Renton council orders citywide traffic and pedestrian safety study after recent collisions

The Renton City Council voted to direct staff to prepare a citywide traffic and pedestrian safety impact study after residents described multiple crashes and council members said the city has seen a recent death related to pedestrian or bicycle incidents.

Council Member Rivera moved the measure and Council Member McGurvin seconded. During discussion Rivera said the request was prompted by a recent collision in which a parent was struck and by a reported death earlier this year; the motion passed on a voice vote. "I do want it to be brought with urgency," Rivera said during debate.

The study request followed multiple public-comments describing near misses and crashes. Paul Dutton, a Renton resident who said he has repeatedly raised speed problems on Northeast Fourth Street, told the council: "Go home tonight, look in the mirror, and ask yourself how many more tragedies is it's gonna take before the city enables its great public works department to enable some passive traffic control to keep the speeds down." Cheryl Fries, a Renton resident who said a parent was struck near a school pickup area on the day of the meeting, said she has an open ticket with Renton Response and urged the council to require proactive traffic studies for proposed developments.

Several speakers and council members urged the city to examine road design rather than rely only on enforcement or signage. Tristan Cochin, a Downtown Renton resident, said: "You have to ask the big question of, did the design of this road make this crash more likely to occur?" Council Member McGurvin, chair of the Transportation Committee, said engineered changes and prior investments have reduced speeds in other locations and that a comprehensive review should identify both long-term design changes and short-term fixes.

In debate council members emphasized the need for comprehensive data and for being able to identify near-term actions in addition to a broader plan. The final motion, amended on the floor to remove a strict timeline, asks staff to prepare a traffic and pedestrian safety impact study for the entirety of the city of Renton.

The council indicated the study will be used to identify locations for targeted interventions and to inform committee work on transportation and public safety. The measure passed on a voice vote; council members signaled unanimous support.