Today we announced the installation of five new late night taxi stands as part of our Seattle Nightlife Initiative. To help ensure that everyone arrives home safely, the stands provide a safe and visible sidewalk location for people to grab taxis in the city’s entertainment hubs and operate nightly from 10PM to 6AM. Locations are:

• Fremont—north side of 36^th Avenue between Francis and Dayton
• Belltown—east side of First Avenue between Blanchard and Bell
• Downtown—east side of First Avenue between Pike and Pine
• Pioneer Square—west side of Occidental between Washington and Yesler
• Capitol Hill—south side of E Pike Street between 10^th and Broadway

Our nightlife initiative seeks to enhance public safety while improving urban vibrancy and supporting local businesses. The addition of late night taxi stands is one more step for ensuring that Seattle has a rich nightlife and that people can get home safely.

The five new taxi stands supplement existing taxi zones with either 24 hour service, or late night service from Thursday through Saturday from 11:30PM to 3AM. A map of all late night stands can be found on our Seattle Nightlife  Initiative site.

The installation of late night taxi stands supports the recent implementation of next day parking pre-payment. Pay stations now open at 10 p.m. so drivers can pre-purchase up to two hours of parking from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. the following morning. Drivers can find an alternate way home such as taking a cab or using late night transit and retrieve the vehicle in the morning without receiving a parking ticket.

Last July, City Council passed a resolution supporting a proposal to the Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) to build a regulatory framework in which to consider and approve petitions from cities to allow extended liquor service. If the proposed rule changes are adopted, we will work with the public and City Council to craft a specific proposal for extended hours in Seattle. The WSLCB agreed to open its rule-making in October. Rule-making is a public process and the WSLCB is taking input from the public, law enforcement, city officials and others as it considers revising the rule. Comments must be received by December 1.

The Seattle Nightlife Initiative has several components.

• code compliance enforcement,
• flexible liquor service hours,
• noise ordinance enforcement,
• security training requirements,
• precinct community outreach,
• late-night transportation alternatives, and
• targeting public nuisances

Please visit http://www.seattle.gov/nightlife to find out more about the Seattle Nightlife Initiative.

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