System Expansion Committee Still Doesn’t “Get It”

The  February 13th System Expansion Committee meeting agenda continues the committee’s Fantasy Land approach to the area's transportation problems.  They’ve never recognized 4-car light rail trains can’t accommodate the number of commuters needed to reduce multi lane freeway peak hour congestion and cost too much to operate off peak.  

That Sound Transit should have never extended light rail beyond the UW Stadium, across I-90 bridge, or beyond SeaTac airport. Their using light rail to replace bus routes reduces transit capacity, does nothing to reduce freeway GP congestion, and those transferring from buses reduces access for current riders.  The results being the more the extensions, the higher the train operating cost, more lost capacity and no congestion reduction into Seattle. .  

The 2024 Starter Line and Lynnwood Link debuts should have debunked another Sound Transit premise “if we build light rail extensions riders will come”.  Yet the 2025 System Expansion Committee Work Plan seemingly ignores those results.  For example the lack of Lynnwood riders should have ended plans for the Everett Extension.

Yet the 2025 Proposed Budget & Financial Plan for the extension adds $44 million to the $84 million already spent and the work plan includes the following:

Consider amending the Everett Link Extension project budget for Phase 2

The meeting agenda’s Recommendation to the Board includes authorizing the chief executive office to acquire property needed for West Seattle and Ballard extension.  The 2025 work plan included “consider authorizing acquiring the property and increasing Project Allocation to date.  

They seemingly ignore that the areas served by both extensions have access to bus routes with far better access to routes to more convenient stops for egress and access in the city.  That it's “unlikely” the number of riders that chose to transfer to light rail for the ride into Westlake will justify the $13 billion cost for a 2nd tunnel or spending $7 billion for a 2nd Duwamish Waterway bridge for a ride to SODO.

The bottom line is Sound Transit continues to use Prop 1 approval in 2016 to spend $54 billion between 2017 and 2041 on light rail extensions detailed in ST3 map to justify spending $150 billion collected between 2017 and 2046 doing so.  Leaving $20 billion needing debt service payments in 2046. The February13th System Expansion Committee agenda demonstrates they still don’t recognize the folly