Bellingham Transportation Commission

The Bellingham Transportation Commission welcomed new member Brad Johnson and unanimously approved two significant policy measures that will reshape how the city approaches commute trip reduction and speed limit setting. The commission approved an interlocal agreement with the Whatcom Council of Governments (WCOG) for commute trip reduction administration and endorsed a new speed limit setting methodology that moves away from the traditional 85th percentile approach to a context-based system prioritizing safety for vulnerable road users. The meeting featured substantial presentations on climate action goals and electric vehicle infrastructure, with Climate Energy Manager Seth Vidana updating commissioners on the city's EV charging network expansion and new cooperative vehicle sharing programs. Technical difficulties with Zoom access prevented some public participation, though one community member voiced opposition to WTA fare increases during public comment. The speed limit discussion generated the most detailed technical dialogue, with commissioners questioning how the new NACTO-based methodology would handle urban villages, sidewalk infrastructure gaps, and the relationship between speed limits and multimodal transportation goals. Staff emphasized that the new approach considers roadway context and safety history rather than simply following vehicle speeds.

**Commute Trip Reduction Interlocal Agreement:** - Motion approved unanimously - Agreement runs 2026-2029, with $25,000 annual payment to WCOG - Combines previous standalone SmartTrips agreement into single framework - City retains regulatory authority while WCOG handles day-to-day program administration - Implements 57% drive-alone rate target as previously recommended by commission **Speed Limit Setting Policy Resolution 2026-01:** - Motion approved unanimously by commission - Endorses NACTO City Limits methodology over traditional 85th percentile approach - Policy will establish staff framework for setting speed limits on arterials and collectors - Actual speed limit changes will require separate City Council ordinance in March 2026 - Allows for local engineering judgment adjustments of plus/minus 5 mph

**Tim Hohmann, on speed methodology rationale:** "Since, oh, forever, probably the 40s, we have set speed limits on what engineers like to call the 85th percentile. So we go out, study a street, find the speed that 85% of the cars are going and say, that's the speed limit. And then we design the street to be safe at that speed limit. And then people drive faster. So it becomes what we call the race to the top." **Tim Hohmann, on legal defensibility:** "That is why we want it to be defensible for two reasons, two potential courts of law, neither of which does anybody want to be in. The nicer is defending a speeding ticket, right? It's somebody get a speeding ticket in one of these new speed zones, that needs to be the principle because they have the right to appeal that speeding ticket." **Seth Vidana, on EV cooperative concept:** "The idea with this co-op is that those organizations will be able to use an electric vehicle on-site for their business purposes. When they're not being used by the business, they can be used by the community with the idea that we want to have these vehicles be more of a service than a good." **Jamin Agosti, on methodology concerns:** "Just find this, I just found this image confusing when I was reading it because I, like when we talk about our streets, we talk about multimodal transportation, we talk about all users and this says local streets, low mobility. Arterial's high mobility, and that's all it says. And I don't, that's not how I view roads." **Tim Hohmann, on safety statistics:** "Speed is the number one factor in fatal and serious injury collisions for pedestrians and bicyclists. And pedestrian and bicyclist collisions are 45% of all serious injury and fatal collisions within the city limits." **Seth Vidana, on climate urgency:** "The flatter it is over a longer period of time, the steeper that drop is from where we're at to 2050, it makes it really challenging to get there with not a whole lot of time."