All posts by Nathan Dickey

Reminder: The Link 2 Line crosslake connection will be closed this weekend for scheduled maintenance.
Survey: ST’s 2026 Passenger Experience Survey is open.

News and commentary from the past week or so, after the jump.

Election results: see yesterday’s Midterm Elections thread.
Put it on your calendars: Ballard Link Extension Draft EIS to be published December 11 (Sound Transit).

News and commentary from the past week or so, below the break.

Ballot return closes at 8pm. The first batch of results is expected 15-30 minutes later.

As of 6pm on November 4, King County had received 878,871 ballots, representing 60.18% of the county’s 1,460,414 registered voters. King County Elections was expecting ~75% turnout. King County has counted about 73% of returned ballots.

Local elections STB is following:

• Seattle – Council District 5: Nilu Jenks | Julie Kang
• Seattle – Prop. 1 (transit service improvement): Yes | No
• King County – Council District 2: Toshiko Hasegawa | Rebecca Saldaña
• King County – Council District 8: Nick Duda | Teresa Mosqueda
• Pierce County – Prop 1. (transit service improvement): Yes | No

We’ll update this post with initial counts (expected shortly after 8pm) and later counts if results are likely to change. Key races appear to be decided; results are indicated in bold italics.

Please keep election discussion focused on local elections. Non-local elections may be discussed if explicitly related to local or regional issues regarding transit and/or land use.

Edit (1:18pm, 11/3): updated ballot return stats.
Edit (8:30pm, 11/3): updated with first drop results for watched races.
Edit (6:06pm, 11/4): updated turnout statistics.

Survey: ORCA wants your opinion on public transit.

News and commentary from the past week or so.

News:

• King County Council Committee Reviews Plan to Replace Route 7 With RapidRide (South Seattle Emerald).
• Council Supermajority Passes New Licensing Law That Will Gradually Ban RVs in Seattle (PubliCola).
• Council unanimously approves bill outlining safety role of Traffic Engineer, tasks departments with drafting rules to require truck side guards for city contractors (Seattle Bike Blog).
• Safer connections to Rainier Beach schools now open along S Henderson St (SDOT Blog).
• Coming soon near Ballard Locks: $600K waterfront ‘condos’ for hypercars and superyachts (The Seattle Times, $; free via SPL).
• Most Puget Sound Cities Aren’t Keeping Up With Housing Growth Targets (The Urbanist). Here’s an alternate title: Seattle Can’t Carry The Entire Region’s Housing Slack.
• Downtown Highrise Project Still Under Fire as Design Gets Revised Taller (The Urbanist).
• Wilson Pledges ‘Striking Progress’ With Homelessness Shift (The Urbanist); additional coverage in PubliCola.

News and commentary from the past week or so.

Survey: Community Transit wants your input on Swift Gold by November 15.

News:

• Despite Pushback, Updated RapidRide R Plans Include Scant Changes (The Urbanist); meanwhile, Metro Matters’s headline is “Executive Zahilay Moves to Accelerate Metro’s RapidRide R Line“.
• State Lawmaker, SDOT Director Clash Over Aurora Avenue Overhaul (The Urbanist).
• RapidRide I Line construction updates (Metro Matters).
• Metro receives national award for innovative paratransit map (Metro Matters).
• Get ready for major changes at Canyon Park Park & Ride in Bothell (CT News).
• Another option to pay for parking coming to Seattle with new “text to pay” feature (SDOT Blog)
• Housing Accountability Act Puts Tiny Beaux Arts Village in the Spotlight (The Urbanist).
• Seattle Social Housing Developer Advances First Construction Project (The Urbanist); also in The Stranger, on KUOW, the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog, and The Seattle Times ($; free via SPL).
• Addressing the Growth Management Hearings Board Decision and Creating a Livable Seattle for All (The Daily Plan It Blog).

News and commentary from the past week or so.

News:

• Tug-of-War Over New Transportation Funding Heats Up in Bellevue (The Urbanist).
• Building I-5 left many scars in the Pinehurst neighborhood, new walking and biking projects hope to heal some of them (Seattle Bike Blog).
• Mukilteo’s Plans for ‘Vibrant Waterfront Village’ Start to Come Together (The Urbanist).
• Sound Transit Panel advances land acquisition for West Seattle Light Rail line (Westside Seattle).
• Beacon Ave S safety improvement design work resumes (SDOT Blog).
• ‘The Ave for All’ Transforms U District’s Main Thoroughfare (The Urbanist).
• 2026 Transportation Choices Hall of Fame (Transportation Choices Coalition).
• Peter Ngo named King County Metro’s Vehicle Maintenance Employee of the Year (Metro Matters).
• Seattle’s ‘Centers & Corridors’ Zoning Update Delayed Another Year (The Urbanist).
• Tacoma Pushes to Reimagine Crash-Prone Portland Avenue (The Urbanist)

Commentary:

• Making Every Bus Rapid (City Hikes).
• Greater Seattle: A Supermajority, a Mistake, and a Chance (PubliCola)

This is an Open Thread.

Reminder: Buses replace Link trains between Westlake and Northgate after ~10pm from Oct. 6-8 as part of Sound Transit’s rotating monthly maintenance program.

News and commentary from the past week.

News:

• Puget Sound ferry service returns after 23 ferry engine room workers staged a “sick out” amid tensions over low wages and long hours (KUOW). Also well-covered by The Stranger.
• Zahilay Proposes Advancing RapidRide R Funding to Spur Bus Upgrades (The Urbanist).
• Deadline Approaches for Outside Ideas to Curb Costs on Ballard Light Rail (The Urbanist).
• The push to Reconnect Fremont across Aurora (Fremont Neighbor).
• Paid Parking Could Expand to West Seattle, Upper Queen Anne (The Urbanist). Also on West Seattle Blog and the SDOT Blog.
• Nathan Vass’ Deciding to See is a Finalist for the Washington State Book Awards (The Urbanist).
• New Night Bus routes offer regional connections 24/7 (The Platform)
• KCRHA Consultant Finds the “Missing” $8 Million; Strauss’ RV Ban Moves Forward (PubliCola).
• The Seattle area’s most extreme bedroom communities (The Seattle Times, $; free via SPL)
• King County Metro apprenticeships offer a chance to shift gears (The Seattle Times, $; free via SPL)
• WSDOT’s Cascadia Program exploring regional high-speed rail in coordination with statewide I-5 needs (WSDOT Blog).

Seattle City Councilmember (District 6) and Sound Transit Boardmember Dan Strauss is hosting a community form discussing the Ballard Link Extension alongside several other elected officials and Sound Transit representatives. The forum will be held in the Osberg Great Hall at the National Nordic Museum on Monday, October 19, from 6-8pm.

New Link station and new Amtrak trains! Pinehurst Station opens today, and Amtrak Cascades has begun running new Airo trains.

Week Without Driving is October 1-8, 2026. Transit Trekker and King County Parks are leading a Transit Trek on Maury Island tomorrow.

News and commentary headlines from the past week.

News:

• Bus route changes, improvements for University of Washington, college campus connections (Metro Matters).
• King County Council Debates Future of its Transportation Funding District (The Urbanist).
• The Graham Street Station Is Fully Funded. Now Comes a Block Party (South Seattle Emerald).
• ‘Keep Pierce Moving’ Campaign Touts Major Bus Service Expansion Plan (The Urbanist).
• Dow Constantine Secures Three-Year Extension as Sound Transit CEO (The Urbanist).
• Renew and Reinvest: Metro’s zero-emission fleet generates nearly $1.5 million in clean fuel credits (Metro Matters).
• Free transit program drives big savings for Snohomish County workers (CT News).
• Clyde Hill Brokers Deal to Settle Growth Plan Complaint (The Urbanist).
• Mayor Wilson’s 2027-2028 Proposed Budget Supports a Resilient Seattle Transportation System (SDOT Blog). Alternatively: Pending Fiscal Cliff at SDOT Prompts Major Budget Shifts (The Urbanist). More review of Mayor’s budget proposal provided by PubliCola and by South Seattle Emerald.

News and commentary headlines from the past week.

News:

• RapidRide I Line construction update (Metro Matters).
• Seattle had record-breaking bike traffic this summer. What’s behind the numbers? (KUOW)
• Traffic Safety Package Advances with Change Targeting Historic Districts (The Urbanist).
• We worked through the summer to keep you moving this fall (and beyond!) (SDOT Blog).
• Seattle’s Speed Camera Program Enters New Frontier (The Urbanist).
• What happens when something goes wrong in a rideshare in Washington? (CascadePBS).
• Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet (KUOW)
• Zahilay Announces More Than $19.5 Million in New Housing Investments (The Urbanist).
• Wilson Seeks to Clean House Ahead of First Budget Rollout (The Urbanist).
• Housing Advocates, Workers Pack City Hall to Support Temporary Fee Break (The Urbanist).
• Host a Trick-or-Streets celebration on your block – Apply by October 20 (SDOT Blog)
• Mayor Katie Wilson announces proposed 2027-2028 budget (Office of the Mayor). Further reporting is expected to be published today.

Commentary:

• Greater Seattle: Councilmember Foster Breaks the MHA Logjam (PubliCola)
• Op-Ed: Seattle Needs More Than a 10-Minute Walk or Roll to a Park (The Urbanist).
• Seattle needs a new ‘process’ (Real Change)

This is an Open Thread.