Month: November 2018

• Metro testing electric buses with 140-mile range.
• Between 80 and 91 low-cost housing units ($) coming to Lower Queen Anne.
• Seattle Transportation Budget: done.
• Rich Smith continues his quest for Light Rail signage that is comprehensible to humans.
• Apply for an opening on ST’s Citizen Oversight Panel.
• Trailhead Direct, now done for the year, served 10,000 round trips in 2018.
• Shaun Scott’s city council candidacy sounds promising on STB issues.
• WSDOT has a draft project list for the next three years, and is looking for public comment.
• Scooters and bikes complimentary in Portland?
• King County ponders Metro’s future business model.
• Bike lane implementation slipping on all fronts.
• Citywide street parking rates ($) recalibrated — RPZ permits make some of these problems unsolvable.
• Sally Bagshaw is done after this term. We will miss her.
• Everett rezones.
• Closing the UW Laundry facility not good for its employees, but may lead to a denser use right next to Mt. Baker Station.
• Car hits pedestrian ($) under Angle Lake Station.
• TriMet going nuts on new parking.
• San Francisco may axe parking requirements altogether.
• This American transit atlas looks interesting.
• Trade war making projects more expensive ($).

This is an open thread.

The Seattle Transportation Benefit District, a 6-year levy to fund additional bus service in the city, is approaching middle age.  According to the city’s latest annual report, the district is coming to terms with its advancing years in the way most of us do: making incremental improvements, adapting to a changing economic realities, and trying to leave a legacy for the next generation.

Passed in 2014 at the nadir of Metro’s finances as a last-ditch effort to avoid service cuts, the levy is now being used to improve service and fulfill the city’s goal of having 75% of households living within 10-minute or better transit service (which the city defines as an average of 10 minutes between 6am and 7pm).  This year, with a labor shortage limiting Metro’s ability to get more vehicles on the road, the Seattle City Council amended the levy to include capital expenditures and subsidized ORCA cards for students. Continue reading “STBD Year 3: Continued Progress, Shifting Priorities”

Last week was surprisingly interesting for passenger rail news.  Alon Levy writes that the Federal Railroad Administration has finally published its new rules for train procurement, allowing US transit agencies to buy lighter, cheaper, European-style train sets for operation on American freight railways.

Long-time readers will know we got excited when these rules were first proposed nearly five years ago, and then we got excited again two years ago when it looked the rules were actually going to happen and now we’re excited a third time that they’ve finally been published.  Future Sounder and Amtrak Cascades trains could take advantage of these new regs next time rolling stock needs to be ordered.

Meanwhile, the private company that runs Florida’s Brightline and the LA-Vegas announced that it will be operating as “Virgin Trains US” and is planning an initial public offering.  These two services are likely to be the first privately-run high speed rail in the US.

Sandy Johnston summarized the interesting nuggets from the IPO prospectus on Twitter.  The company expects that the Virgin brand will help it offer tourist packages on both routes (a planned stop at Disneyworld will certainly help), suggesting a different and less price-sensitive potential passenger base than other domestic rail systems.

While Virgin Trains says it won’t compete with any intercity Amtrak service in the US, could we speculate that they might someday bid to take over the Cascades contract from Amtrak? If the goal is to serve the tourist market, perhaps a station at Smith Cove or Broad street to facilitate cruise ship transfers?

On a less speculative note, if you are interested in the future of intercity rail, consider taking WSDOT’s recent survey.

Brightline Test from BBT609 on Flickr

Thank you to every last person that played a role in this campaign – big or small. It is a honor and privilege to have the opportunity to serve my community. I am thrilled to be your next State Senator in Washington’s 30th Legislative District. pic.twitter.com/wbZtLFOPff

— Claire Wilson (@ElectCWilson) November 8, 2018

Sound Transit bashing was a bipartisan thing in the past two legislative sessions. But the November 26 election results are likely to reduce the shrillness a few notches.

Seven legislative incumbents lost in districts partially or wholly in the Sound Transit taxing district including:

• Sen. Maralyn Chase (D – Edmonds, 21st District), who lost over 2-1 to Shoreline Deputy Mayor Jesse Salomon (D). Chase campaigned against ST3. Salomon made his support for light rail one of the talking points. Salomon was endorsed by STB.
• Sen. Mark Miloscia (R – Federal Way, 30th District), who has for many years complained about Sound Transit not getting light rail to downtown Federal Way faster, while opposing the funding to get light rail to downtown Federal Way. STB endorsed his opponent, Federal Way Schools Board President Claire Wilson (D).
• Sen. Joe Fain (R – Auburn, 47th District) who was actually one of the more left-of-moderate Republicans, and somewhat a fan of light rail, if not car tabs. Other unrelated accusations ($) probably had a larger impact on the outcome. Fain lost to Mona Das (D – Covington).
• Rep. Paul Graves ( R – Fall City, 5th District), a supporter of Sound Transit generally, but also non-shrill supporter of car tab changes. Graves lost to Lisa Callan (D – Issaquah Highlands).
• Rep. Dick Muri (R – Steilacoom, 28th District), who pushed a slew of bills designed to significantly reduce Sound Transit revenue, similar to the ones sponsored by his State Senator, Steve O’Ban (R – Tacoma). Muri lost to Mari Leavitt (D – University Place).
• Rep. Mark Harmsworth (R – Mill Creak, 44th District), Ranking Minority Member of the House Transportation Committee, was one of the most vocal critics of ST and car tabs. He lost to Jared Mead (D – Mill Creek).
• Rep. Mark Hargrove (R – Covington , 47th District), Assistant Ranking Minority Member on the House Transportation Committee, has been a rather snarky critic of Sound Transit. Hargrove lost to Debra Entenman (D – Kent). The defeat of the two Republican Transportation leaders gives the caucus a chance to modernize their thinking on transportation issues.

Also within the Sound Transit district:

Continue reading “Several ST Critics, from Both Parties, Defeated”

• FTA awards $1.2 billion to Lynnwood Link. More on this next week.
• Metro operations will briefly pause Friday to commemorate the 1998 Aurora Bridge crash.
• Seattle tries grassroots pedestrian improvements where sidewalks will never come.
• Hilltop Tacoma Link extension breaks ground.
• Seattle budget maneuvers take some money from Safe Routes to School.
• Mudslide science ($).
• There’s a way for Uber and Lyft to detract from transit, and a way for them to make transit better. Seattle has a unique opportunity to pick one next year.
• Broad Seattle upzone clears some nuisance lawsuits ($)
• Three great things that happened in the Northwest in 2018.
• Study suggests streetcar investments have some positive impact on new construction.
• A review of bikeshare in Cascadia.
• Portland throwing $36m at new bus and bike lanes.
• With the CRC sytmied, Portland is also considering a ferry to Vancouver.

This is an open thread. Happy Thanksgiving!