After getting two enthusiastic thumbs up Monday from some important critics, Sound Transit’s light rail plan appears to be back on track.
The Federal Transit Administration, after extensive study of Sound Transit’s light rail plan, gave the project its highest rating. Such ratings are used to prioritize federal funding, and only one other project received the "highly recommended" rating.
The Bush Administration gave the project its own seal of approval, putting $75 million for it in its 2004 budget proposal. That would be part of the $500 million in federal money long sought by Sound Transit to fund 25 percent of the first segment of its light rail plan. Some $91 million of that total already has been received, and the rest could be approved later this year.
This was welcome news for an agency that central Puget Sound residents voted into existence in 1996, but has been bashed unmercifully since it got off to a rocky start.
An impressive turnaround has occurred, spearheaded by Executive Director Joni Earl, the former Snohomish County deputy executive who was hired to correct Sound Transit’s course in 2000. The light-rail project, which was scaled back from its original design after falling behind schedule and going over budget, is a visible beneficiary.
So why should Snohomish County residents care about a 14-mile light-rail line that will run from downtown Seattle to Tukwila by 2009, and to Sea-Tac Airport two years later? Very simply, because it’s a critical piece of a network designed to ease the region’s traffic congestion. Just building more highways won’t get us out of gridlock. Sound Transit’s combination of solutions — express buses, commuter rail and light rail — is a key part of getting us moving through the physically limited corridors of central Puget Sound.
Fixing our transportation mess is also fundamental to maintaining a vibrant economy. If goods and services can’t get where they need to be, businesses will be less inclined to bring jobs here.
It’s important to note that none of the Sound Transit taxes collected in Snohomish County are funding light rail. Sound Transit is divided into five geographic subareas, one of which is Snohomish County. Money collected here is used solely to pay for transit that directly benefits people who live here — express bus service and commuter rail.
The arrival of the latter in this county is awaiting the completion of negotiations with Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railways for use of its freight tracks. Commuter rail eventually will run 82 miles, from Everett to south of Tacoma, with stations in Mukilteo and Edmonds. It will be another critical piece of the transportation solution, and figures to be extremely popular.
After a bumpy beginning, Sound Transit is moving the right direction. It’s good to see that the feds agree.
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