Most chains need to be oiled to run smoothly, so if you don't want it to be greasy you might have some trouble keeping the chain running smoothly you might want to talk to some bike people to get an alternative lubricant, but you'll need something if you want it to last. You can get connectors to string multiple chains together, so if you go with russ's suggestion see if you can buy the connectors and then start stocking up on standard sized chains that have gotten too loose for peoples bikes ( after a while of riding they stretch out, some people will take out a rung to tighten it, but alot of people just get a new chain, the looseness shouldn't be a problem because you're not on a fixed size like the bike). If you hit a few bike repair places and tell them you're looking for em they could start saving them for you and you should amass a decent supply pretty quickly. Also an add on craigslist might help, when the weather gets a bit nicer the fair-weather riders will be dusting off their bikes and realize they should have taken better care of things like that last year and will be taking them in for general maintenance it's the best time of year to be looking for too used for riding but fine for other things parts. Also gears that may be sticking too much for smooth shifting up the hills will be in the junk bins as well

Try talking to the folks at Recycled Cycles. They may be both a good source of decent parts (or reference point on finding good junked ones) and appropriate advice on design, lubrication (maybe construction?).

http://www.recycledcycles.com/

It hasn't stopped calls to the police as this 11/23/2011 Pubicola story mentions that 28 calls came in on possible attempts in the eight month period after the fence was complete on it.

The Seattle FRIENDS group (FRemont Individuals & Employees Nonprofit to Decrease Suicides) stopped keeping statistics on their website in 2008. Presumably the mention of deaths there were seen to be as counterproductive to preventing people from making the attempt (keep it out of the public discussion and it is less likely to be seen as an obvious choice).

I would suspect that the fence will not stop a person committed to being successful at the act there, but it makes it harder and perhaps gives more time for emergency personnel to get to the scene and provide the appropriate support to stop someone from following through. There is some interesting information on their website about how other such fences have been successful in other locations where implemented.

Zach Shaner wrote a nice piece on how to do this over at Seattle Transit Blog.

http://seattletransitblog.com/2011/07/23/transit-hikes-shaw-island-and-friday-harbor/

Follow his instructions to ride the bus to the Anacortes Ferry dock, then hop on the ferry to Orcas.

While l think you'd be perfectly justified in smacking a hood, or giving them the finger -which l did once when a dick in a Ferrari came THIS close to wiping me across his windshield after running a red light- l'm going to go with the assertion that running the risk of being shot or harassed further with a big hunk of metal is probably not the best move.

Take the license plate and report it. Road rage rarely ends well.

A death glare is usually my response, but mostly because I'm usually too shell shocked by seeing my life pass before my eyes I can't muster up a more aggressive response.

Key tower to columbia tower.
rainier square to 2 union square, as you mention.
The bus tunnel connections, as noted.
There's also a web of unused tunnels set up as ped escapes to the battery street tunnel. You see those occasionally, like at Fat City where the monorail crosses Denny.
There's also a closed one under aurora at the former 'stupid prices' building.

Google earth has some of these.

The avenues are mainly numbered not named.

However, I-5 shores has:

Melrose
Bellevue
Summit
Belmont
Boylston
Harvard
(+ Broadway, 10th, Federal)

So perhaps?
"Mel rose to the Belle View, to summit the Bell-Mountain, then Boil-Stones in Harvey's yard."

Just let it go.

They have a 5,000 pound weapon pointed at you. If you bang on the hood, throw your coffee at them, kick the door panel or whatever they just might snap and try to run you down. Worse, they could have a gun in the car.

Not worth it.

If their driving is really that dangerous, note the license plate and call 911. Officers may not be able to respond immediately if there are more pressing emergencies in the area, but a note will be put on their plate, and the next time an officer makes contact with them, the officer will know this driver has a history of dangerous behavior and will ramp up corrective action accordingly.

Are you 6?

Losing your temper or raging at all is pretty lame.

Get the license plate and call a lawyer already.

Depends. I do confront people when things like that happen and my reaction is totally dependent on their reaction. If they seem apologetic, sheepish, contrite, etc and acknowledge their fuck-up I let it slide. If they feel the need to throw it back at me I open up on the with both barrels. Figuratively. I do not own a shotgun.

There's almost no scenario in which making contact won't put you at risk of harassment or violence from drivers, whose frequent sense of road entitlement may includes mowing down anything that is not another car.

This is not to say that I don't fantasize about carrying a golf ball with me to hurl at offending vehicles.

To make way for the expanded Highway 520 bridge and wider approaches. The State had to remove the trees to clear land for the upcoming construction of the new highway. A wider highway with more lanes is going to replace the current SR 520 and the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge, which has been operating beyond capacity and past it's intended useful design life for many years now. It's unfortunate that the trees had to go, but hopefully the benefit of wider safer highway and bridge will outweigh the loss of the trees.

Such is life in the Evergreen state. We're blessed with an abundance of trees, but sometimes we have to let some of them go to tree heaven in the name of progress.

People in the neighborhoods nearby were pretty pissed, but WSDOT says they are hoping to replant after the new bridge is built. See KOMO for more info.

There isn't one. But you're free to make up your own. For Pike all the way north to Aloha, how about:

Pretty people often have denim jeans that hug rather majestic round asses.

(Replace Jeans with Overalls if you prefer the West side of broadway to the East side...)

Any others?

Jesus Christ Made Seattle Under Protest

The only time the advice below is bad is if there's a game at Qwest, and unless the Sounders add an exhibition on that date, there isn't. If you hit Mariners traffic, it can be problematic as well -- you'll get your cab, but you may sit there for a while unable to get out of their weird pickup zone.

If that happens, the best thing to do is head up the outside stairs at the north end of the stadium lot (just a few feet from the cab rank), and walk a block or two to 3rd or 4th and hail one off the street.

People will look at you like you're crazy; hailing cabs off the street violates some deep psychological taboo in the heart of Seattleites, but it's perfectly legal (it didn't used to be).

If there's no game crowd action, just get in line right there at the station.

I know the train coming from Vancouver BC gets in a little after 10pm every day and there is always a line-up of taxis waiting to pick people up. Even if, for some reason, you're the last off the train and somehow all the taxis are gone by the time you get outside (which is unheard of), there is a "taxi phone" inside the station (on the wall by the bathrooms) that you can use and have a cab sent over. Like everyone else said though, you should have no problem.

Tom is correct. Cabs will be waiting for you. FYI, sometimes there are WAY more people than there are taxis, so you may have to wait a bit. Try to get off the train and through the station to the cab turnaround as quickly as possible so you're at the front of the line.

If by chance you arrive and there are no cabs, I would also recommend calling Orange Cab first. They're slightly less shitty than the other cab services. If Orange Cab is too busy try Yellow Cab. Yellow Cab's customer service is ridiculously awful, but they have more cabs and there's usually one close by. Make sure you have the exact street address of the train station handy because they won't dispatch a cab without one.

Cabs shall be awaiting you. A whole line of them. The cabbies know the train schedule and keep track of delays. All cab companies suck but the orange cab company seems to suck slightly less in my experience. Much may depend on where you are going...

There is a tunnel that crosses under 5th Ave and Columbia between The Columbia Tower (Southwest corner) and The Bank of America Building (Northeast corner).

Enter Columbia Tower on 4th Ave. Go up the escalator, veer right, pass the juice joint, and the tunnel entrance is just to the right of the ATM (BofA, natch).

Half way down the tunnel there is a doorway on the right that takes you into Seattle Municipal Tower.

At the end of the tunnel there is an elevator to the lobby on the ground floor.

This is a fun topic, but I'd suggest that your proposed map be expanded to include sky brides.

I don't think there's enough of them to warrant a full map - perhaps just two or three of them? The nearest thing I know of to a map is the King Country Metro Accessible Seattle map ( http://metro.kingcounty.gov/tops/accessible/accessmap-1009.pdf ) which focuses mostly on wheelchair-friendly routes around downtown (eg. going into a building and using the elevator to avoid steep hillclimbs) but which also lists some tunnels and skybridges.

The Rainier Sq tunnel that you mention, and Westlake Station (which connects Macy'sThe Bon/Westlake/Nordstrom then to Pacific Place via skybridge) are the only two ones that I'm familiar with.

- Regrade the hills
- Get more struggling immigrants (for some reason the Central Park pedicabs in NYC are predominantly Turkish - I've often wondered why since turks aren't exactly famous bikers)
- It wouldn't catch on anyway, in my opinion

If someone wishes to earn a living by rickshaw-ing, please don't let me be the one to prevent him or her from doing so, but I have to say that I'd be real uncomfortable letting someone manually haul my fat ass around - even in 3rd World countries where it is quite commonplace and even if it helps them earn a living. I guess I would feel too - I dunno - colonial letting someone transport me that way.

Regardless of what I feel about the matter, that may be why you don't see much of it in Seattle. There may be other people who look at it the way I do, and therefore the market for such a service is too small.

And by the way, a lot of city taxis - including the ones in my beloved Vancouver - are Priuses now - very quiet and very fuel efficient. The ones in Vancouver aren't terribly expensive, either, although in some cities you are quite right. They'll eat you alive.

Yes.