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Planner briefs board on transportation chapter update for Spokane comprehensive plan
Summary
City planner Colin Quinhurst walked the Bicycle Advisory Board through proposed changes to the transportation element of Spokane's comprehensive plan, emphasizing multimodal connections, climate goals, Vision Zero alignment and the inclusion of the recently adopted bike priority network.
Colin Quinhurst, a city planner, briefed the Bicycle Advisory Board on an update to Spokane’s comprehensive plan transportation chapter at the Oct. 24, 2025 meeting.
The update frames transportation as a 20-year vision through 2046 and will fold in the bicycle master plan’s bike priority network, which the planner said the city intends to include in the chapter’s maps. Quinhurst called the comp plan the city’s long-range guide for capital facilities, housing, economic development and transportation, and said the transportation chapter should guide the six-year streets program and other functional plans.
Quinhurst described the draft approach as simplifying the chapter: goals would remain in the body of the chapter while detailed project lists, actions and the 20-year priority projects would be moved to a transportation facilities appendix. He said policies will be nested under goals to mirror the organization of other comp plan elements.
Potential additions under consideration that Quinhurst highlighted include language to prioritize an interconnected multimodal network, formal policies to eliminate serious and fatal traffic injuries consistent with Spokane’s Vision Zero work, and transportation-related climate measures addressing vehicle miles traveled and greenhouse gas emissions. Quinhurst also noted the transportation chapter must include required project lists for mechanisms such as the Transportation Benefit District.
Board members asked for clarity on maintenance expectations; several members urged the draft to explicitly call out winter maintenance for bike facilities. Quinhurst agreed to add notes on winter maintenance to the draft agenda for follow-up. Board members also raised whether the chapter should state safety priorities relative to traffic throughput; Quinhurst described that as an issue the city has discussed in prior updates and said it is appropriate for further discussion with elected officials.
Quinhurst said the city plans public workshops in November and will present drafts to the Transportation and Planning Commissions in November and December, with the full draft of the comprehensive plan scheduled for January. He directed members to PlanSpokane for workshop dates and sign-ups.
Quinhurst summarized the comp plan intent: “the 20 year vision through 2046 for our community,” and emphasized that implementation occurs through project lists, capital programs and ordinances adopted later in the implementation process.
The board submitted comments during the meeting and members were invited to attend the November workshops, sign up for the PlanSpokane newsletter, or email the planning team.
