(The Center Square) – Seattle Department of Transportation Director Greg Spotts announced his intention to resign from his position early next year.
Spotts announced that he notified Mayor Bruce Harrell of his intention on Tuesday. His resignation will be effective on Feb. 12, 2025.
In a social media post, Spotts said he will pursue work opportunities closer to loved ones since living far away from his parents “has been hard.”
Spotts has seen some success during his time as the Seattle Department of Transportation [SDOT] director. The most recent example is the transportation levy that voters overwhelmingly approved of, despite being the largest tax proposal in city history. The levy totals $1.55 billion over the course of its eight year life-span.
Generated funding will broadly support the city’s work to modernize roads, repave streets and sidewalks, and repair bridges.
Spotts’ time as director also prioritized the continuation of the city’s ambitious Vision Zero program, which aims to end traffic deaths and injuries across Seattle by 2030. The program supports the implementation of safety elements by redesigning streets to emphasize safety.
Spotts insisted that slowing down traffic would help curb traffic deaths and injuries. This led to SDOT’s prioritization of more “no turn on red” signs, speed bumps, protected bike lanes, and lowering speed limits.
However, despite spending millions of dollars toward the program since Spotts took over as SDOT director in September 2022, statistics haven’t improved.
In fact, fatalities on Seattle streets peaked in 2021 with 31 deaths, but since then has seen a modest drop to 27 deaths in 2023.
While traffic deaths have fallen, serious injuries on Seattle streets continue to go up across all categories. In 2023 there were approximately 250 serious traffic injuries. The previous record for the most number of serious injuries was 241 in 2006.
Despite this, Spotts leaves Seattle with a positive outlook on the city’s future.
“Early 2025 seems like a good moment to pass the baton to the next leader of SDOT, an agency which now has the plans and the resources to maintain and modernize Seattle’s streets and bridges,” Spotts said to Harrell in a letter obtained by The Center Square.
Harrell called Spotts a valued member of his administration due to his positive energy and strategic vision.
“When we recruited him from Los Angeles, I made a big ask of Greg to come to a new place and take on one of the most difficult jobs in the city, and I’m grateful for his service and his friendship over the last several years,” Harrell said in an emailed statement to The Center Square. “I wish him the best as he seeks to be closer to family.”
Harrell is now tasked with someone to the SDOT director position as well as finding a permanent Seattle police chief, which has been interimly held by Sue Rahr since late May.
