As part of ongoing work to make road and other infrastructure repairs following this winter’s intense flooding and rainfall, the Snoqualmie Valley Trail will be closed to walking and biking “as soon as February 16” as crews work to repair the nearby SE Edgewick Road, according to an alert from King County.
This is a very unusual closure because the trail is closed not to repair it but because it is the only viable alternative vehicle detour around the closed roadway for a handful of properties west of the worksite that would be otherwise cut-off from the road network while roadway repairs are underway. “This portion of the trail will be temporarily closed to pedestrian and bicycle users to facilitate safer conditions for vehicle traffic,” according to the project webpage.
It is understandable that these properties need basic roadway access during the 6–8 week closure, and there truly does not seem to be any other option. These are extenuating circumstances. But there is also no viable detour for trail users in this area, and trail users are also members of the public worth serving. This closure creates a similar problem as a bridge replacement project in early autumn 2024. The only real alternative option for folks biking between North Bend and Rattlesnake Lake is to bike on Cedar Falls Road SE, which can be busy (especially on a nice day) and has limited to non-existent shoulders. Discretion is advised.
Given the options, I’d much rather bike on the trail with a limited number of cars using it for temporary property access than ride on Cedar Falls Road. The temporary road access route will not be a through-route, so it shouldn’t have significant traffic flow. People bike mixed with cars on skinny streets all the time, and bikes are legal vehicles that are generally allowed on roadways except for a handful of limited access freeways. The detour instructions on the project website tell people driving on the trail to “keep speed under 10 mph.” If there were some other nearby sidewalk they could use to route trail users, then maybe I could see banning biking and walking on the trail. But King County has no safe detour to offer and does not plan to sign one…