Sound Transit finally has a new CEO, Julie Timm, a year after a Sept 24th, 2021 Seattle Times headline, "Sound Transit board ousting CEO". The paper described his ouster with a photo caption:
Sound Transit CEO Peter Rogoff will be replaced in 2022 following more than six years of accomplishments with the agency
It was never clear why they decided to replace him as Board Chair Keel praised Rogoff with, "all but one of Sound Transit's seven major construction projects are on time and below budget". Board member Claudia Balducci praised Rogoff for his "efforts to manage multiple projects across the region". Member Roger Millar, the state transportation secretary, claimed "Mr Rogoff is going to be going out on a high note". Yet all three chose not to renew his contract.
Whatever the reason, the board’s “Rogoff” problem is not with why he was fired, it’s that he should have never been hired in the first place. He never demonstrated an understanding of what constituted effective public transit. As a result, his “six years of accomplishments” have continued a decade of Sound Transit’s spending billions on Prop 1 extensions that will do nothing to reduce congestion on I-5 and I-90 corridors into Seattle.
Several blog posts have suggested Sound Transit would have difficulty finding his replacement. That most potential transit system CEOs would recognize the folly of continuing funding those extensions. The result of a transit system board of directors made up of elected officials with “limited” transit system experience. Thus, it’s reasonable to ask why they hired her.
For example, what was her response to Sound Transit’s recent Transit Development Plan 2022-2027? The TDP included a list of Strategic Priorities, Agency Goals, and Measure of Success for the next 5 years. The 5 on the list didn’t include any mention of a normal transit goal, the need to provide effective transit for those who can’t drive or choose not to drive into Seattle and to reduce congestion for those who choose to drive?
The TDP included a Light Rail (Link) Capital Improvement Chart with plans to spend $12.7B over the next five years on light rail extensions. A 2004 PSRC study, funded by Sound Transit, concluded their 4-car light rail train capacity was limited to 8880 riders per hour. Was she aware of that limit or recognize extensions beyond UW station, across I-90 Bridge or beyond SeaTac do nothing to increase that capacity.
Sound Transit clearly didn’t since the TDP Operating Data, 2021—2027, chart predicted the extensions when completed will increase annual Passenger Trips from 13,400,000 in 2022 to 51,800,000 in 2025. Meanwhile, TDP bus annual passenger trips dropped from 13,651,00000 in 2022 to 5,871,000 in 2027.
Did she concur with the TDP’s Activities chart lacking any significant funding for parking, instead forcing bus riders to transfer to light rail into and out of the city. Reducing bus routes reduced transit capacity into the city and nothing to reduce congestion. Extension riders only reduced the access for current link riders.
The bottom line is Sound Transit’s Transit Development Plan 2022- 2027 typifies a decade of transit system failure to reduce congestion. Julie Timm was presumably chosen because she agreed with the TDP as part of the Board Chair's goal to continue to “Plan, build, and operate the largest transit expansion in the nation”. It’s only a question of when not whether it will also be considered one of the biggest boondoggles in transit history.
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