State Budget Round-Up

Submitted by Paul Ellis

Kudos to The News Tribune, which today publicized highlights of the $7.5 billion Washington State transportation budget for 2007-09:

• Earmarks $199 million to continue building car-pool lanes on I-5 from the Tacoma Mall to Fife and to rebuild the Nalley Valley Viaduct at SR-16--most work will be done between 2009 and 2013 at a total cost of $1.4 billion;
• Appropriates the final $142 million of the $849 million for the second Tacoma Narrows Bridge;
• Sets up a $5 million line of credit in case first-year tolls on the new bridge don’t raise enough money to make loan payments;
• Allocates half of the $25 million to widen SR-161 (North Meridian) from Jovita Boulevard to 24th St.--the rest of this work will be done in the 2009-11 budget cycle;
• Identifies $52.3 million for the Point Defiance Bypass, a project that will reroute Amtrak and freight railroad tracks through South Tacoma into the Port of Tacoma instead of around the park;
• Gives $3.7 million to Sound Transit to expand Sounder commuter rail parking in Puyallup, Sumner and Auburn;
• Reauthorizes $2 million for the LeMay Car Museum;
• Appropriates $7 million of the $15 million needed to replace the Puyallup River Bridge on SR-162;
• Designates $665,000 of the $4 million needed to build a rest area in Elbe on SR-7;
• Allocates $6.5 million to repave SR-7 between the Eatonville Cutoff Road and SR-507;
• Funds cameras in construction zones;
• Sets a $2.8 billion limit on how much the state will spend to replace Seattle’s Alaskan Way Viaduct;
• Appropriates $132 million for the extension of SR-167 between the Port of Tacoma and Puyallup, with $40 million of that money dependant upon a container tax or port-related fee of some sort;
• Sets aside $19 million toward the proposed Cross-Base Highway (SR-704) between I-5 and Frederickson;
• Allows a 2.5 percent increase in ferry fares next month, then freezes fares until Sept. 1, 2009, while a fare study is conducted;
• Lends $3.9 million to the Regional Transportation Investment District in Pierce, King and Snohomish counties for the joint election in November;
• Completes funding for the “HOT” lane program on SR-167 for a 9-mile stretch between Auburn and Renton.

Most of these expenditures were supported by RAMP this session--all should be familiar to RAMP participants.

Paul Ellis is lead staff for RAMP; an employee of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, Ellis led the Pierce County Transportation Advisory Committee (PCTAC), the community’s largest transportation planning effort.

Will RTID Drop the Cross-Base Highway?

Submitted by Paul Ellis

The News Tribune will report tomorrow that RTID Chair Shawn Bunney is considering removal of that segment of the Cross-Base Highway that crosses the military bases from November's Roads & Transit package.

Bunney's working proposal would fund improvements to Interstate 5 at the Thorne Lane intersection (comprising nearly 60% of the total project cost) on the west side of the project and accelerate funding for improvements on the east side of the project, primarily to 176th St. E. and Canyon Rd. What Bunney calls the "controversial middle portion" of the project would be left "to resolve at a later date". Bunney characterizes himself as a staunch supporter of the project, no matter how the package ultimately presented to voters turns out.

Meanwhile, the Washington State Department of Transportation is about to release a cost/benefit analysis of the Cross-Base Highway recently conducted by HDR/HLB. This analysis compares building the highway to widening of SR-7 and to enhancing transit services in terms of impacts upon congestion, safety, and emissions reduction. Look for more details in an upcoming post.

Paul Ellis is lead staff for RAMP; an employee of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, Ellis led the Pierce County Transportation Advisory Committee (PCTAC), the community’s largest transportation planning effort.

Invitation to RAMP Participants

The Puget Sound Regional Council invites RAMP participants to save the date for a workshop called "The Future of Transportation Finance - Lessons from Road Charging Experiments":

Wednesday, June 20th
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Washington Athletic Club (1325 Sixth Ave., Seattle)
Cost is $30 per person; lunch is included

Join experts and participants in road charging projects in a workshop reviewing results and lessons learned.

Local Option Car Tax Approved

Submitted by Paul Ellis

Governor Christine Gregoire gave Washington cities and counties the authority Friday to collect a $20 annual fee on vehicle registrations without a public vote, replacing a similar tax that was repealed by voters in 2002.

Since 2003, cities and counties have had authority to collect as much as $100 a year from a local car tax that wins public approval at the ballot box, but to date no local jurisdiction has pursued that option. Voters last fall turned down Tacoma’s request for a property tax increase to raise $48 million for street repairs over six years. HB1858 lets a county council or a city council levy a $20 fee without voter approval.

The signing upset professional initiative promoter Tim Eyman, who crashed the signing ceremony to accuse Gregoire and the Legislature of ignoring the wishes of the people. Eyman led the initiative drive that voters passed in 2002 (I-776).

Pierce, King and Snohomish counties and the cities within its borders can’t impose the $20 fee until after May 22, 2008--a delay designed to let the Roads & Transit Plan go to voters first.
After that date, HB 1858 gives the three county councils first crack at deciding whether to go with a countywide car tax; if a county council opts not to impose the annual fee, each city council could then make its own decision.

Paul Ellis is lead staff for RAMP; an employee of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, Ellis led the Pierce County Transportation Advisory Committee (PCTAC), the community’s largest transportation planning effort.

Ladenburg Reiterates Top-Level Support for SR-704

Submitted by Paul Ellis

At this month's RAMP meeting (earlier today), Pierce County Executive and RAMP Co-Chair John Ladenburg reiterated the crucial importance of SR-704--the Cross-Base Highway--in the Roads & Transit package.

"If the Regional Transportation Investment District proposes a package that leaves out Cross-Base," Ladenburg told RAMP participants, "then I'll publicly come out against passage of the ballot issue." Rumors have been circulating that some members of the RTID Board are soft on the project and may propose its omission during their meeting tomorrow morning.

Participants also heard that an economic analysis of the SR-704 project--like those conducted for SR-167 and the Alaskan Way Viaduct--has been completed and will be released by WSDOT next week.

Paul Ellis is lead staff for RAMP; an employee of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, Ellis led the Pierce County Transportation Advisory Committee (PCTAC), the community's largest transportation planning effort.