SDOT's 'hilarious' video promotes Second Avenue bike lane and rules

It's always risky ... both riding a bike in downtown Seattle and trying to be funny. Just ask us.

Enter Seattle Department of Transportation stage left ... The agency has taken a lot of the risk out of riding a bike on Second Avenue with its new protected bike lane. And, it's also infused a little humor into spreading the word about that new two-way lane and how we should all interact with it.

Since I bike commute downtown and try to be entertaining as well as informative here at Seattlepi.com (though I would never dare claim to be hilarious, especially after Lewis C. K. taught me to fear the word), I salute both efforts ... though I didn't exactly have to pick myself up off the floor after watching the SDOT’s video.

The video is in the gallery above along with other info on the new bike lane.

The video and PR effort to get it viewed was funded by a $15,000 grant from People for Bikes, said the PR firm paid to tell about the video, which it says contains "hilarious" interactions.

Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close SDOT's 'hilarious' video promotes Second Avenue bike lane and rules 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

The video setup is that the host of a faux television show called “What’s What” goes around asking Seattleites what they know about the bike lane and how to interact with it. I’ll just say it’s lively. You can decide if it’s "hilarious" or not … Either way, it’s worth getting the information out there.

After all, the dangers of biking in Seattle and in particular on Second Avenue before the protected lanes were proven all too real when a cyclist was killed at Second and University Street just days before the lane officially opened on Sept. 8.

Here’s the news release for more details about the video and campaign to inform: