WEST SEATTLE LIGHT RAIL: Key Sound Transit Board vote expected Thursday

Two weeks after the Sound Transit Board‘s System Expansion Committee went on record in support of the “preferred alternative” for West Seattle light rail (WSB coverage here), a final board vote could come tomorrow. Deciding on West Seattle routing and station locations is on the agenda for the board’s monthly meeting, scheduled for an extended time period, 1:30-5 pm Thursday (October 24) in the board room at 401 S. Jackson on the south end of downtown. (The agenda also explains how to watch/participate online.) The meeting starts with a public-comment period, if you want to speak your mind on this one more time before the vote. What they won’t be resolving is how to cover the ever-rising cost, most recently estimated as high as $7 billion. The vote tomorrow would move the project further into design – it’s about 30 percent of the way now – and then funding decisions would come at other milestones in the process, particularly what’s known as “baselining.” Meantime, here’s the motion the board will consider Thursday.

Can’t wait to ride!!! October 23, 2024 (2:01 pm)

Bring on the train and the Seattle of the future!

Brandon October 23, 2024 (2:51 pm)

Seeing a lot of “This alternative is not available for selection because of its impact on parks or historic resources that are protected under federal law” and not enough “This alternative is not available for selection because of its impact on people’s pocket books and ST’s historic blown budgets.”

Please show up to comment! October 23, 2024 (3:01 pm)

We need to show up and let them know that NO! WEST SEATTLE isn’t going to just roll over and get rid of LIGHT RAIL THAT WE HELPED FUND FOR BALLARD EXTENSION NOR are we going to SETTLE FOR EXPANDED BUS SERVICE in LIEU OF LIGHT RAIL.

Please show up to comment about this issue if you are able. They are trying to take the money we paid into this plan and quietly move on. It’s not our fault that they under budgeted/overspent and can’t deliver what we signed up for. So they’ve been having these farce meetings to “discuss” the planning stage. The reality is they are going to vote against it and say too bad you guys don’t get the extension because we screwed up. If we get enough people to voice support maybe we can get them to honor the original plan.

Derek October 24, 2024 (5:50 am)

I want light rail. I’m in the path of the tracks and still don’t care. Bring on the train!

Darren October 23, 2024 (3:03 pm)

I don’t understand how not figuring out how the project is going to be paid for is a critical element billions more needed so spend money for additional design which costs money to do….doesn’t make sense

Mark P October 23, 2024 (3:33 pm)

Let’s go! Excited for WS Light Rail. Current preferred alignment is for sure the best.

Seth October 23, 2024 (3:40 pm)

Light rail can’t get here fast enough. That being said I do hope they find a way to keep wshc

CarDriver October 23, 2024 (4:33 pm)

Light rail will get built. There are enough people who DO NOT CARE how much it costs or who it displaces. They’re happy to sign the blank check and saddle themselves and everyone else with the debt. Evidently it is the magic wand that will solve everything transportation wise.

NotAnOilSimp October 23, 2024 (5:55 pm)

Username certainly checks out. Maybe try interacting with the rest of the world once in a while. The current light rail is a wonderful alternative to driving and biking and bussing that unfortunately only the eastern half of the city gets to take advantage of. West Seattle deserves to be connected to, it has paid in for years. Theiis project is worth it at double the price because better connectivity is that important to the local economy, as many studies have shown. The environmental benefits are gravy.
- Scarlett October 23, 2024 (7:07 pm)
  
  On this, NAOS, I’d say that Cardriver is far more connected to the real world of objective analysis than many of the folks who think dreamy WS light rail is anything close to a cost-effective alternative. It isn’t. And by the way, the massive amounts of CO2 frontloaded into the atmosphere before a single rider boards will never be recouped, certaintly not in your lifetime. Economic benefit? It’s interesting how quickly the light rail contingent pivoted to the “economic benefit’ (well, except for displaced businesses, that is), when their other argument fell apart. This is all smoke and mirrors because most of that “economic benefit” is mostly new over-priced units and retail space based on proximity to a light rail station. The customers of this retail? Well, no one is going to take light rail from Lynnwood to West Seattle to munch an (overly crumbly) croissant at Bakery Nouveau, except a few tourists with endless hours to kill. So, did light rail bring the business, or would it have happened anyway? All the hustle and bustle in the downtown tunnel, that makes people feel like they live in a Big City, a New York City? Actually, most of that traffic was quietly and routinely handled in the past by bus transit for decades, as bus transit still does quietly and without fanfare. But, again, people love to be seduced to by cool things and cool conceptual ideas and buzzwords – here and everywhere else.
  - Burgerman October 23, 2024 (10:17 pm)
    
    Scarlett, just stop. You are the most negative, contrary person in this comment section. Light rail is going to be built, whether you like it or not. Stop trying to push your selfish agenda. Because that’s what it is. West Seattle voted for, and paid for, and is paying for, light rail and its connectivity, simplicity, speed, and comfort to come to a place that sorely needs those things. From a dedicated train. Not a bus.
    - Scarlett October 24, 2024 (12:55 pm)
      
      Yeah, Burgerman, I’m not the one pushing people out of their homes and displacing businesses so cavalierly as many of you do. So, who’s being selfish? By the way, because a measure or law is voted on and passed by a majority does not make it “right”; this is why we have three branches of government as a check on each other.
  - Foop October 24, 2024 (1:40 am)
    
    I stopped reading after you fired strays at bakery nouveau, feel free to move to maple valley if you hate living in a city.
    - Atheist October 24, 2024 (4:23 pm)
      
      Foop. I missed the part about Scarlett and the strays fired at Bakery Nouveau. Please share. Thank you 😊
  - Jason October 24, 2024 (7:15 am)
    
    Scarlett, we lightrail supporters are growing tired of your baseless complaints.
- Brandon October 23, 2024 (7:08 pm)
  
  Remember, the math works out to $257,000 for each added rider per ST, and you’re saying its worth $514,000 per additional rider. So, can we extend it to highpoint too? and Fauntleroy? And Highland Park? If we’re going off of ‘deserve’ with fiscal responsibility out the window, we could have expensive trains everywhere in place of cars. Can you honestly not think of any other way to achieve these means for less? or are you just simpingforST?
  - K October 23, 2024 (9:11 pm)
    
    Now do the math on freeways. Car infrastructure is exorbitantly expensive and will never come close to paying for itself, but somehow we accept that freeways and parking lots are part of living in civil society. If you applied the same standards to light rail as you already do cars, you’d be a supporter in no time!
    - Brandon October 24, 2024 (10:38 am)
      
      Let’s look at a recent project then. The West Seattle Bridge serves 60,000 cars a day. It was going to cost $1.5 billion to replace. That math comes down to $25,000 per user. So that’s what, 10 bridges in comparison?
      
      That project was shot down for three reasons as I recall. 1. It cost too much – its far less than ST. 2. It was going to take too long – it would have been in service before the light rail. 3. it doesn’t fix the transportation issues – neither does ST, but compared to the cost of ST it definitely could have with some more spent on auxiliary roads.
      
      Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like the premise you’re putting forward is the assumption that if we spend on trains, we wouldn’t need to spend on freeways and parking lots. In reality, when we pay for the train, we’re still going to have to pay for those freeways and parking lots on top of it.

Catherine October 23, 2024 (5:32 pm)

All of you with positive replies must not be on the displaced list. I am in a situation where finding new housing would be difficult if not impossible and I rely on Jefferson Square businesses. I also don’t drive so rely on public transport but say LIGHT RAIL STAY AWAY! Save our homes and businesses. Metro buses work just fine.

Bbron October 23, 2024 (7:14 pm)

“Metro buses work just fine” yet half the time getting downtown is spent getting from the 99 to 3rd Ave. but it should get better with even more cars and buses as our population grows, right?
- Burgerman October 23, 2024 (10:20 pm)
  
  Bbron gets it.
Seth October 23, 2024 (9:15 pm)

I was on the displaced list before they switched the alternative but even then I have been a pro light rail supported. Does it suck obviously but ya know that’s the price of building something that will help people. Seattle is so far behind in public transport and it really sucks.
- Burgerman October 23, 2024 (10:21 pm)
  
  Seth, my nice low rent is going to go up undoubtedly, but like you, I say let’s go!
Burgerman October 23, 2024 (10:19 pm)

Guaranteed you will find new housing unless you simply plan to give up on life completely. I hope that isn’t the case, and I suspect it isn’t.
Jason October 24, 2024 (7:16 am)

None of the Jefferson square businesses own their own buildings last I checked, so you should never operate like you own it. They should all be on year to year leases. So the time is NOW to find appropriate replacement so we can build much needed infrastructure.

Rob October 23, 2024 (6:00 pm)

Is really so bad getting out of WS to some place we don’t want to be (work) that 7 billion an counting cost to our children’s children will be paying for really worth it

Kyle October 23, 2024 (6:40 pm)

I’ve been unplugged from this a bit since I do support the light rail and it was approved overwhelmingly. However, what are they going to do with the bus only lanes on the West Seattle bridge? The bridge has too much capacity but the bus lanes won’t be needed once the light rail is here and buses terminate at stations like a sensible transit design. With all the exorbitant costs are we looking at running the light rail on the existing bridge?

Burgerman October 23, 2024 (10:22 pm)

No. It’s not set up to handle the weight of trains, even light rail, and they cannot handle the current grade on that bridge.
- Kyle October 24, 2024 (7:00 am)
  
  So the lanes go back to general purpose? Will the new light rail bridge be high enough to avoid boat openings?
Skylar October 24, 2024 (5:37 am)

Because the Minimum Operable Segment is only a shuttle between Delridge and SODO, Metro will continue running the C, H, 21 and all the peak buses to downtown. It’ll be the worst of all worlds – no frequency or coverage boost on the buses, with a stub train line that very few people will find useful. At least the politicians will get to use their giant scissors on another ribbon though.

Skylar October 23, 2024 (7:10 pm)

I wonder how many people in West Seattle would be in favor of the extension if they knew the most likely fallback, which is the Minimum Operable Segment already submitted to the federal government. That would be a line running at most every 10 minutes from SODO (not downtown!) to Delridge (not the Junction!), requiring a transfer to the main Link network south of the 1/2 interline so continuing trains would only be running every 10 minutes. All that for a cool $4 billion, which could buy a ton of one-seat bus service for decades to downtown, or the airport, or other destinations.

Peace maker October 23, 2024 (7:48 pm)

West Seattle used to have electric trolley trains everywhere on every major avenue before the 1950s and we’re stuck in 2024 without a single light rail that could improve transit and pollution. West Seattle with traffic and bad parking and late time inefficient bus routes. Not to mention high tax zoning and wicked high rent prices it’s a shame that this area has also neglected transit infrastructure to say the least and has become a traffic ridden wasteland. The noise the bad air and accidents and poor policing of motor mayhem has led to a host of tax payer spending that hasn’t helped or solved any problems. The money and yuppies don’t help anything especially with all the complaining. The entire west Seattle north to south should have fast timely transportation..

MrsPeekaboo October 23, 2024 (10:26 pm)

So….why not expand the coverage area and frequency of the 50 bus so it can pick up more people more often and deliver them to the Lander St. rail stop?? Thereby saving billions of $$ which could be put toward – gee, expanding the coverage area and frequency of the 50 bus, and maybe adding another route that covers more of W. Seattle. And heck, make it electric. You’d still be saving $$ (and putting people on the train).

K October 24, 2024 (2:32 am)

There’s a bus driver shortage already, and it’s not expected to get better any time soon. Buses need drivers. They also use surface streets, and the more vehicles you add to surface streets, the less efficient they are.

Scarlett October 24, 2024 (10:26 am)

A veritable treasure trove of light rail groupthink. No, light rail is never going to make a significant impact on the public transportation metric, nor will it ever ease any traffic bottlenecks in Seattle, on I-5, or I-90, or any other roadway, any benefit is insignificant. If light rail were to vanish, theoretically, overnight, and riders were apprised of bus alternatives the impact would be hardly felt. Sure, if a majority of voters decide they want a light rail extension, despite the groteque cost overruns and limited benefit, they will get it, though I’m not a big believer in the inherent wisdom of majorities, intentions aside.

Johnny Stulic October 24, 2024 (5:11 pm)

Why do we even have studies, committees, statistics, as well as the ability to compare traffic in other world cities with over 1 million people when all we have to do is just ask some person called “Scarlett” and find out what works, what doesn’t, when, and where? Unlike every other major metropolis and their subways and light rail, its benefit in Seattle is limited and grotesquely expensive.
Scarlett has spoken, everyone. We can all go home now and forget about our childish expectations of having a rapid transit system in Seattle.
- Scarlett October 24, 2024 (8:54 pm)
  
  Dispense with the snotty juvenalia and come up with a rebuttal; give me some evidence that light rail has substantially changed the public transportation dynamic in Seattle – in a unique way bus transit can’t – and/or has significantly reduced traffic congestion. You probably can’t and the only conclusion is that light rail is largely a hideously expensive urban “bauble” with limited benefit. as it is in other cities.
Bbron October 24, 2024 (11:21 pm)

“If light rail were to vanish, theoretically, overnight, … the impact would be hardly felt.” is such a ridiculous statement. Nearly 100 thousand boardings a day, millions a month and you think that wouldn’t make a difference on surface streets? For comparison, 100 – 200 thousand people commute into downtown a day. It doesn’t make sense to argue a point that has numbers that simply don’t work out that way…

BlairJ October 24, 2024 (4:59 pm)

ST BoD voted 14-2 in favor of proceeding to the design phase of the WSLE Preferred Alternative.

WSB October 24, 2024 (5:48 pm)

Yes, I’ll have the full story a bit later, thank you.

AH October 24, 2024 (5:17 pm)

Sounds like there is no stopping light rail’s 3 stations in west seattle in a 2 mile long path. Will miss my gym which includes a pool and pools are cool. The board said today that most voters want lightrail to west seattle. I wish I knew percentages of people who live here for and against light rail. The board seems to have moved it further along yet still do not know how it will be paid for. We still do not know if they will ever improve buses within in west seattle because that is metro. West seattle needs more shuttles that cost less for short trips to stores, restaurants, gathering places. That just might get people out of their cars while in west seattle. Not having parking for the stations may be what keeps ridership down. People north and south of the stations just might opt for a car rides. If the stations are going to be in a 2 mile area then why not just up-zone that area until ridership is where you want it to justify 7 billion dollars. If you don’t up-zone the areas that do not have light rail stations yet, then, when in the future, you want to expand the light rail you will not have already developed the heck out of it. I think of it as minimizing micro sprawl in west seattle until you have light rail plan for the whole peninsula.

Sorry, comment time is over.