Dear Chinatown, International District Preservation & Development Authority”

The February 23^rd Sound Transit Board meeting exemplifies a decade-long myth that a second tunnel is needed to reduce I-5 and I-90 congestion into and out of Seattle.  The meeting began with “Public Comment” from multiple speakers objecting to locations for the proposed light rail stations near CID and Westlake.  

They were followed by Sound Transit presenting a “Review of Community Feedback” included charts detailing attempts to garner support, “Engagement activities” and “Further studies corridor-wide engagement” 7/28/22-2/17/23.  They included 12 open houses, 100+ community briefings, 6 fairs, 8 posts, 200 businesses engaged though door-to-door outreach, and 180 residents engaged through in-language forums”. 

 

The response to the six months of “corridor-wide engagement” during those System Expansion and Sound Transit Board meetings has been nearly unanimous "Public Comment" opposing  the CID plan.  The fact so many objected to Sound Transit proposal resulted in a Seattle Times February 24^th editorial “Don’t skip Chinatown International District in light rail extension”.  It claimed the following:

 

“…a broad coalition of community members has repeatedly called for a light rail station in the neighborhood that makes our community and the region more connected, accessible, and vibrant”

 

The reason being:

 

“Moving a station outside the CID introduces more barriers for riders, especially those who need to transfer lines.  If transfers and connections are challenging, riders will be discouraged from using the system.”

 

While one can debate the merits of the CID station, neither Sound Transit nor the Seattle Times apparently recognize most of the objections were "likely" due to the devastating effect the years of disruption and devastation required to implement the station in their area.  

 

This post urges the Chinatown International District Preservation & Development Authority use their “authority” to “preserve” Chinatown.  Require Sound Transit use the existing tunnel and current stations at CID and Westlake for light rail egress and access.  That East Link be terminated at CID and Ballard extension at Westlake to facilitate doing so.

 

The bottom line is the lack of commuter access to light rail stations throughout Sound Transit service area obviates the need for a second tunnel. A  November 1st 2016 Seattle Times article reported the 19,488 existing parking stalls with access to transit in the three-county area were already "at least 95% full".  Ridership on both Ballard and West Seattle extensions will be limited by the number of stations within walking distance of commuters. (Sound Transit refuses to release Northgate Link results showing lack of access limited ridership to a fraction of the 41,000-49,000 predicted)l

Again, terminating Ballard and East Link at existing stations avoids the disruptions associated with constructing new stations and the need to spend billions and years disrupting whatever route is selected.  Both Ballard and East Link extensions could be scheduled to meet local demand.  Line 1 Link south wouldn’t loose half the capacity when East Link debuts to when second tunnel is completed.   

 

The Seattle Times needs to explain why a second CID station is needed to “make our community and the region more connected, accessible, and vibrant”.  Especially since it requires spending billions and years of delay and disruption associated with a second tunnel.  This post attempts to convince Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority to advocate for eliminating the second tunnel.