crosscut.com : Metro Transit

Sausage Links, transit migraine edition

Crosscut — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:00:01 PDT

Ready to pay $6.85 round-trip to drive across the 520 bridge? Me neither. That's the proposed toll that would raise money to help pay for improvements to the floating fossil. But the idea of a toll begs another question, something I've been dying to get reader input about: Do you think having a toll on local bridges like 520 will sway voters to vote for the proposed light rail measure this November? Thoughts?

Sausage Links, fancy-pants luncheon edition

Crosscut — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:21:01 PDT

The Queen of fist-bumps, New Yorker cover girl Michelle Obama, is in Seattle today to headline a fundraiser for Gov. Chris Gregoire. The event is expected to bring in $400,000 for Gregoire's re-election campaign. Seattle Times chief political reporter David Postman will have live coverage of the event as it develops, while Eli Sanders at the Stranger already has pictures from the WaMu Theater. ...

The case for more rail transit

Crosscut — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:00:01 PDT

The region has tried a largely bus solution for 40 years, and by now the capacity flaws are apparent. If we are really serious about building density, we need to lay more rails.

Bus envy

Crosscut — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 07:09:01 PDT

I was recently in Chicago and found something delightful about riding that city's buses — something I haven't found here in King County riding Metro Transit. Buses there clearly and consistently let you know where you're going. What a concept.

Sausage Links, gas cards for bad guys edition

Crosscut — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:20:01 PDT

Alright everybody. Let's head to Tacoma. If we hurry, we can help Tacoma-Pierce County Crime Stoppers catch sexual predators, gangsters, domestic violence abusers, and violent criminals. Why? Because they're giving away $250 gas cards and up to $1,000 in exchange for information that would lead to arrests. Here's the list of criminals. Start hunting. After all, what better incentive is there to dodge outrageous gas prices than to catch perverts? Don't answer that.

Sausage Links, blame-game edition

Crosscut — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:05:01 PDT

David Goldstein at Horse's Ass says everyone has missed the boat about the latest mess surrounding the "top-two" primary. The Seattle Times blamed the parties. The parties blamed the state. Others blamed the lawyers. Goldstein, however, says the person to blame for what could be the "most monumental legal fuck up in state history — one which puts the legitimacy of our entire 2008 election in jeopardy" — is state Attorney General Rob McKenna.

Sausage Links, top-two headache edition

Crosscut — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:23:01 PDT

David Postman had a busy morning. First, The Seattle Times chief political writer reported the proper way to describe the ~~death with dignity~~ "assisted suicide" initiative. Then he dropped a political firebomb, reporting the state's political parties haven't yet given up trying to ax the "top-two" primary, with both Republicans and Democrats claiming the entire '08 election won't count. I thought that headache was over. Turns out it's just getting started. ...

Berkeley shows the political problems of bus rapid transit

Crosscut — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 05:00:01 PDT

The Seattle region has been tied in knots over transit planning since the mid-1960s, when the first opponents of rail transit surfaced, mostly based at the University of Washington. It's easier to attack a proposal than to have to defend one, which is one reason opponents of rail have had an advantage. Factor in populist suspicion of large, arrogant agencies and the hilly landscape, and you've got Impasse Transit.

Skeptics such as former Transportation Secretary Doug MacDonald normally propose a better way to spend all those rail dollars, namely on buses, vanpools, and bus rapid transit. They make a compelling case, at least on paper.

Sausage Links, hammer-time edition

Crosscut — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:00:01 PDT

Tri-City Herald reporter Chris Mulick digs deep into Washington state's bungled attempt to land a $2 billion uranium enrichment plant, along with its 400 high-paying jobs. According to Mulick, Gov. Chris Gregoire chose not to pursue bidding for the plant, deciding instead to play it cool politically. As a result, Idaho got the plant. Washington lost the money. And Dino Rossi just got more ammo for his campaign. Still, Gregoire's got a sizable lead in the polls, at the moment. ...

Helpful Civic Suggestion #1,987

Crosscut — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 09:02:01 PDT

Now that everyone, including the former head of the state Department of Transportation, is riding Metro, can some savvy Seattle ad agency please put some thought into campaigns that revitalize an under-used resource? I'm talking about those dreary, pathetic interior overhead advertising rack cards. Can it really be that the only paid advertiser in town is Jobdango?

Sausage Links, media-bashing edition

Crosscut — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:00:01 PDT

Lefty blogger David Goldstein at Horse's Ass has been battering the local media lately. Yesterday, he unleashed on Seattle Post-Intelligencer reporter Chris McGann for his coverage of Gov. Chris Gregoire's now infamous state gambling compact. Today he asks Crosscut's Ted Van Dyk to apologize to Gregoire for his own coverage of Casino-gate. ...

Transit train wreck: Here's how to do buses right

Crosscut — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:00:01 PDT

They aren't the only solution, but they are the most flexible and potentially most attractive solution if they are used well. Bus lines are flexible, scalable, and can touch more people than rail, and they don't have to be a pain to use. Part 3 of 3

Polimedia lunch links, 'let's party' edition

Crosscut — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:06:01 PDT

Eric Earling at Sound Politics responds to Gov. Chris Gregoire's recent assertion that the Building Industry Association of Washington "is the most powerful special interest lobby" in the state, pointing to the Dem's own PACs as evidence. In case you missed the Top of The News, Gov. Christine Gregoire's donors won big-time after they helped her squeak out a victory in 2004. ...

Transit train wreck: Revealing bus-route ridership

Crosscut — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 20:00:01 PDT

We've got buses going everywhere, and guess which routes are logging the biggest increases in ridership? Not the route that would become light rail to the Eastside suburbs. Part 2 of 3

Transit train wreck: The case against more light rail

Crosscut — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 22:00:01 PDT

The recent former state secretary of transportation has been riding buses a lot lately and crunching numbers, and he's convinced light rail to the Eastside and more Sounder service has no place in a big new transit plan. He thinks an advanced bus rapid transit system is the best way to serve millions of people and smartly manage urban growth. Part 1 of 3

Hurray for mass transit, but it's no silver bullet

Cascadia Center — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:01 PDT

For one thing, bus and rail ridership represents only a fraction of trips now, and that's not likely to radically change soon. A Seattle think tank believes a balanced approach is called for, accepting the fact single-occupancy vehicles will play a huge role in years to come.

The second-worst winter ever was a Seattle spring

Crosscut — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 20:00:01 PDT

This glorious June has been like a multimillion-dollar ad campaign for Lesser Seattle. Mossback is treasuring every chilly, rainy moment of it. I am heading east of the mountains this week, and it greatly amuses me to be checking pass reports only 10 days before the summer solstice. Snow is expected on Snoqualmie Pass.

Does Seattle work any more?

Crosscut — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:00:01 PDT

A former mayor takes a critical look at Seattle's political culture, its past triumphs, and why it's so much harder today to make good decisions. One problem: We chew but do not swallow.

Sound Transit version 2.1

Crosscut — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 11:19:01 PDT

Imagine this scenario. Sound Transit comes back to ballot this fall with a shortened light rail plan and all three county executives within the voting district oppose it. Wouldn't that make for an interesting campaign season?

It might just happen. Right now, Ron Sims (King), John Ladenburg (Pierce), and Aaron Reardon (Snohomish) have grave reservations about Sound Transit's scaled-back proposal, which would extend the line up to Northgate and across the Interstate 90 floating bridge to the Eastside suburbs.

Traffic's so bad, we might actually be willing to pay a toll

Crosscut — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PST

Puget Sound policy-makers have been taking the public pulse. Their surveys reveal that people are generally pessimistic about the future, frustrated with traffic, and willing to pay to cross Lake Washington in a car — as long as it's really cheap.