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Viewing Harborview's rooftop solar panels with Executive Constantine, Governor Inslee, and Harborview Medical Center leadership
Yesterday, I joined Governor Jay Inslee, King County Executive Dow Constantine, and the leadership team from Harborview Medical Center for a tour of the clean energy improvements Harborview has made. Harborview has long been a point of pride in King County as the only Level 1 trauma center in Washington state, earning international respect for their cutting-edge work in multiple medical fields and fulfilling a core county mission by providing care to anyone in need, regardless of their ability to pay.
First Spouse Trudi Inslee and I loved meeting some of the kids Harborview Childcare Center serves
We saw yesterday how Harborview is continuing their tradition of innovation and excellence by transitioning to more clean energy, converting from gas to electric at their Childcare Center with a $138,000 grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce. We also learned more about their solar panel project, funded with state and federal resources, which offsets energy needs of the hospital but provide critical emergency backup power for Harborview. These upgrades not only aid Harborview’s vital work of supporting the health of our community, but also contribute to King County’s overall sustainability efforts to reduce carbon emissions and support the health of our environment.
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This week, the Seattle Times reported that deaths on Washington state roads increased 10%, the highest rate of mortality in 33 years. In 2023, 810 people died in motor vehicle crashes on our state’s streets, defying the national trend of falling traffic deaths.
Every one of those deaths is a tragedy, leaving loved ones to mourn and making it painfully clear that we collectively must act quickly and boldly to prevent more senseless loss of life. That’s why during my time as President of the Puget Sound Regional Council I pushed for us to make road safety a top priority in our Regional Transportation Plan. We are working with our county and city partners to take a Safe System approach, which aims to improve traffic safety by anticipating human mistakes and building traffic infrastructure that reduces the risk of injury and death if a crash does happen. We cannot just hope that our roads will become safer—we need to proactively work together to make it happen.
In 2022 I joined Bellevue leaders and city staff on a tour with the chair of the National Traffic Safety Board, Jennifer Homendy, to review some of Bellevue's street safety measures
May is National Bike Month, a time to support, encourage, and celebrate all things bicycling. Tomorrow, May 17, is Bike Everywhere Day and Cascade Bicycle Club has got you covered for opportunities to enjoy the day! They have a map of every Celebration Station in our region, places where you can grab coffee and snacks, learn about bike education and advocacy opportunities, and get free bike tune-ups and high fives!
Looking for ways to bike to Sound Transit's new 2 Line? Check out Move Redmond's digital Station Access Maps that highlight Eastside bike routes!
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