SR 167: Still Unfinished Over 30 Years Later

The News Tribune had an in depth article discussing the long history of the SR 167 stub in Puyallup.  For over 30 years, Pierce County residents and businesses have waited for a quality connection from the Port of Tacoma, Fife and Puyallup to Sumner, Auburn, east King County, and eastern Washington.

As the Port of Tacoma's Sean Eagan told the reporter, "It's a project that makes sense.  It helps complete our regional road network.  It should help us create and keep jobs.  And that's what's most important these days."

The chamber recognizes the importance of this connection to both the local and regional economy.  The chamber has supported this project through RAMP and other advocacy opportunities.  Recently, Tom Pierson, Chamber President and CEO, was appointed to the SR 167 Tolling Stakeholder Committee that is working with DOT staff to develop a proposal for the state legislature.

In addition, as the Chamber prepares its legislative agenda for 2012, it will continue to advocate for the completion of this critical piece of infrastructure.  Time and again, we have heard from business and industry that this road is critical to keeping south Puget Sound competitive over the next 30 years.  If you have additional thoughts on how the completion of SR 167 will help your business, employees or customers, please let us know.

How WA Fares in Congestion Report

The Texas Transportation Institute has just (November 2011) released its annual Congested Corridors Report. 

Unfortunately, Western Washington made almost all the Top 40 hits list!

The Congested Corridors Report (2010 data) includes an analysis of 328 specific (directional) freeway corridors in the U.S.  These corridors account for:

• 6 % of national urban freeway lane-miles
• 36% of urban freeway delay
• 33% of urban freeway truck delay

Each directional, adjacent and upstream segment of roadway that was congested for four hours per week was included in the corridor.  The minimum corridor length was three miles.

The Report measures reliability (how much the problems change day to day), extra travel time, increased fuel consumption and congestion costs. 

The stated purpose of the study is to understand how, when and where congestion occurs – as a tool to understanding what can be done.  Their conclusion:  all the potential congestion-reducing strategies are needed:  capacity and productivity.

Here’s how Washington State ranked against the Top 40 congested highway corridors throughout the nation.

Reliably Unreliable

Unreliability is the most disturbing problem. A predictable transportation system is important to motorists and goods movers. Reliability describes the extra time you add to each trip to ensure you will be on time – when you simply can’t be late. The Federal Highway Administration has been moving towards a greater focus on performance management in its programs. 

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Tacoma     I-5 SB         Exit 128- Exit 120    7.9 mi.         # 40

Congestion Leaders

This category ranks corridors by the annual delay per mile.  Considered are annual gallons of waster fuel and the annual congestion costs associated with fuel and delay.

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle       I-5 SB        Exit 175- Exit 165    8.9 mi.         # 33

Morning Peak

This category shows corridors with the largest delay per mile in the morning peak (6am to 10 am).  It uses the same measures as the Congestion Leaders category, but only measured during the morning peak.

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle      I-5 NB         Exit 161- Exit 164    4.1 mi.         # 35

Afternoon Peak

This is the category for the worst afternoon peaks (3 pm to 7 pm).  Again, it uses the same measures as the Congestion Leaders category, but only for the afternoon hours.

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle       I-405 SB    Exit 14- Exit 10        4.5 mi.         # 21

Lunch Breaks

This is the midday hours congestion category, for the 10 am to 3pm time period.  Again, it uses the same measures at the Congestion Leaders category, but only for this midday time.

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle      I-5 NB         Exit 161- Exit 164    4.1 mi.         # 19

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle       I-5 SB        Exit 175- Exit 165    9.0 mi.         # 22

  

Weekend

This is the rarest category, as weekend congestion is rarely a stop-and-go situation on Saturdays and Sundays.  It’s usually occurring at major shopping areas, sporting venues and other recreational activity centers.   Like before, the measures are the same as for Congestion Leaders, but based on traffic during the weekends.

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Tacoma     I-5 NB        Exit 129- Exit 133    4.2 mi.         # 11

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle       I-5 NB        Exit 161- Exit 164    4.1 mi.         # 29

Trucking

This category includes the amount of daily truck travel on each corridor. While it uses the same measures as the Congestion Leaders category, it is based entirely on truck travel. 

Area         Corridor       Endpoints                 Length      Natl Rank

Seattle       I-5 SB       Exit 175- Exit 165    9.0 mi.         # 37

One-Hit Wonders

Their (last and final) fanciful category includes urban areas that have only one or two corridors included in the Congested Leaders category.  Unfortunately, our area did not make this list.

RAMP Agenda 12/7/11

AGENDA  -  December 7, 2011

8:00     Welcome & Self-Introductions                                  

            John Wolfe, Co-Chair                                                   

8:10     Sound Transit in the South Sound

            Rachel Smith, Sound Transit

8:35     RAMP Legislative Priorities

            George Walk, Pierce County

8:50     Round Robin

     

9:00     Closing Remarks & Adjourn

            Tom Pierson, Co-Chair

           

Next RAMP Meeting

Wednesday, January 4th - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

RAMP is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State.  Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it. RAMP is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, Port of Tacoma CEO John Wolfe and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson.

November RAMP Mtg Information: Grants

November's RAMP meeting was a full house to hear more about the grant applications for improvements along the I-5 corridor adjacent to JBLM.  This included a $5.7M grant through the Office of Economic Adjustment and a $34M grant through the TIGER III grant process.

(details after the jump)

RAMP Agenda 11/2/11

 

AGENDA  -  November 2, 2011

8:00     Welcome & Self-Introductions                                  

            Tom Pierson, Co-Chair                                                

8:10     Department of Defense, Office of Economic Adjustment: I-5/JBLM Grant

            Jeff Gonzalez, City of Lakewood

8:30     TIGER III Discretionary Federal Grant: I-5/JBLM

            Ron Landon & Kevin Dayton, WSDOT

8:50     Round Robin

     

9:00     Closing Remarks & Adjourn

            Pat McCarthy, Co-Chair

           

Next RAMP Meeting

Wednesday, December 7th - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

RAMP is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State.  Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it. RAMP is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, Port of Tacoma CEO John Wolfe and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson.

RAMP Agenda 10/5/11

 

AGENDA  -  October 5, 2011

8:00     Welcome & Self-Introductions                                  

            Pat McCarthy, Co-Chair                                               

8:10     State Transportation Update

            Paula Hammond, WSDOT

8:50     Round Robin

     

9:00     Closing Remarks & Adjourn

            John Wolfe, Co-Chair

           

Next RAMP Meeting

Wednesday, November 2nd - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

RAMP is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State.  Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it. RAMP is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, Port of Tacoma CEO John Wolfe and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson. 

State Asks For Transportation Feedback

The Washington State Transportation Commission is asking for feedback on transportation in Washington.  This includes the roads, highways, bridges, public transit, rail, ferries, airports, sidewalks & bike lanes that connect the state to move people and goods.

The survey covers topics regarding transportation priorities, funding mechanisms, and long-term efforts.  With such a comprehensive subject, the survey is about 50 questions long and takes some time to finish.  Luckily, the WSTC has enabled a mechanism allowing you to save the survey and return to it later.  While you will have about two weeks to complete the survey, we would you encourage you to start it today and make sure your priorities for both the Tacoma-Pierce County area and the state are represented.

Survey: http://www.voiceofwashingtonsurvey.org/

RAMP Mtg: 9/7/11

Agenda Notice: 9/7/11

8:00     Welcome & Self-Introductions                                  

            Pat McCarthy, Co-Chair                                               

8:10     SR-167 Comprehensive Tolling Study

            George Walk, Pierce County

8:25     Washington State Transportation Task Force       

            Don Meyer, Port of Tacoma

8:40     Transportation for Washington

            Andrew Austin, Transportation Choices Coalition

8:50     Round Robin

     

9:00     Closing Remarks & Adjourn

            John Wolfe, Co-Chair

           

Next RAMP Meeting

Wednesday, October 5th - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

Remember to visit On RAMP

The partnership’s blog is at http://on-ramp.blogspot.com/.  New content appears on a regular basis. Guest blog postings are encouraged, contact David Schroedel for details, Davids@tacomachamber.org.

RAMP is a regional coalition including business, labor, public and private organizations and citizens dedicated to improved mobility in the South Sound and Washington State.  Our mission is to ensure a healthy regional economy associated with the development of an effective, efficient transportation system and the resources to sustain it. RAMP is co-chaired by Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, Port of Tacoma CEO John Wolfe and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber President & CEO Tom Pierson. 

Opening the Throttle

An agreement signed today by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and BNSF Railway clears the way for work to begin on rail improvements that ultimately will generate hundreds of jobs and improve Amtrak Cascades service between Seattle and Portland.

Today’s agreement means the state can begin initial work this fall using some of the $781 million in federal grants awarded to Washington in the past two years. This money is part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) high-speed-rail grants administered by the Federal Railroad Administration.

Building bypass tracks and making upgrades to existing tracks shared by Amtrak and BNSF will result in faster and more reliable Amtrak Cascades service while also allowing BNSF the ability to provide world-class freight rail service. The ARRA money will also be used to purchase new locomotives and passenger coaches.

The agreement allows BNSF to move forward on projects, worth nearly $400 million, that are expected to generate 1,000 jobs through 2017. The first rail-improvement project will occur in Everett, where two new tracks will be built for freight trains entering the rail terminal, taking them out of the way of oncoming passenger trains. These added tracks will eliminate a substantial rail-yard bottleneck and the work is expected to support about 30 local jobs.

“The immediate benefit of this agreement is jobs – from engineers to site supervisors, to construction workers,” said Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond. “The longer-term benefit is that improvements in the rail corridor will reduce travel times and improve the on-time performance of passenger rail, which provides a viable transportation alternative along the West Coast.”

Today’s agreement essentially sets up a clear contractual relationship between WSDOT and BNSF. As such, it outlines mutually agreed upon requirements and performance measures, including project schedules and budgets, contracting methods, procurement and purchasing processes, and budget and billing procedures, among other things.

"We're pleased with this progress and our long standing relationship with WSDOT,” said BNSF Chairman and CEO Matt Rose. "This is an important step towards improving the trackage infrastructure to help meet current and future demands for both passenger and freight rail service.”

BNSF has been working with the state of Washington for two decades in a public-private partnership that has expanded passenger services while maintaining the ability to move goods and freight throughout the region.

With the ARRA funds, the goal is to add two additional Amtrak Cascades daily roundtrips between Seattle and Portland, for a total of six. The improvements are also intended to reduce travel times, as well as improve average on-time performance from the line’s current 62 percent to 88 percent.

Visit the High Speed Rail program website for project lists and more. For more information about WSDOT’s Cascades high-speed rail program, . For more information about Amtrak Cascades service, visit here.

Avoid Gridlock - Build 167!

Kell McAboy, Planner, Port of Tacoma, briefed the Chamber's Port-Industrial Committee members about the Tacoma Area Transportation Study Final Report.

McAboy noted the SR 167 project was a baseline condition that must be done. Without it, the 2030 planning horizon forecast transportation gridlock. The current cost of SR 167 is estimated at $1.9 billion.  Or, as one wag said, "Just a tunnel short of funding."

The TATS study was done to provide the documentation needed to address future transportation projects. The eight stakeholders* began meeting July 22 to consider prioritization and future action to be taken as a result of this study.

That PowerPoint and other info can be found at this weblink on the Port of Tacoma website.

• Washington State Department of Transportation
• Port of Tacoma
• City of Fife
• City of Tacoma
• SSA Marine
• Pierce County
• Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board
• Marine View Ventures

PIC a TATS in July

PORT-INDUSTRIAL COMMITTEE

Meeting Notice
Thursday, July 21
3:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Chamber offices
Simpson Community Room
950 Pacific Ave., Ste. 300
(NW corner 11th & Pacific Ave.)

TIDEFLATS AREA TRANSPORTATION STUDY FINAL REPORT

Presentation by Kell McAboy, Planner, Port of Tacoma

The TATS identifies future transportation needs for the growth of freight-related traffic to and from the Tacoma Tideflats area. The Port partnered with seven stakeholders to complete the study.

The study analyzed existing transportation conditions and identified roads to be examined for potential improvement to keep freight moving. The result is a plan to enhance the economic benefits of the Tacoma Tideflats area, improve roadway traffic circulation and reduce congestion.

TATS and Pierce Transit at RAMP Today

RAMP attendees were treated to three presentations at RAMP this morning.

For a follow-up on the Update in the service reductions of Pierce Transit by Jessyn Ferrell, Pierce Transit, please go here.

For a follow-up on the final Tideflats Area Transportation Study report and a PPT presentation by Kell McAboy, Planner, Port of Tacoma, go to the links in this sentence.

Attendees were also treated to a briefing by Larry Ehl, Transportation Issues Daily and Allison Camden, Federal Relations Manager,WSDOT on the hoped for federal transportation act. 

• The House bill will have a focus on roads nd will have significant decreases for state budgets. The House bill is expected to create a 35% reduction from previous funding levels.  A Republican press conference is scheduled for tomorrow.
• The Senate's bi-partisan bill, limited to two years, will maintain current funding levels, but still would need $12 billion identified for funding.  Currently there is no proposal on how to make up that funding gap. 

 The next meeting for RAMP is September 7.

RAMP Sets Agenda For July

MEETING NOTICE - July 6, 2011

8:00 Welcome & Self-Introductions
Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive
Tom Pierson, Pres./CEO, Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber
8:10 Update on Pierce Transit Service Reductions
Jessyn Ferrell, Pierce Transit
8:20 What’s Happening in D.C. with Transportation
Larry Ehl, Transportation Issues Daily and Allison Camden, Federal Relations Manager, WSDOT
8:35 Tideflats Area Transportation Study
Kell McAboy, Senior Planner, Port of Tacoma
8:55 Closing Remarks & Adjourn
John Wolfe, Chief Executive Officer, Port of Tacoma

Next RAMP Meeting
Wednesday, September 7 - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

Remember to visit On RAMP The partnership’s blog is at http://on-ramp.blogspot.com/. New content appears with the opportunity for news and interesting topics. Guest blog postings are encouraged, contact Gary Brackett or 253-682-1720.

RAMP Looks at Legislative Actions

Today, the RAMP met a Legislative Panel composed of Rep. Connie Ladenburg, Rep. Katrina Asay, Rep. Hans Zeiger and Sen. Jim Kastama for an overview of the legislative actions in the just completed 2011 Legislative Session.

In addition, Pierce County's Director of Government Relations, presented a report on the Washington State Transportation Budget for 2011-2013. 

Available as handouts was a Thurston Regional Planning Council grant application for JBLM/I-5 Congestion Relief Action Plan.

Additionally, Pierce County Councilmembers Rick Talbert and Stan Flemming and Tacoma Councilmember Jake Fey presented brief reports on their impressions and expectations from participation in the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber's 26th annual Washington-to-Washington, D.C. Conference.

iPRMT

Now available for users is the iPRMT PowerPoint shared at the May RAMP meeting.

Scott Boettcher, ORA Special Projects Consultant with the Governor's Office of Regulatory Assistance, was the presenter.  As explained, the iPRMT is the Governor's One Front Door initiative to make the environmental permitting process easier and faster while protecting our natural resources.

The process is a multi-agency effort that incorporates early  project review, mapping, is "wizard driven,", includes messaging and document management as well as "Next Steps" functions. 

RAMP Meets with Legislators

MEETING NOTICE - June 1, 2011
8:00 Welcome & Self-Introductions, Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive

8:05 Legislative Panel: Review of the Session

• Jan Angel, 26th District
• Katrina Asay, 30th District
• Laurie Jinkins, 27th District (tentative)
• Jim Kastama, 25th District (tentative)
• Connie Ladenburg, 29th District
• Jim McCune, 2nd District (tentative)
• Hans Zeiger, 25th District
• Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive (MODERATOR)

8:40 Legislative Update, George Walk, Director, Pierce Co. Government Relations

8:45 2011 Washington-to-Washington, D.C. Conference Report

• Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive
• Rick Talbert, Pierce County Council
• Stan Flemming, Pierce County Council (tentative)
• Jake Fey, Tacoma Council
• Gary Brackett, Tacoma-Pierce Co. Chamber

8:55 Closing Remarks & Adjourn, John Wolfe, Chief Executive Officer, Port of Tacoma

Visiting Community Delegation

• Bob Buhl, Shelton Mason County Chamber
• Steve Goins, City of Shelton
• John Dobson, Port of Shelton (tentative)
• Michael Mariano, Mariano & Associates

Next RAMP Meeting
Wednesday, July 6th - 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. – The Fabulich Center

Remember to visit On RAMP The partnership’s blog is at http://on-ramp.blogspot.com/. New content appears with the opportunity for news and interesting topics. Guest blog postings are encouraged, contact Gary Brackett or 253-682-1720.

Grants for Goods Movement

Today, FHWA announced it was soliciting applications for grant programs totaling an estimated $430 million nationwide. In previous years, some funding for these grant programs was designated by Congress and the remainder was discretionary and awarded through a competitive process. In the FY11 budget passed in April, Congress directed that all funds were discretionary.

WSDOT must submit all applications to FHWA by the close of business on June 3rd.  APPLICATIONS DUE TO WSDOT BY MAY 20!

The FHWA administers discretionary programs through its various offices. These discretionary programs represent special funding categories where FHWA solicits for candidates and selects projects for funding based on applications received. Each program has its own eligibility and selection criteria that are established by law, by regulation, or administratively. Descriptions for each program, along with selection criteria, are available at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/discretionary

FHWA Administrator Victor Mendez identified the following goal for the 2011 Discretionary Program: “FHWA’s goal is to get these funds put to work as quickly as possible, providing needed transportation improvements and supporting economic growth. To that end, they are advancing these programs on an accelerated timeframe.”

Please send a copy of ALL project applications to your MPO and WSDOT (hlpgrants@wsdot.wa.gov) by the end of the day Friday, May 20th. MPOs will review the projects for consistency with the statewide and metropolitan planning requirements.

In addition, MPOs will prioritize the Public Lands Highways and Transportation, Community and System Preservation projects for their region and submit to WSDOT (taxs@wsdot.wa.gov) by the end of the day Wednesday, May 25th.

The details and applications for each of the programs are posted at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/discretionary  The nine programs for which Washington is eligible and approximate amounts of funding available Nationwide (including any carryover funding from previous years) are as follows:

• Ferry Boat Program - $42,479,303
• Highways for Life Program - $22,622,895
• Innovative Bridge Research and Deployment Program - $4,163,000
• Interstate Maintenance Program - $93,202,918
• National Scenic Byways Program - $40,542,344
• Public Lands Highway Program - $94,588,680
• Rail Highway Crossing Elimination in High Speed Rail Corridors - $33,313,210
• Transportation, Community and System Preservation Program - $57,085,000
• Truck Parking Pilot Program - $7,300,000

Final prioritization for PLHD, TCSP, Ferry Boat and Rail Highway Crossing programs will be by a team with representatives from Association of Washington Cities, Washington State Association of Counties and WSDOT.

RAMP Agenda for May Meeting

Rachel Smith, Sound Transit, "D to M Street Construction Update"

Ron Landon, Program Manager, Olympic Region, WSDOT
"The Region's Project Scoping Program"

Scott Boettcher, ORA Special Project Consultant
"iPRMT: Getting environmental permitting right the first time"

iPRMT is a web-based application developed and hosted by the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Assistance (ORA) with the assistance of the Washington State Association of Counties, the Association of Washington Cities and a multi-agency advisory group and business team. One of the primary purposes of iPRMT is to help applicant develop complete and “ready-for-review” permitting applications. Complete and “ready-for-review” permitting application move through the regulatory decision-making process much more smoothly and predictably and save everyone time and money (agencies and applicants alike). The first permitting application being supported by iPRMT is JARPA (Joint Aquatic Resource Permit). Scott Boettcher will provide a brief overview of iPRMT and take questions. You can read more about iPRMT at http://ora.wa.gov/regulatory/projectreview.asp

George Walk, Dir., Gov't. Relations, Pierce County
"Legislative Report/Project List/Budget Language"

Wednesday, May 4
8:00 a.m.
Fabulich Center
3600 Port of Tacoma Rd., Tacoma 98421

WA Truck Tracking Pilot Project

This morning, Barbara Ivanov, Co-director of WSDOT's Freight Systems Division, presented a briefing to the RAMP attendees about the Truck Tracking Pilot Project.

Begun by the Legislature in 2007, there is now two years of data in the central Puget Sound Region (King, Pierce, Snohomish, Kitsap) and nine months of data in the balance of the state.  The project uses GPS data from about 6,000 monitored trucks (1-2% of total truck traffic) to model the value statistics:  travel time.

Already, WSDOT is able to highlight a Top 10 Worst  highway stretches for central Puget Sound and the Top 10 Worst stretches for Washington state.  This info is promised for posting on DOT's website by the end of the contracted study period - June 2011.

RAMP Agenda: WSDOT Truck Tracking

 
WSDOT Truck Tracking Pilot Project
Barb Ivanov, Co-director of WSDOT’s Freight Systems Division

Sen. Murray's Transportation Protocol
Sean Murphy, Office of Sen. Parry Murray

Wednesday, April 6, 8:00 a.m.
Fabulich Center
3600 Port of Tacoma Road

Lincoln Ave Bridge Long Term Detour

LOCATION: Lincoln Avenue bridge in Tacoma

DETAILS: The Tacoma Public Works Department will rehabilitate the Lincoln Avenue Bridge starting in May of this year. This work will require closure of the bridge for 7 months up to one year depending on weather.

DETOUR: During the bridge closure a temporary heavy haul route will use Puyallup Avenue, Pacific Avenue, and SR 509 to cross the Puyallup River. All existing heavy haul routes will remain in place except the Lincoln Ave. Bridge. This temporary route will be removed once the bridge project is complete. A detour map is attached.

MORE DETAILS: You will still need to obtain the proper permits from the City of Tacoma and from the State of Washington.

If you have questions or would like more information about the bridge project, call Dan Soderlind or at (253) 591-5263.

JBLM Growth Plan – Transportation Recommendations presented at RAMP

The goal of the Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) Growth Plan is to promote mutually beneficial relationships between JBLM and surrounding communities, while carefully planning and coordinating facilities and infrastructure to best serve the base and benefit local communities. The final draft of the Plan was released in mid-December and can be downloaded here: http://www.jblm-growth.com/

Dan Penrose from the City of Lakewood and Jon Pascal, a consultant for the Transpo Group presented the transportation-related recommendations in the Growth Plan to RAMP this morning. The recommendations were identified by an expert panel of community members and serve to prioritize transportation-related investments on and around JBLM.

 High priority transportation recommendations include:
1. Improve regional mobility through I-5 improvements

2. Improve regional mobility through HOV and transit improvements

3. Reduce traffic congestion through transportation demand management policies and strategies

4. Reduce military –related impacts on I-5 flow through JBLM gate and on-post transportation improvements, including completing the Joint Base connector

5. Complete the Cross-Base Highway

The News Tribune reported on the plan in late December. You can view it here:
http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/12/24/1477246/managing-armys-growing-pains.html

Sound Transit Plans Open Houses

In January, Sound Transit will host a series of open houses in South Sound communities to present information on the Sounder Station Access Planning Study. The agency is conducting the study to identify potential improvements in the ways commuters access its Sounder stations.

Possible improvements the agency is studying include increased parking, pedestrian sidewalks, crosswalks and bridges, bicycle commute options, and transit facility enhancements.

Open houses will include:

• A description of Sound Transit service areas, transit routes, 2011 budget, and the Sound Transit 2 program

• Objectives of and timeline for the Sounder Station Access Planning Study

• Overview of existing station access issues and discussion of potential solutions

• Informal Q & A and public comment

All events take place from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m.

Tacoma - Tuesday, Jan. 18

University of Washington -Tacoma
Jane Russell Commons
1918 Pacific Avenue

Sumner - Wednesday, Jan. 19
Sumner School
High School Commons
1707 Main St.

Puyallup - Thursday, Jan. 20
Puyallup City Hall: Chamber Hall
333 South Meridian

Lakewood – Tuesday, Jan. 25
Lakewood Boys & Girls Club
10402 Kline St SW

Kent - Wednesday, Jan. 26
Kent Senior Activity Center
600 E. Smith Street

Auburn - Thursday, Jan. 27
Auburn City Hall: Council Chamber
25 W. Main Street

The Station Access Study is part of the ST2 regional transit funding package that voters approved in November 2008. The study is planned through 2011.