Seattle’s section of the Burke-Gilman Trail is incredibly busy, but it also has some old sections that are plagued with bumps from tree roots or damage from small landslides.

Some small bumps aren’t a big deal, but sometimes they turn into big gaps or elevated tree root humps that could potentially cause a fall. The Burke-Gilman is the hardest working bike route in the region, moving a lot of people on very old trail surface. It needs to be safe for people of all levels of bike experience and at all levels of daylight, since the trail has no lighting.

The good news is that the Parks Department and SDOT are teaming up to make a bunch of repairs to the trail this week. Be ready for small delays getting through work sites spread out from Ballard to NE 145th Street.

The trail really needs a full rebuild, including a tougher base level that is resistant to tree roots. There are no current funding plans for such a major project. In lieu of a major project, the city needs to find a way to get on top of these patch repairs quickly and probably more regularly.

More details on the trail work, from SDOT:

A contractor working for the Seattle Department of Transportation will grind and patch small areas of pavement on the Burke Gilman Trail starting tomorrow, June 16, through Friday, June 19. The trail will not be closed, just reduced in width near the work areas, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. The crews will work on the trail from Northeast 145th Street to the Ballard Locks. Please use extra caution when near the work areas. This is a joint project of the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation and the Seattle Department of Transportation.