Shape Aurora Avenue future by joining new advisory group

ByElaine Porterfield, King County Metro

Crossposted from the SDOT blog.

You can help shape the future of one of Seattle’s busiest streets by joining our new Aurora Ave Project Community Advisory Group (CAG).

By participating, you’ll help ensure that new traffic safety ideas reflect the needs of the diverse communities along Aurora Ave N.

Members will:

  • Meet 8-12 times over two years on weekday evenings, beginning July 2026.
  • Earn $60 per hour for participating in advisory group meetings.

Together, we will help make transportation along Aurora Ave N safer for everyone and more sustainable, accessible, and affordable.

Applications are now open! Apply by Friday, May 15 at 11:59 PM. Learn more below.

Additional languages

What is a Community Advisory Group?

The Aurora advisory group will bring together a diverse set of community members to provide input on transportation planning, discuss goals and priorities, and explore alternatives for future designs.

Members will advise decision-makers for this project, such as leadership at SDOT, King County Metro, and WSDOT.

We are committed to ensuring that everyone benefits equitably from the city’s transportation investments. The Aurora advisory group will include people with different identities, lived experiences, and professional backgrounds—especially those who live, work, learn, worship, or play near Aurora Ave N.

This is also a great chance to learn more about how SDOT works, build leadership skills, and work with others in your community.

Aurora is a top traffic safety priority, here’s what we’re doing now

Aurora Ave N (State Route 99) is one of our top traffic safety priorities.

Between 2018 and 2022, Aurora accounted for 19% of all traffic fatalities in Seattle. Even though people walking were involved in only 6% of crashes, they made up 70% of the fatalities. (Learn more from our planning study.)

We need changes to improve traffic safety as soon as possible. That’s why we are currently working on near-term improvements, while also working on the long-term vision.

Construction is underway on N 137th St, where we are adding:

  • Two new crosswalk signals and four new crosswalks for people walking and biking
  • Two new median islands
  • New curb ramps at all four corners of the intersection

Some recently completed safety projects include:

  • Installed head start pedestrian signals (also known as Leading Pedestrian Intervals) at all intersections with a signal.
  • Introduced “No Turn on Red” restrictions for people driving in intersections.
  • Repainted and widened all marked crosswalks for people walking along Aurora Ave N.
  • Installed hardened center lines at six intersections between N 135th St and N 77th St.
  • And added new curbing with turn restrictions at N 103rd St.

Read more about near-term traffic safety improvements on the Aurora Ave Project page.

How you can help

Aurora Ave N is also one of the busiest, most complex streets in Seattle.

It connects homes, businesses, jobs, services, and freight—and carries King County Metro’s highest ridership bus route, the RapidRide E Line.

We’re working to make Aurora safer and more welcoming for everyone—whether you walk, bike, roll, take transit, drive, move goods, or provide services. This is why we launched a Corridor Planning Study in 2022 with our partners, King County Metro and Washington State Department of Transportation.

Our goal is to create a community-driven design vision for Aurora Ave N and develop a plan to guide future investments in the corridor.

This new advisory group will play a critical role in shaping Aurora Ave’s future as we enter Phase 2 of the study.

Phase 1

Four design concepts came out of the study’s first phase, thanks to your input.

In community surveys, workshops, focus groups, and drop-in sessions, we heard your ideas for better ways to move through the corridor — whether walking, biking, taking transit, or driving.

Now it’s time to build on that work.

Phase 2 (happening now)

The second phase of the planning study is happening now and will continue for two years as we further refine the concepts from phase one.

How to apply

Interested in making a difference?

Learn more about the Aurora Ave Community Advisory Group and apply online here!

No prior advisory group experience is necessary—we encourage everyone interested to apply.

Applications are due by Friday, May 15, 2026, at 11:59 PM. We will review all applications and contact finalists for a brief interview before final selections are made. Thank you.

Application links in additional languages:

If you need assistance with your application or require language or special needs accommodations, please email aurorastudy@seattle.gov or call (206) 905-3620. For more details, visit the project website.

Contact: aurorastudy@seattle.gov | Christa Dumpys (206) 905-3620

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