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Seattle teacher's death spotlights shelved bike lane plans

Officials once planned protected bike lanes near 12th and Yesler before scaling back the project.

News

The intersection where a Seattle teacher died in a bicycle crash this week has long been identified as dangerous for cyclists — yet more ambitious plans to improve bike safety there were shelved years ago.The big picture: The death of Christian Salyer, a 30-year-old teacher at Thurgood Marshall Elementary, comes seven years after Seattle city officials dropped plans for a protected bike lane on a stretch of 12th Avenue South.

Bellevue house at center of OnlyFans trafficking case

Court documents allege a system of control exerted over women beneath a flashy veneer of party mansions and luxury cars.

An Eastside luxury house was used as part of a human-trafficking enterprise fueled by earnings from OnlyFans, Bellevue police say.The big picture: Court documents allege a system of control exerted over women, hidden beneath a flashy veneer of party mansions, luxury cars and adult content.

How Sound Transit 3 opening dates have slipped since 2016

The package voters approved in 2016 promised completion by 2041. The timeline now stretches to 2052.

Transit

Not a single <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="light rail" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2024/02/13/light-rail-lines-change-schedule-when" data-vars-content-id="aa951a46-7df9-445d-b21d-5396d2f5ed93" data-vars-headline="How Sound Transit 3 opening dates have slipped since 2016" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2024/02/13/light-rail-lines-change-schedule-when" target="_self">light rail</a> line that Puget Sound voters approved in 2016 is on track to open on time.Why it matters: A decade ago, voters approved Sound Transit 3, a transit expansion plan that was projected to cost <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="$54 billion" data-vars-click-url="https://www.soundtransit.org/sites/default/files/project-documents/st3-system-plan-2016-appendix-a.pdf" data-vars-content-id="aa951a46-7df9-445d-b21d-5396d2f5ed93" data-vars-headline="How Sound Transit 3 opening dates have slipped since 2016" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.soundtransit.org/sites/default/files/project-documents/st3-system-plan-2016-appendix-a.pdf" target="_blank">$54 billion</a> and be completed by <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="2041" data-vars-click-url="https://projects.seattletimes.com/2016/st3-guide/" data-vars-content-id="aa951a46-7df9-445d-b21d-5396d2f5ed93" data-vars-headline="How Sound Transit 3 opening dates have slipped since 2016" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://projects.seattletimes.com/2016/st3-guide/" target="_blank">2041</a>. That timeline has now slipped to 2052 — and a key light rail <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="connection to Ballard" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/05/29/sound-transit-ballard-light-rail-delay-st3-budget-shortfall-second-downtown-tunnel" data-vars-content-id="aa951a46-7df9-445d-b21d-5396d2f5ed93" data-vars-headline="How Sound Transit 3 opening dates have slipped since 2016" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2026/05/29/sound-transit-ballard-light-rail-delay-st3-budget-shortfall-second-downtown-tunnel" target="_self">connection to Ballard</a> has no set opening date.

Seattle zoo's gorilla moms are raising swapped babies

An unusual turn of events left both gorilla mothers caring for a different infant.

Woodland Park Zoo&#x27;s newest gorilla babies are thriving after an unexpected plot twist worthy of a Hollywood movie.What&#x27;s happening: Gorilla moms Jamani and Olympia have traded babies. The zoo released photos this week of them cuddling their switched newborns.

Seattle zoo turtles face final survival test

Three decades of recovery work helped bring western pond turtles back from the brink in Washington.

For the 39 young turtle graduates-to-be lining up for their final exam at Seattle&#x27;s Woodland Park Zoo, there&#x27;s just one question: Are they big enough to escape a bullfrog&#x27;s gullet?<ul><li>We&#x27;ll find out Thursday when the turtles are weighed at the zoo.</li></ul>

$1B funding cut "a gut punch" for PNW hydrogen projects

WA and OR leaders say the clean energy grant loss could stall hydrogen efforts across the region.

Environment

Projects to build clean hydrogen infrastructure in the Pacific Northwest are reeling after the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Trump administration pulled" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/10/02/doe-ends-awards-vought-tweet" data-vars-content-id="2321bdb5-960f-4d14-9255-5008392f858e" data-vars-headline="$1B funding cut &quot;a gut punch&quot; for PNW hydrogen projects" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/10/02/doe-ends-awards-vought-tweet" target="_self">Trump administration pulled</a> a $1 billion grant for the region&#x27;s hydrogen hub this week.Why it matters: The loss of the grant hurts efforts in Washington, Oregon and Montana to harness hydrogen as a clean fuel source — one that many view as an important tool to help decarbonize the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="shipping" data-vars-click-url="https://time.com/6961248/green-hydrogen-shipping-decarbonization/" data-vars-content-id="2321bdb5-960f-4d14-9255-5008392f858e" data-vars-headline="$1B funding cut &quot;a gut punch&quot; for PNW hydrogen projects" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://time.com/6961248/green-hydrogen-shipping-decarbonization/" target="_blank">shipping</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="aviation" data-vars-click-url="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360319923009187" data-vars-content-id="2321bdb5-960f-4d14-9255-5008392f858e" data-vars-headline="$1B funding cut &quot;a gut punch&quot; for PNW hydrogen projects" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360319923009187" target="_blank">aviation</a> industries.

Ring of Fire shocks raise West Coast fears

A surge in Pacific quakes is garnering attention to Cascadia zone threats.

A recent string of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="powerful earthquakes" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/07/30/earthquake-russia-tsunami-warnings-hawaii-japan-evacuations" data-vars-content-id="cdeba135-a72a-428d-a517-a98d30edd0db" data-vars-headline="Ring of Fire shocks raise West Coast fears" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/07/30/earthquake-russia-tsunami-warnings-hawaii-japan-evacuations" target="_self">powerful earthquakes</a> and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="volcanic eruptions" data-vars-click-url="https://www.npr.org/2025/08/03/nx-s1-5491540/russian-volcano-erupts-days-after-quake-shakes-region" data-vars-content-id="cdeba135-a72a-428d-a517-a98d30edd0db" data-vars-headline="Ring of Fire shocks raise West Coast fears" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.npr.org/2025/08/03/nx-s1-5491540/russian-volcano-erupts-days-after-quake-shakes-region" target="_blank">volcanic eruptions</a> in Russia and Alaska serve as stark reminders that the U.S. West Coast — from Seattle to San Diego — lies along one of Earth&#x27;s most volatile tectonic boundaries.Why it matters: The same immense geological forces driving quakes, tsunamis and volcanoes far across the Pacific Ocean mirror those at work beneath Washington, Oregon and California, Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, tells Axios.

Washington's recycling system could get a major makeover

A new bill would require packaging producers to fund Washington's recycling system, aiming to cut plastic waste.

<figure><img alt="An empty plastic iced coffee cup sits on top of a blue recycling bin that is stuffed full, with green trees and paths vaguely visible in the background." height="2667" id="23012551-fb93-44fd-a1f8-55b4d34e4eff" src="https://images.axios.com/3WXk9RO2GayaOEc4DPO1hAJtpt8=/2025/04/01/1743540128418.jpg" width="4000"/><figcaption>A full recycling bin at Green Lake Park in 2021. Photo: Chona Kasinger/Bloomberg via Getty Images</figcaption></figure>Washington state lawmakers are considering a major overhaul of the state&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="recycling" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2022/11/28/common-seattle-recycling-composting-mistakes" data-vars-content-id="fae3da8d-41a7-432d-bee3-5956e0ccb769" data-vars-headline="Washington&#x27;s recycling system could get a major makeover" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2022/11/28/common-seattle-recycling-composting-mistakes" target="_self">recycling</a> system, which would be paid for largely by companies that make single-use packaging.Why it matters: Besides establishing a consistent statewide list for what&#x27;s recyclable and what&#x27;s not, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Senate Bill 5284" data-vars-click-url="https://app.leg.wa.gov/BillSummary/?BillNumber=5284&amp;Chamber=Senate&amp;Year=2025" data-vars-content-id="fae3da8d-41a7-432d-bee3-5956e0ccb769" data-vars-headline="Washington&#x27;s recycling system could get a major makeover" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://app.leg.wa.gov/BillSummary/?BillNumber=5284&amp;Chamber=Senate&amp;Year=2025" target="_blank">Senate Bill 5284</a> would ensure that when people throw recycling in their curbside bins, the materials have <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="somewhere to go" data-vars-click-url="https://www.seattletimes.com/business/some-seattle-area-recycling-dumped-in-landfills-as-chinas-restrictions-kick-in/" data-vars-content-id="fae3da8d-41a7-432d-bee3-5956e0ccb769" data-vars-headline="Washington&#x27;s recycling system could get a major makeover" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.seattletimes.com/business/some-seattle-area-recycling-dumped-in-landfills-as-chinas-restrictions-kick-in/" target="_blank">somewhere to go</a>, supporters say.

What Seattle's recent quake streak means for the "Big One"

A flurry of recent quakes has some Seattleites wondering if the "Big One" is coming.

A flurry of earthquakes in the Seattle area over the last couple of weeks has some residents asking if that means the &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Big One" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/portland/2024/10/16/pacific-northwest-cascadia-earthquake-when" data-vars-content-id="81c72095-a227-4ced-ac23-5661356c0fa2" data-vars-headline="What Seattle&#x27;s recent quake streak means for the &quot;Big One&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/portland/2024/10/16/pacific-northwest-cascadia-earthquake-when" target="_self">Big One</a>&quot; is on its way.Why it matters: Scientists say it&#x27;s not a question of if, but when, the Cascadia subduction zone — a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="700-mile offshore fault" data-vars-click-url="https://www.noaa.gov/jetstream/tsunamis/tsunami-locations/jetstream-max-cascadia-subduction-zone" data-vars-content-id="81c72095-a227-4ced-ac23-5661356c0fa2" data-vars-headline="What Seattle&#x27;s recent quake streak means for the &quot;Big One&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.noaa.gov/jetstream/tsunamis/tsunami-locations/jetstream-max-cascadia-subduction-zone" target="_blank">700-mile offshore fault</a> that runs from Canada to California — unleashes a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="massive earthquake" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/09/20/pnw-earthquake-really-big-one-preparing-prep" data-vars-content-id="81c72095-a227-4ced-ac23-5661356c0fa2" data-vars-headline="What Seattle&#x27;s recent quake streak means for the &quot;Big One&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/09/20/pnw-earthquake-really-big-one-preparing-prep" target="_self">massive earthquake</a>, triggering a tsunami and spelling one of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="worst natural disasters" data-vars-click-url="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/07/20/the-really-big-one" data-vars-content-id="81c72095-a227-4ced-ac23-5661356c0fa2" data-vars-headline="What Seattle&#x27;s recent quake streak means for the &quot;Big One&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/07/20/the-really-big-one" target="_blank">worst natural disasters</a> on the continent.

Environment

Seattle zoo turtles face final survival test

$1B funding cut "a gut punch" for PNW hydrogen projects

Ring of Fire shocks raise West Coast fears

Mike Lee's proposed public lands sale blocked by Senate parliamentarian

Washington's recycling system could get a major makeover