Finally, an Eastside Meetup!

Posted on by Ben Schiendelman

In light of all the news lately about East Link alignment choices, and in large part just because we haven’t had one, it’s well past time to have a meetup in Bellevue. Our planned date: Thursday, February 11th.

I’m waiting for a confirmation, but we should have space at the Rock Bottom. It’s a block from Bellevue Transit Center, in the Galleria – which I understand is neither a Kemper Freeman nor a Kevin Wallace property (although it’s probably someone with their values).

I’d imagine you should start filtering in around 6, but don’t worry if you can’t show up until a little later – I’m sure folks will be there until at least 9. Please comment if you can (or can’t) make it!

News Roundup: Unpleasant Transit Rides

Posted on by Martin H. Duke
Photo by Zargoman

Seattle: Cheapest Dense City for Renters

Posted on by Matt Gangemi

This post originally appeared on Orphan Road.

SeattleBubble just posted some very interesting numbers for the 25 most populated cities in the US.  There are a few lessons from this set of data, but my favorite is how cheap this city is – as dense cities go.  Click on the “Density” tab, and we’re #8.  Our Income/Rent ratio is 5 – much higher than most of those above us.  The next cheap city is all the way down at Denver – with a bit over half the density we have.

Of course San Francisco nearly catches us with an I/R of 4.9 and is over twice as dense as us, so although we’re less expensive, if you want density at a reasonable price you may consider SF.

Owning is a completely separate matter.  While owning a home is much cheaper (per income) here than NY, LA, or SF, anywhere else more dense than us is a better deal.  And housing in Detroit – just one under us in density – is practically free (seriously, $25k for a house?  are they missing a zero?).

Why does any of this matter?  Well, there’s the human aspect of wanting to be paid well yet not paying a fortune for housing and still living in a city.  But what I see in these numbers is the drivers of density.  To create density we need an attractive place to live and enough supply.  Lumped in with an “attractive place to live” is income and cost of living, which includes rent.  The price of housing alone doesn’t tell you much, since this can be offset by income.  But an I/R ratio exposes this piece of “attractive place to live”.  Of course, as a city becomes more dense it’s harder to meet housing demand with supply, so rents go up.  So we expect I/R ratios to drop with density.  The fact that ours is still high shows that we’re a comparatively attractive and affordable city, at least by this measure.

Update on Link Noise

Posted on by John Jensen

This week’s Sound Transit CEO newsletter contains an update on the work that Sound Transit is doing to mitigate Link noise.

A few months ago I told you about our plans to cut down the noise from Link light rail trains. (STB: see our previous coverage.)

Those plans included actually grinding the tracks to reduce train noise. I thought you’d be interested to know that the grinding was completed in the Rainier Valley in mid-December, and elsewhere on the line just before New Years Day. Although the grinding has reduced the high-frequency noise in many areas, there are some locations where it’s still present. We’ll measure noise levels again in early spring, after the grinding marks on the rails have worn smooth.

Another problem we’re working on is “wheel squeal” noise on curves, such as where trains enter and leave Mount Baker Station. In those areas we’re installing solar-powered machines that periodically dispense a dab of lubricant on the tracks. The track lubricators have been purchased and work is expected to begin in mid-to-late March. Work will take place overnight starting at 10 p.m. to minimize inconvenience to riders.

Finally, another noise problem in the Rainier Valley is the “ka-thunk” sounds created when a train goes through the crossover switches near S. Walden and S. Willow streets. A Sound Transit contractor will modify the two switch crossings so train wheels have a smoother running surface. Work will be scheduled between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m. over eight weekends beginning in March. The project should take about two months.

We reported the first round of work late last year.

HOV or Transit Lane on 520?

Posted on by Martin H. Duke
wikimedia

As reported by multiple outlets, the City of Seattle and House Speaker Frank Chopp appear to have shifted their opposition to the SR520 plan, with less emphasis on unworkable highway tunnels under the cut, instead pushing for the HOV lane to become transit-only.  The Stranger claims they’ll ask for light rail tracks on the bridge in anticipation of Link operations across the bridge:

Sources tell us that city leaders will soon release plans for a set of specific requests. Among them, the sources say, the city wants: only four lanes dedicated to traffic and the other two lanes dedicated to transit only, light rail tracks laid on the bridge for future use, no ramp leading to the Arboretum, and a smaller footprint through the Montlake neighborhood. This layout could include a transit-lane connection from 520 to the north side of the ship canal.

More after the jump. Continue reading “HOV or Transit Lane on 520?”

Metro’s February Service Change Now Online

Posted on by Oran Viriyincy

Details on the changes in Metro bus service, effective February 6th, are available online. New red timetables and a special rider alert brochure will soon be available. The changes are now live on the Trip Planner and timetables will be posted online on February 5. This is a major service change, with over 80 bus routes affected. Highlights are:

  • New Route 156 to replace part of Route 140 service in McMicken Heights and will serve Southcenter, SeaTac/Airport Link, and Tukwila Sounder stations.
  • Route 194 replaced by Link light rail and expanded service on ST Express routes 574, 577, and 578.
  • Route 140 now serves Tukwila International Blvd station via Southcenter Blvd. It no longer serves McMicken Heights (use Route 156), the airport (use Link), and Air Cargo Rd (use Route 180).
  • ST 560 and 574 will be the only routes serving the Sea-Tac Airport terminal stops. All other routes will serve SeaTac/Airport Station (including ST 574)
  • Routes 76, 77, 216, 218, and 316 move to the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel
  • Long-term construction reroutes for 73, 77, and 316 373 in the Northgate area.
  • More frequent service on routes 8, 9, 36 and 60 to improve connections to Link
  • More trips on routes between West Seattle, SODO, and downtown Seattle as mitigation for Viaduct construction.
  • Trip reductions on approximately 40 Metro routes

Previously covered: Sound Transit service changes, also on Feb 6.

Amtrak Cascades 2009 Ridership Numbers

Posted on by Martin H. Duke

This has been in my inbox for a while, but in 2009 Amtrak Cascades experienced a slight decline from the high gas prices and lower unemployment of 2008 while maintaining healthy gains over the recent past.  According to the report, the drop in performance is mainly due to the Portland-Eugene corridor.  In total, Cascades trains carried passengers about 118m passenger miles.

On a somewhat related note, if you participate in RailPlus — using regional passes to travel on Amtrak between Everett and Tacoma Seattle — you must obtain a “validation ticket” from the TVM with your ORCA card.  Amtrak staff presumably don’t have ORCA readers.

Pacific Northwest to get $598 Million in HSR Funds

Posted on by Sherwin Lee
'Racing Amtrak Cascades' by Oran

By way of an official press release from the White House, the Cascades corridor is expected to receive $598 million from HSR (high-speed rail) funds, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  President Obama will be on hand in Tampa (guess who’s cashing in?) today to make the announcement of grants toward thirteen major corridors, the Pacific Northwest being one of them:

Improvements will be made to the corridor using funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to provide rail passengers in the Pacific Northwest with faster, more reliable and more frequent service.

Seattle – Portland: Two additional daily round trips will be added between Seattle and Portland, for a total six; travel time will be reduced by at least 5 percent; and on-time performance will increase substantially, from 62 to 88 percent. Major construction projects include building bypass tracks to allow for increased train frequency and multiple upgrades to existing track and signal systems. Several safety-related projects will also be funded, including grade separations, positive train control, and seismic retrofits to Seattle’s historic King Street Station.

Portland – Eugene: Investments include upgrading Portland’s Union Station, and engineering and environmental work for track and signaling projects that will increase service reliability and reduce congestion.

Along with WSDOT and ODOT, other regions/corridors that have also been earmarked for HSR funds include the Northeast Corridor, Florida, California, the Chicago hub network, and Ohio.  The White House website has individual releases for each regional grant.  The Infrastructurist had speculated that out of all the contenders, Texas would likely get the shaft, but Fort Worth is expected to receive just a tiny bit.  We’ll bring you more as soon as we figure out exactly what projects our $598 million will go towards.  [UPDATE 7:26am: Here is a full list (PDF) of the grants from the White House.]

Light Rail Measure in November: Open Thread

Posted on by John Jensen

Yesterday, we reported that Mayor McGinn is likely to pursue a November 2010 ballot measure for light rail expansion.

During the campaign, the Candidate McGinn promised to offer a ballot measure “within two years” to expand light rail to the west side of the city. What route should his line take? What do you think we could build with, for example, ~$1.5 billion or so (with the rest of the funds going to bike and pedestrian improvements)? How big of a role should Sound Transit play? A tunnel through Downtown or a surface street alignment like Portland? Where would it be more cost effective to extend a streetcar line to rather than build a new light rail line to? How much should the voting public know before it expects to approve a multi-billion dollar funding package?

These questions will all be answered in the comments, to be sure. This is an open thread on McGinn’s likely ballot measure.