SPOKANE, Wash. — Every major city has the street everyone uses to get from one point of the city to the other. In Spokane, that street is Division Street.
On average, as many as 50,000 cars travel on the six to eight-lane street every single day. It's one of the main roadways Spokane residents can use to get from downtown to North Spokane.
But by the end of the decade, the number of lanes could drastically change.
Spokane Transit Authority (STA) is in the early stages of a project that will turn one southbound and one northbound lane of Division Street into a transit only lane. This means only public transportation vehicles, such as STA buses, and regular cars turning right into a business parking lot can use those lanes. STA said the project will make ride times shorter and transportation more efficient, but some Spokane residents aren't happy about the project.
Local businessman Larry Stone is one resident who isn't happy about the project. Stone owns the Trent Resource and Assistance Center (TRAC). He also owns LB Stone Properties in Spokane and is a major donor to conservative causes.
In August, Stone released a video highlighting what he said are the potential downfalls of the project, which he dubbed the "Division Diet." The video is part of his Curing Spokane video series, which he said he uses to inform Spokane of flaws in the city.
Stone has also put up a number of billboards along Division Street that read "Stop the Division Road Diet."
"Already, Division is a congested street, and taking away 33% to 50% of the lanes it's gonna just make it more congested," Stone said. "More homes are going to be built up north, both in the unincorporated areas and in the city. And to make the commute more difficult and more costly and more pollution doesn't make any sense to me."
The project was first discussed back in 2010, according to STA Chief Planning and Development Officer Karl Otterstrom. STA wants Division Street to promote all modes of transportation, including transit, which means setting lanes aside for transit to allow buses to get passengers to their destinations faster.
"It's going to define the opportunities for growth and reinvestment in North Spokane," Otterstrom said. "Division could actually degrade and be a place that people don't want to be. And so this is an opportunity to reimagine it as a place for people."
Research suggests Division Street will become less congested once the North-South Freeway is complete, according to Otterstrom. Additionally, the lanes purposed for transit won't be completely cut off to the public.
"Shifting a part of that traffic that's on Division today to the North Spokane Corridor as well as on other streets, and so that actually frees up capacity," he explained. "In the case of the cars, though, they're focused on cars that are making turning movements in or out of the side streets."
Even with a promising future, many business on Division are worried the project will hurt their livelihood. Tom Barany, the owner of the General Store on Division Street, fears travelers will resort to other ways to travel and find different shopping patterns.
"A lot of people still have to commute within city to businesses to schools downtown," Barany said. "So I think the majority of that traffic is still going to stay, even with the North-South Freeway."
STA said construction could begin in 2027 and be complete as early as 2030.
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