October 17, 2008 – Seattle Transit Blog

Transit Now Website Updated

October 17, 2008 by Martin H. Duke

Metro has vastly improved and updated the information on their Transit Now website, which specifies what they’ve delivered under the program. It also provides target dates for each of the BRT RapidRide lines:

A Line—Tukwila to Federal Way on Pacific Highway S (State Route 99) (scheduled to launch in 2010)
B Line—Bellevue to Redmond on NE Eighth Street and 156th Avenue NE via Crossroads and Overlake (2011)
C Line—West Seattle to downtown Seattle using Fauntleroy Way SW, California Avenue SW, and State Route 99 (2011)
D Line—Ballard to Uptown and downtown Seattle along 15th Avenue NW (possible alternate routing along 24th Avenue NW) (2012)
E Line—Aurora Avenue N (State Route 99) between Shoreline and downtown Seattle (2013)

“Transit Now” is, of course, not to be confused with “Mass Transit Now,” the Yes-on-Prop-1 campaign.

Apparently, the King County Council gives final approval to the A line’s routing in 2009. Given that the proposed routing exactly tracks where Sound Transit 2 light rail will go, I hope it’s not too late to make intelligent changes in the event Proposition 1 passes next month.

It’s odd to me that they would go with the “A” line first given the uncertainty around light rail. I tend to interpret this as some sort of passive-aggressive move by Ron Sims, but perhaps that’s too paranoid.

We’ve talked about RapidRide extensively here, here, here, here, and here.

Thanks to tipper Oran.

Prop 1 Endorsement

October 17, 2008October 17, 2008 by Andrew Smith

The P-I’s Prop 1 endorsement focuses on the job creation aspect of the bill, though they note they “support the expansion of Sound Transit for many reasons”. According to the P-I, Sound Transit expansion “is a critical public works project” and “would create at least 66,000 direct and indirect jobs,” noting the figure could be conservative.

I think that’s a good reason to vote for the bill, and so does Paul Krugman, this year’s winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics*, who says:

And this is also a good time to engage in some serious infrastructure spending, which the country badly needs in any case. The usual argument against public works as economic stimulus is that they take too long: by the time you get around to repairing that bridge and upgrading that rail line, the slump is over and the stimulus isn’t needed. Well, that argument has no force now, since the chances that this slump will be over anytime soon are virtually nil. So let’s get those projects rolling.

Vote yes, it’s good for the economy.

*Okay, okay, I realize it’s technically “The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel” but nobody says that.

No Metro Fare Increase Next Month

October 17, 2008 by Martin H. Duke

Late this summer there was talk of a November 25-cent fare increase, to be followed by another quarter in 2010. I’ve been holding off on ordering my November pass until the Council resolved the issue.

As it’s getting late, I sent an email to (STB-approved) King County Councilmember Dow Constantine, who had this to say:

There will be a fare increase, but not in November. We are in the budget process right now (through late November) and are scrubbing the Metro budget for further savings. We will probably approve a fare hike in conjunction with the budget. Such an increase would likely take effect some time in early 2009.

So there you go. Feel free to order a pass now.

Seattle P-I Endorses Proposition 1

October 17, 2008October 17, 2008 by John Jensen

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, one Seattle’s dailies, has endorsed Proposition 1. Prop. 1, as you probably know, adds 36 miles of light rail, increases bus service immediately in 2009, and expands Sounder by 65%. The P-I endorsement focuses exclusively on job creation — perhaps a good selling point for the Yes campaign — to focus on now that the economy has turned south.

All things being equal, we’d support the expansion of Sound Transit for many reasons. This metropolitan area is underserved by buses, trains and other alternatives to the car with a single driver. We could make the case on transportation grounds, the environment or even pocketbook issues such as the cost of filling a gas tank.

But all things are not equal. Not now. Those were arguments for ordinary times; we are entering a period of extraordinary economic uncertainty. The first priority in this economy must be the creation of good-paying jobs and voting yes on Proposition 1 will do just that.

[…]

Rail, unlike bus systems, opens up all sorts of additional development opportunities (that’s another way of saying, “Yes, even more jobs”). Portland’s experience is that $6 billion in development occurred within walking distance of MAX light rail stations since 1980. There are similar findings in Dallas and San Diego, where property values around the light rail stations jumped by double-digits.

Sound Transit is a critical public works project. A one-half cent boost in the sales tax seems a reasonable price to pay for so many new jobs

Read the full endorsement online. It’s unclear when this will appear in print — perhaps Sunday since I doubt they’d publish their endorsement on a Saturday.

I Voted Today

October 17, 2008October 17, 2008 by Ben Schiendelman

…and it felt great.

I got my ballot last night, and I sat down and filled it out right away. I filled it out starting from the bottom, starting from Proposition 1.

This isn’t a sounding board for my political preferences, but I’m excited about this election. If anyone else has gotten your ballots and filled in the bubble for Proposition 1, sound off here!

Edit: Of course I voted for Prop 1! I just mean I’m not going to tell you to vote for Peter Goldmark, John Ladenburg, I-1000, and I-1029, and against I-985 and ‘non-partisan’ county offices, like I did… :)

Love it or Leave it?

October 17, 2008December 11, 2015 by Matt Gangemi

This post originally appeared on Orphan Road.

I’ve now heard two people threaten to leave Seattle if ST2 doesn’t pass. I certainly understand the frustration, but is this a logical choice?

Despite the popular sentiment about what a given project would do for your commute, using personal benefits as a factor in transportation planning seems like a terrible way to decide things. Let’s assume you live in Lynnwood, right next to the possible future station. The station won’t be available to you until 2023. That’s 15 years out. I don’t know about you but I’m not sure where I’ll be living in 5 years, let alone 15. I’m sure you don’t know where you’ll be working in 15 years. And even if you don’t move and don’t change jobs, you’ll be living your life for 15 years in a way that would otherwise cause you to move?

The reason I’m a supporter of ST2 has nothing to do with my life. If I wanted only to experience a good transit system, I’d move to New York or the other Washington. Why I support ST2 has more to do with a beneficent feeling about how a city should work. We know we’re running out of oil. We know that it’s a waste of human life for millions of people to sit in gridlocked freeways. We know that cities with fewer cars are more enjoyable places to live and work. We know that efficient transportation systems increase quality of life.

I live here because I like Seattle. I’m voting for ST2 because as much as I like Seattle, it could be better.