King County Department of Transportation Director Harold Taniguchi points out
the list of Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID) projects.
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RealVideo report]
For more than a year, elected officials in King, Pierce and Snohomish
counties have struggled to come up with transportation solutions that could be
funded through local taxes and fees. But it has been difficult, because the
needs in the Puget Sound region are so numerous and so varied.
After the state Legislature approved a process for locally funded
transportation projects in 2002, the three Central Puget Sound counties formed
the Regional Transportation
Investment District (RTID). The discussion and debate over which projects
should be selected has been intense, but deep divisions over the makeup of the
package remain.
Road and transit advocates have not been able to reach consensus on a
balanced package of improvements in King County that maximizes the movement of
people and freight in addition to automobiles. Also, residents and the business
community are saying the $14 billion list is simply too big, given the soft
regional economy and number of households struggling to make ends meet.
Earlier this year, the RTID board members put together a tentative $14
billion-plus list of projects totaling $9 billion in King County. However, King
County RTID board members have had different opinions regarding the types of
road and transit projects that should be included in the overall package.
Hoping to get things moving, the King
County Department of Transportation conducted a new analysis of the project
list to bring some fresh information to the discussion. At the request of
King County Executive Ron Sims, KCDOT
staff carried out a professional, technical review of each project to evaluate
costs and analyze the benefits to the regional transportation network. The goal
was to spark renewed discussion focusing on the right mix of projects that will
deliver the most.
The review started with some in-depth homework. Projects were studied - using
standard transportation analysis techniques - to determine the ability of each
to improve the movement of people and freight. People-moving measurements were
done for transit, carpools, and single-occupancy vehicles.
Knowing that our transportation system is not one-dimensional, KCDOT staff
then looked at how these projects fit together. Did improvements in one corridor
also improve another? Would additional transit options also relieve road
congestion in some areas? And, how do links between car, bus, train and ferry
travel improve the entire system?
The first two parts of the review process pointed out something that
transportation planners have always known - a transportation improvement project
can have benefits miles away from where it is located. For example, people who
work in downtown Seattle can have a much better commute when HOV lanes are added
in suburban locations or transit-only lanes are added to freeways feeding into
Seattle. Those long-distance improvements can also reduce congestion in and
around the big city if traffic flows through the system more evenly.
The study also verified that our Puget Sound transportation system is
incredibly intertwined. A bottleneck in Bellevue can quickly become a headache
in Kirkland. A stalled bus on Interstate 5 has impacts for Interstate 90 and
State Route 520. And, malfunctioning signals in Auburn can send transportation
shockwaves throughout South King County.
So, KCDOT staff began to rate all the projects on the King County RTID list
to see how they:
- Move people and goods;
- Preserve the current transportation infrastructure;
- Expand the current system;
- Make the current system more efficient; and
- Support growth in the urban areas.
From the beginning, Executive Sims had wanted to see the $9 billion King
County list pared down to a smaller package.
"These are all great projects, but what can we reasonably afford to do?" said
KCDOT Director Harold Taniguchi. "The average family in King County spends more
on transportation than on food, recreation or education. Only housing has more
of an impact on the family budget."
As the review was completed, KCDOT staff came up with a
$6.5
billion package that includes a combination of: mega projects to improve key
facilities like the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge; major projects to move more
people; and local projects to improve traffic flow. Taniguchi is convinced that
the best way to tackle the tremendous needs in the Puget Sound region is to go
for a phased approach.
"My agency’s review of these specific transportation projects and investments
can be viewed as an initial down payment toward a longer-range regional
solution," said Taniguchi.
Taniguchi’s departmental recommendations were forwarded to King County
Executive Ron Sims last week. From here, King County will discuss its smaller
proposed package with other transportation experts and regional leaders to
gather additional input before Sims presents a final recommendation to the King
County Council.
More information about King County Department of
Transportation's approach to the Regional Transportation Investment District is
available online at
www.metrokc.gov/kcdot/solutions.
VIDEO REPORT
DOT Dash