Sound Transit Board Compensation

The previous post opined that some of the sates tax Sound Transit was using to fund the light rail spine should be used to fund needed road improvements. That far more of those paying the taxes would be using the roads than riding light rail. This post details how some of those revenues are used to pay the board.

It turns out they are paid very well. Yearly pay for board members ranges from $150,000 to $231,000, presumably based on responsibilities, seniority, and service on different committees.  Thus, when King County Executive Dow Constantine decided to appoint himself to Chair the Board, he presumably added the upper end of that range to his income. 

That Snohomish and Pierce County executives, King County and City Council Members, Mayors, and WSDOT Secretary all receive substantial financial benefit from their appointment.  Using the quoted $185,000 median salary for the 18 board members gives a $3.33 million total board salaries.

Thus, the Sound Transit Board compensation is comparable to that of other corporation directors.  However, those directors  normally serve at the will of the owners (stockholders).  They’re appointed because of some demonstration of competence regarding the company’s operation and subject to eviction if the performance doesn’t meet expectations.     

The Sound Transit Board is composed to members chosen by County Executive Constantine. They serve at his pleasure rather than that of those in the service area that funds Sound Transit (owners?). Their “direction” mostly consists of sitting in front of their computers at home or an office for three or four hours, two or three times a month.  They listen, sometimes comment, and nearly always approve what Sound Transit asks for. 

The result has been a decade of board members made up of elected officials who don’t know what constitutes effective public transit.  They attempt to get guidance from Transit Advisory Group (TAG) and outside consultants.  However, that advice is limited to how to better implement the boards plan for light rail extensions.  Not questioning plans to spend billions on a light rail spine for 4-car trains to replace bus routes into the Seattle. 

Apparently ignoring that 4-car trains don’t have the capacity to accommodate the riders needed to reduce peak hour freeway congestion and cost too much to operate off peak.  That replacing bus routes reduces transit capacity into Seattle, does nothing to reduce GP congestion, and former bus riders reduce access for current riders.

The results have been a March 29th Traffic Lab article charitably calling the current 18 directors “nonspecilist” and announcing a Megaproject hire.  Someone “capable of steering the nation’s biggest transit expansion that’s already running years late”.

However, the Sound Transit Board’s problem goes beyond “running years late”. At this point the best that can be done is to replace the current board with those who can mitigate the damage from current extensions and recognize the folly of the future light rail spine extensions and boring a second tunnel.   

Directors who could justify current Sound Transit Board’s compensation.