and Jacksonville, Florida (7.9), had the country's highest rates of fatal accidents per million residents.

Zoom in: Some of the country's best new bike lane projects are in Seattle, Portland, Oregon, and Bethesda, Maryland, according to advocacy group PeopleForBikes.

The intrigue: Cities are grappling not just with an upswing in traditional bicycle use, but also a boom in e-bikes used by residents, tourists and delivery workers.

The challenge, however, is figuring out how to best integrate the zippier, pedal-assist bikes — do they belong in bike lanes with slower, traditional two-wheelers, or should they be among the cars and trucks, where Vespa-style scooters travel?

Reality check: Protected bike lanes and other measures designed to keep cyclists safe are often met with fierce pushback from urban drivers, who lament the loss of any lanes or parking spots.

What's next: Cities nationwide are applying for state and federal money — including some set aside as part of the 2021 infrastructure law — to further develop their bike trail networks and other cycling infrastructure.

Seattle area sees increase in bike deaths per capita

The metro area has seen a 15% increase in bicyclist fatalities in recent years.

A bar chart showing that bike deaths from 2017-21 rose by 15% in the Seattle metro area compared to the previous four years. The increase was 5% for the U.S. overall

There were 2.8 fatal bicycle crashes on average for every million Seattle-area residents between 2017-2021 — a 15% increase over the previous five years, per data from the League of American Bicyclists via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.Why it matters: Bicycle use exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving many cities<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text=" scrambling" data-vars-click-url="https://www.wired.com/story/the-pandemic-bike-boom-survives-in-cities-that-stepped-up/" data-vars-content-id="4227fa37-1a70-4a4b-875c-1a80b601e993" data-vars-headline="Seattle area sees increase in bike deaths per capita" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.wired.com/story/the-pandemic-bike-boom-survives-in-cities-that-stepped-up/" target="_blank"> scrambling</a> to install new bike lanes and adopt other measures to keep riders safe and encourage cycling.

News

Data: Yelp, Axios research; Note: Includes stores categorized as "ice cream" on Yelp that have reviews. Chart: Kavya Beheraj and Erin Davis/Axios Visuals

Dairy Queen is the most common ice cream chain across the Seattle metro area, with Baskin-Robbins and Menchies (which serves frozen yogurt) as runners-up.

That's according to a new Axios analysis of Yelp data.

The big picture: Dairy Queen is king of the country — it's the most dominant chain in nearly 75% of U.S. counties, suggesting people really like their Blizzards.

Yes, but: Within the Seattle city limits, there's not a single DQ to be found. You're more likely to stumble on local chain Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream, which has six Seattle locations (plus three elsewhere in King County).

Reality check: Just because one particular chain is the most dominant in a given area doesn't necessarily make it the best.

And local institutions that only have one or a handful of shops won't crack this kind of ranking.

(Fainting Goat, which has two Seattle locations serving gelato, isn't captured, for instance.)

What's your favorite local ice cream (or gelato, or yogurt) joint? Let us know by emailing seattle@axios.com.

We hope to compile a list of readers' best spots for frozen treats.

Here are the Seattle area's most common ice cream chains

Dairy Queen rules the local ice cream game, but not in Seattle proper.

Food

A bar chart showing that Dairy Queen has 59 locations in the Seattle metro area, Baskin-Robbins has 29, Menchies has 15, Coldstone Creamery has 13, Molly Moon's has 9, Ben &Jerry's has 6, and La Michoacana has 5. 

Dairy Queen is the most common ice cream chain across the Seattle metro area, with Baskin-Robbins and Menchies (which serves frozen yogurt) as runners-up.<ul><li>That&#x27;s according to a new Axios <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="analysis of Yelp data." data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/07/16/ice-cream-dairy-queen-culvers-baskin-robbins" data-vars-content-id="4946186a-c1bf-4753-a129-b9703586f393" data-vars-headline="Here are the Seattle area&#x27;s most common ice cream chains" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/07/16/ice-cream-dairy-queen-culvers-baskin-robbins" target="_self">analysis of Yelp data.</a></li></ul>

Food and Drink

COVID-19 hospitalization rates across Washington state have ticked upward since June, amid signs of a late summer wave sweeping the country.

Why it matters: With the rise in at-home testing making official COVID-19 case numbers less reliable, hospitalization rates are an important metric for gauging viral spread.

By the numbers: The average COVID-19 hospitalization rate nationwide rose about 17% between June and July, per the latest available CDC data.

In Washington state, the increase between June and July was less — about 4%.

That made for an average hospitalization rate of about 1.8 per 100,000 people in July, according to the CDC.

Yes, but: State officials report that COVID-19 hospitalizations have continued to rise since then, reaching 2.3 hospitalizations per 100,000 people in early August.

What's happening: A new variant, EG.5, is now the dominant form in the U.S., according to CDC estimates — though it's unclear if it's directly responsible for the rising numbers.

Reality check: In both percentage change and raw terms, nationwide hospitalizations remain far below their pandemic-era peak.

In July, they were down 82% year-over-year, both nationally and in Washington state, according to the CDC data.

Zoom out: Hospitalization rates from June to July rose the fastest in Mississippi (+73% month over month), Alabama (+66%) and Louisiana (+66%).

Yet they were down in Michigan (-32%), Vermont (-31%) and Rhode Island (-31%).

Of note: Wastewater analysis also is detecting rising levels of SARS-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — nationwide.

Such analyses are especially useful in a world with less individual testing, as wastewater can reveal broad trends across wide areas, absent mass nose-swabbing campaigns.

The bottom line: There's no sign we're headed for anything like the waves of the peak pandemic era. But it's still an alarming trend, and a reminder that COVID-19 remains a public health concern.

COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide

The uptick comes amid signs of a late summer wave sweeping the country.

COVID-19

A chart showing COVID-19 hospitalization rates in Washington versus nationwide, with Washington's rate in July 2023 slightly below the national rate.

COVID-19 hospitalization rates across Washington state have ticked upward since June, amid signs of a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="late summer wave" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/17/covid-19-cases-2023-uptick-where-why" data-vars-content-id="4ad6cf11-f607-469d-9242-b6e4c03b6ee4" data-vars-headline="COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/17/covid-19-cases-2023-uptick-where-why" target="_self">late summer wave</a> sweeping the country.Why it matters: With the rise in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="at-home testing" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/08/home-rapid-covid-test-report-positive-america" data-vars-content-id="4ad6cf11-f607-469d-9242-b6e4c03b6ee4" data-vars-headline="COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/01/08/home-rapid-covid-test-report-positive-america" target="_self">at-home testing</a> making official COVID-19 case numbers less reliable, hospitalization rates are an important metric for gauging viral spread.

COVID

Data: U.S. Energy Information Administration; Chart: Axios Visuals

Washington customers experienced some of the worst power outages in the country in 2021, a year marked by an extreme Pacific Northwest heatwave.

By the numbers: The average Washington state electricity customer experienced about 8.8 hours of power outages in 2021 — up from about 4.4 hours in 2020 and more than triple the average from 2013.

That's the eighth-worst average among all 50 states, per data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, an agency within the Department of Energy.

Why it matters: Electricity outages stand to become more common as extreme weather events — many driven by climate change — wreak havoc on the country's aging power infrastructure.

While some outages are short-lived annoyances, others are widespread events. Either can become deadly for those who depend on medical equipment, or for those who lose heating or air conditioning during periods of extreme temperatures.

Zoom in: In 2021, Washington residents in the Puget Sound region and Eastern Washington experienced power outages during an unprecedented heatwave.

And in 2015,  Washingtonians experienced widespread power outages — an average of nearly 11 hours per customer.

That year, a destructive windstorm hit Eastern Washington, leaving 180,000 customers without power, while wildfires burned more acres of land than any year in state history.

The big picture: The average U.S. electricity customer experienced 7.3 hours of power outages in 2021 — down from 8.2 hours in 2020, but more than double 2013's rate.

The nationwide average of outage-hours has been trending upward over the last several years, beginning with a notable spike in 2017 driven in part by outages following Hurricane Irma.

What's next: Funding is coming for improvements, including a $13 billion investment from the 2021 infrastructure law aimed at modernizing the electrical grid.

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray announced last month that Washington state would receive more than $23 million to upgrade its grid, with the goal of making it more resilient to wildfires, heatwaves and other extreme weather events.

What they're saying: "As climate-related natural disasters become more frequent and more severe, we need to be doing everything we can to make sure our energy grid can handle the increased strain," Murray said in a news release.

What we're watching: How long it will take for those funds to translate into real-world improvements — and what support is offered to residents in the meantime.

Washington had some of the nation's worst power outages in 2021

That year was marked by an unprecedented heatwave.

Energy

Washington customers experienced some of the worst power outages in the country in 2021, a year marked by an extreme <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Pacific Northwest heatwave" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/11/28/climate-change-heat-wave-northwest-warning-sign" data-vars-content-id="7bb080f4-4079-4060-af6b-0b2e1615f997" data-vars-headline="Washington had some of the nation&#x27;s worst power outages in 2021" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/11/28/climate-change-heat-wave-northwest-warning-sign" target="_self">Pacific Northwest heatwave</a>.By the numbers: The average Washington state electricity customer experienced about 8.8 hours of power outages in 2021 — up from about 4.4 hours in 2020 and more than triple the average from 2013.

Climate

Data: U.S. Census; Map: Kavya Beheraj/Axios

The median Seattle-area household made slightly less last year than before the pandemic, per new census data.

Why it matters: The latest numbers reflect the pandemic's lasting economic impact, even after COVID-related business closures and stay-at-home mandates were lifted.

By the numbers: The median household income across the Seattle metro area fell 1.6% between 2019 and 2022.

In 2022, the median income in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area was $106,909, compared to $108,693 in 2019, adjusted for inflation.

That's according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2022 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates, which were released Thursday.

Zoom out: Nationally, the median household income also dipped by 1.6% from 2019 to 2022 — the same percentage as in the Seattle area.

That trend "explains why Americans have felt so meh about the strong economy over the past couple years," Axios Markets' Emily Peck writes based on similar yet slightly different data released earlier this week.

Yes, but: The median Seattle-area household still made about $22,000 more than the nationwide median, which was $74,755 last year.

Washington state's median household income last year also was significantly higher than the national median, at $91,306, having risen by 0.4% since 2019.

Plus: More Seattle-area households had annual incomes of at least $100,000 last year than before the pandemic.

The share of local households making over $100,000 annually increased from 47.3% to 53.2% between 2019 and 2022.

Meanwhile, the share making between $50,000 and just under $75,000 fell from 15% to 12.9%.

Of note: Because the latest ACS release is based on 2022 data, it's capturing what some call the "late pandemic era," when many elements of normality returned but the pandemic still loomed in the background, affecting many facets of life.

What we're watching: Whether Seattle-area incomes shot upward in 2023 — something we won't know until future batches of Census Bureau data are released.

Seattle-area incomes dipped during the pandemic

But the region's household incomes are still about $22,000 above the national median.

Census Bureau

The median Seattle-area household made slightly less last year than before the pandemic, per new census data.Why it matters: The latest numbers reflect the pandemic&#x27;s lasting economic impact, even after COVID-related business closures and stay-at-home mandates were lifted.

Kavya Beheraj

Featured stories

Seattle-area incomes dipped during the pandemic

Washington had some of the nation's worst power outages in 2021

COVID hospitalization rates rise statewide

Here are the Seattle area's most common ice cream chains

Seattle area sees increase in bike deaths per capita