Pierce County Community Celebrates Cross Base

Congressman Adam Smith, Representatives Becker and Campbell, County Executive Pat McCarthy and representatives from the offices of Governor Gregoire and Congressman Norm Dicks, among others were on hand yesterday to celebrate the completion of Project 1 of SR 704, the Cross Base Highway.













The ribbon cutting for Project 1 celebrates the completion of a project nearly 20-years in the making- the first phase of a planned six-mile, multi-lane highway stretching across the Fort Lewis and McChord military bases between SR7 and I-5. Project 1 widened a three-quarter mile stretch of Spanaway Loop to five lanes, added dual right-turn lanes from Spanaway Loop Road to southbound SR7 and dual left-turn lanes from northbound SR 7 to Spanaway Loop Road.

The remaining three Cross Base Highway projects will be completed as funding becomes available. Once completed, the new limited access highway will improve access for residents and freight in South Pierce County.

State and Federal Legislators and Staff to Discuss Puget Sound Transportation

This summer transportation advocacy orgaization, Transportation Choices Coalilition has hosted a series of Town Hall meetings entitled, Visioning the Puget Sound Region's Transportation Future

In May, a local panel of experts identified the primary regional transportation challenges. In June, they discussed a few exciting opportunities to address those challenges. In August, they're pulling out all the stops, with Town Hall Part III - Perspectives from the State and Federal Level

Join the all-star panel of legislators and policy staff for a discussion on what it will take at the federal and state level to address our transportation challenges. Get an insight into their vision for the region's transportation future and find out what their plans are to make it happen.

Join us for a special discussion with our panelists:
Senator Mary Margaret Haugen, 10th Legislative District, Chair of the Washington State Senate Transportation CommitteeRepresentative

Representative Judy Clibborn, 41st Legislative District, Chair of the Washington State House Transportation Committee

Sheila Babb, Deputy State Director, Office of U.S. Senator Patty Murray

Jennifer Ziegler, Executive Policy Advisor on Transportation, Office of Governor Christine Gregoire

WHEN: Friday August 7, 12:00pm - 1:30pm
WHERE: Bertha Knight Landes Room, Seattle City Hall, 5th Avenue between Cherry and James St. (please note change in venue)
As always, feel free to bring your lunch.

This townhall series is brought to you byTransportation Choices Coalition, Futurewise, WashPIRG, Sierra Club Cascade Chapter, Bicycle Alliance of Washington, Cascade Bicycle Club, Seattle Transit Blog, Feet First, Commute Seattle and Zipcar

Balancing Trips and Housing

HUD reports that low-income families spend a disproportionate amount of their income on transportation-related expenses, as they often trade shorter commutes for the reduced housing costs found in outlying areas.

Creating affordable housing close to public transit facilities can increase overall housing affordability (and reduce the cost of living) for low- and moderate-income families. A report from the Center for Transit Oriented Development, Tools for Mixed-Income TOD, discusses resources and strategies that local governments can bring to bear when integrating mixed-income housing within transit-oriented developments (TOD).

For detailed descriptions of tools and best practices designed to promote mixed-income TOD, please view the report in its entirety.

The RTC Comes To Town (Reprise')

T-Mobile founder John Stanton and former WA Transportation Secretary Doug McDonald met with RAMP today to seek Pierce County support for reform of regional transportation governance. Their reception by the group was polite but less than encouraging.

Stanton shared his belief that the failure of Proposition 1 was due, in part, to voter fatigue following a series of large, uncoordinated funding requests. He reiterated recommendations of the Regional Transportation Commission, which he chaired, calling for an overhaul of transportation agencies--a move that he feels will lead to more coordination, higher public credibility, and better leveraging of extant transportation funding sources.

McDonald suggested that sub-area equity--a pillar of RAMP's Legislative priorities now for several years--might work against Pierce County's goals. "You won't be able to finance mega projects like SR-167," he opined, "without tapping funding from the entire region." He said that the recent failure of Proposition 1 "convinced him" that he should join Stanton and others in seeking a major new agency that would replace groups like Sound Transit and the Puget Sound Regional Council.

RAMP's participants weren't buying. WA Senator Jim Kastama (who was a leader in crafting the Nickel Package as well as the RTID legislation) was quick to disagree. He claimed that King County did a much poorer job of prioritizing investments for the Roads & Transit package, and that this weakness would be magnified in a proportionally representative body--the entity proposed by the RTC.

Following a robust discussion, participants moved forward to adopt RAMP's 2008 Legislative Priorities. At the forefront was the statement that "a Transportation Benefit District is the most viable vehicle for advancing towards the next voter-approved funding package, whether Pierce County moves forward unilaterally or in cooperation with other counties."

Another Voice: Shawn Bunney

There's already been some Sturm und Drang across the blogosphere regarding Shawn Bunney's recent letter to Washington Governor Christine Gregoire, in which he blames King County Executive Ron Sims and The Seattle Times for the defeat of the Roads & Transit package in November. The letter was sent November 28th and widely disseminated around Pierce County, even being incorporated into Bunney's year-end report to his constituents.

Bunney's been involved in the regional struggle over transportation funding as chair for the Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID), the agency whose mission was to develop the roads portion of the package. The letter is certainly a brash one--some might say its tone is downright nasty--and it ends with a request for Gregoire to embrace transportation needs more widely dispersed than just King County.

In the letter, Bunney attacks Seattle and King County interests for grabbing--and continuing now to grab for--an inordinate share of the region's revenues for mobility investments:

I am sure that before voters went to bed on election night some Seattle legislators were busy ramping up for another raid of the region's roads funds... funds they say are for a $4.4 billion "Safety" project called the 520 Bridge.

This is the same group that siphoned $700 million in gas taxes out of Pierce County in the past 15 years.

We heard this same story yet again in 2006 when the same Seattle interests took almost $400 million out of Pierce County wallets to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct; a viaduct, it turns out, not wanted by Seattle because it blocks the view.

Certainly Bunney's argument has merit--as has been previously observed by this blog, Pierce County (and every other county in the state save one) has been shorted its fair share of funding, as in 2005 when the Transportation Partnership package delivered 65% of the statewide revenues to King County. That's a sure sticking point which any effort to develop a new regional package will have to address before it can move forward.

"Think Globally, Act Locally"

Submitted by Paul Ellis

It's an adage that's at least a couple of decades old, but still true: "Think globally, act locally." And the reverse is sometimes true, as well--what's good for a local interest is sometimes good for a larger constituency.

Washington State Senator Derek Kilmer--vice chairman of the Economic Development, Trade & Management Committee and a member of the Transportation Committee--wants to give his constituents "the best possible deal" when it comes to their share of the costs related to travel from the Gig Harbor Peninsula to the rest of Pierce County. He spells out the details of that deal in an op-ed in Sunday's edition of The News Tribune. What he's proposing may be good for the larger interests of Pierce County and Washington State, too.

Kilmer has several specific proposals linked to action already taking place in Olympia:

• Senate Bill 5681 would keep bridge users from having to foot the bill for the sales tax on the construction of the bridge, shaving roughly $40 million to $60 million from the cost of the bridge from tolls;
  
• Senate Bill 5391 would direct a portion of the fine (equal to three times the amount of the toll) to the Narrows Bridge Tolling Account, generating an additional $15 million to $20 million over time for this account;


• Senate Bill 5680 would nearly double the amount of the state fuel tax distributed to the Puget Sound Ferry Operations Account, subsidizing the state’s cost of running ferries and reducing the corresponding fares paid by waterborne commuters;


• Senate Bill 5862 would direct some of the funding generated from the sales tax on fuel used by ferries into an account that supports passenger-only ferries;


• Keep $1.3 million budgeted for this year and another $8.7 million for the biennium for a discount for Narrows Bridge users during the first year the bridge is open--Kilmer contends that commuters will pay a full toll for a project that doesn’t deliver a full benefit, and that those commuters will very likely face a commute that’s even worse than it is today.

Kilmer's proposals are reasonable, would seem to serve the best interests of his constituents, and have a multi-modal thrust, addressing ferries as well as bridge commutes. Kilmer's suggestions may have a broader impact, though, as well.

As the first major test of tolling in Washington State, it's imperative that the Narrows Bridge project be a success not just for the transportation system but also for the broader constituency both served and impacted by new or expanded facilities. Kilmer's proposals may help make that goal a reality.

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.

WSDOT Combining Passenger, Freight Rail Offices

Submitted by Paul Ellis

WSDOT Secretary Doug MacDonald has announced the promotion of Barb Ivanov, who has led the Freight Strategy and Policy Division since 2004, to director of the new Freight Systems Division. WSDOT is combining its passenger and freight rail offices.

Scott Witt, WSDOT multimodal manager, assumes the title of “State Rail and Marine Director” leading the newly combined passenger and freight rail offices.

“Governor Gregoire has directed and other freight interests groups have advocated for a more robust statewide freight program for planning and coordination,” says Paula Hammond, WSDOT chief of staff. “And we believe combining resources in a single location will increase coordination for our rail programs and lead us to a more focused relationship with Washington’s freight industry,” she adds.

The Washington Transportation Commission’s Statewide Rail Capacity and Systems Needs Study released in 2006 included a recommendation that “the state should designate a single entity to coordinate and direct the State’s participation in the preservation and improvement of the rail transportation system.”

Washington’s ports have suggested that WSDOT combine its rail functions into a single division so the state could place a greater focus on the rail system’s capacity to respond to increased demand for container movement and port access issues. In addition, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Rail Road and Union Pacific railroad will have a single point of contact at WSDOT for both business coordination and strategic planning and partnership opportunities.

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.