Federal $ for the bridge? U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal @ West Seattle Transportation Coalition on Thursday

How might federal funding factor into the West Seattle Bridge situation? At 6:30 pm Thursday, you can hear directly from the West Seattle resident who represents our area in the U.S. House of Representatives. Here’s the announcement from the West Seattle Transportation Coalition:

We are very pleased to welcome U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal as our special guest this month. Congresswoman Jayapal will be joining us to talk about how the Federal government could possibly help with West Seattle Bridge repair or replacement and other transportation infrastructure needs. Please join us for what should be a very informative meeting!

Thursday, August 27, 2020 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom Meeting ID 885 7359 6107
On the web
Via phone: 253-215-8782

You can watch archived video of recent WSTC meetings on YouTube.

bolo August 26, 2020 (10:57 am)

Oooooh the suspense!

John August 26, 2020 (11:25 am)

I know the previous bridge received federal funds but I don’t know if the federal government will be willing to hand over money given the terrible job we’ve done maintaining this bridge. Especially with the current administration

Jack August 26, 2020 (1:30 pm)

How could the Federal government help? With funding! That is a no brainer. But, does our representative have the pull to actually get anything done? Has she spent her time building relationships with other House members? I don’t know the answer to that, but unless she has developed the relationships, then it can be difficult to get funding. Time will tell.

zark00 August 26, 2020 (2:12 pm)

It’s going to be toll – 100% convinced of that now. My bet: the fed will require it be tolled as part of providing funding. Is there any type of restriction on tolling when it is the only access point maybe? Wishful thinking.

Michael August 26, 2020 (4:14 pm)

The high bridge is not the only access point.
- zark00 August 26, 2020 (5:08 pm)
  
  Yeah I know – but we don’t have other access points, even added together, than can carry nearly as many buses/cars/people. Maybe ‘Only viable access point that can support enough traffic for residents of West Seattle’.
  - No August 26, 2020 (6:36 pm)
    
    “Viable” doesn’t mean convenient. There are viable alternatives right now.
    - East Coast Cynic August 26, 2020 (7:38 pm)
      
      Viable isn’t all that viable if they are not convenient. The backups on the 1st Ave Bridge as well as the exits to Myers Way/White Center and W Marginal Way are terrible. Imagine how much more bad they would be w/o a high bridge in a healthy non-pandemic economy!
Vic August 26, 2020 (5:01 pm)

you can access west seattle through georgetown/highland park or through white center.
Jort August 26, 2020 (5:42 pm)

It’s not the only access point, it’s not a federal road, and driving is not the only way to get in and out of West Seattle. Prepare for decades of what will most likely be congestion-adjusted tolling ($50 each day to drive across from 0600-0900 sounds good to me.)
- HappyCamper August 27, 2020 (6:06 am)
  
  $100 to bike!

Mj August 26, 2020 (5:07 pm)

Spending on infrastructure generates paychecks and leaves our children tangible benefits.

KM August 26, 2020 (10:02 pm)

Some of my favorite examples of these benefits are the massive car roads and oil infrastructure we have built so the kids can enjoy polluted waterways and asthma. We should be proud of the world we will leave for them! Now, let’s enjoy this cheap oil and drive to Southcenter for some shopping. They don’t charge for plastic bags there either!
- HappyCamper August 27, 2020 (6:09 am)
  
  Here’s to hoping that there are some changes at the federal level and they start supporting green energy, electric cars, etc more and we can actually move on from big oil and coal.
- Steve August 27, 2020 (8:37 am)
  
  Southcenter has a surprisingly good number of restaurants, and terrific liquid-nitrogen ice cream. Even if you don’t want to shop while there, give the place a chance!

Flo B August 26, 2020 (6:31 pm)

Jort. You’ve got such great idea’s. You should start an initiative petition! I’m sure there’s a lot of people that would sign.

Ivan Weiss August 27, 2020 (11:06 am)

Here, Jort, I saved this one just for you.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/12/style/car-buying-new-york-coronavirus.html

zark00 August 27, 2020 (1:12 pm)

lol, anyone who thinks there are viable alternatives that can move the number of people in and out of West Seattle that we need to move, has no clue what they’re talking about. You are not commuters, so your opinions do not matter on this topic. We spent $14M on bike infrastructure, and for that expense, got zero additional bike commuters. Great plan.

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