By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

When we first reported in early 2021 on the West Seattle SkyLink campaign – people advocating for a gondola (aerial tram) system between West Seattle and downtown instead of light rail – they suggested a feasibility study, for starters.

Sound Transit‘s board eventually asked the agency’s staff to do one, and this morning, ST has made its report public. The 17-page report is here and below:

It was officially released during the board’s monthly Executive Committee meeting, but without even an agenda item of its own – ST CEO Peter Rogoff announced its completion during the regular “CEO Report” item.

We got a pre-meeting briefing with Matt Shelden, the ST deputy executive director of planning and integration, who led the team that worked on the report; he also provided a very quick topline summary at this morning’s meeting. Rogoff offered a “more detaiiled briefing” to any board member who wanted one, and then moved on to other items; the board member who requested the report, West Seattle-residing King County Executive Dow Constantine, was not in attendance at this morning’s meeting.

In our pre-meeting briefing, Shelden said the staff received the request at the end of January, so the report has taken about two months. It reaches the same conclusion that ST had before the 2016 ST3 ballot measure that set the stage for light rail – that in ST’s view, a gondola system is not suitable as “high-capacity transit” – what ST is supposed to deliver – to get people between West Seattle and downtown.

The study reaches this conclusion on three main points, as summarized by Shelden:

First, ST says gondola technology would not “integrate well” with the existing (and planned) ST system, and would not necessarily be expandable to points south, as the West Seattle light rail is supposed to be. The integration also refers to the West Seattle to Everett trains – after full buildout – providing capacity through downtown, as well as to/from WS, capacity that the agency says would be lost if they instead substituted a gondola system for the West Seattle to downtown leg.

Second, they don’t believe a gondola system could reach the passenger capacity that they believe would be needed – up to 3,000 passengers per hour. While West Seattle SkyLink proponents believe the gondola cars could take off every 10 seconds, ST says even that pace would be likely to max out at 2,000 people per hour.

Third, “legal considerations” – Shelden says they believe the language of the ST3 ballot measure locks the agency into light rail, so “changing the (transit) mode would likely require voter approval.”

The report also says ST staff could not verify the SkyLink claims that the gondola system could be built more quickly and cheaply than light rail.

It also contains a few positive points, such as noting that an aerial system would not contribute to ground congestion, and that fare compliance would likely be easier to achieve than with trains.

We are seeking comment from SkyLink proponents and will add that to the story when we get it. Prior to the report’s release, they submitted these written comments saying they were unaware the feasibility study was in progress until the CEO mentioned it two weeks ago. Shelden said during the pre-meeting briefing with WSB that the study’s findings are based on staffers’ “review of other gondola systems, existing or planned,” as well as information from the SkyLink website and “a briefing last year” (which is mentioned in the SkyLink comment document).

So what happens now? ST continues with the light-rail plan unless directed otherwise by the board, which could call for a more extensive independent study, or, as Rogoff said at this morning’s meeting, independent briefings.

ADDED 3:21 PM: Here’s what we heard back from Constantine’s office, responding to our request for comment:

The Executive is looking forward to reviewing and understanding the outcomes and analysis contained within the Aerial Gondola Feasibility study he requested Sound Transit produce, based on requests from a group of community advocates in West Seattle. The Executive has publicly voiced concerns about both the legality and equity impacts of the aerial gondola proposal to replace the West Seattle portion of the voter-approved West Seattle to Ballard Link Extension, and will seek further understanding from the feasibility report and interested parties. At this time, our office has not been briefed on any planned further discussion amongst the board on this issue and would defer to agency leadership regarding any plans for continued discussion.

(Rendering from Draft EIS executive summary page 28, Avalon/Genesee)

One more month to comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for West Seattle light rail – telling Sound Transit what you think about the routing and station-location alternatives. This Wednesday (March 30th), 5:30-7:30 pm online, is ST’s official public meeting for this section of the expansion, projected to open in 2032. The attendance link is on this page of ST’s online open house, which offers other ways to comment – as long as you do it by April 28th. (Our archived coverage of the project is here, newest to oldest.)

P.S. Wednesday is the only community-comment meeting ST has planned, but the West Seattle Transportation Coalition is planning a workshop-style meeting April 7th to help people with the commenting process – watch for time and attendance details (it’s being planned as a hybrid in-person/online meeting).

Light rail is currently scheduled to arrive in West Seattle in 2032, two years later than the original plan when voters passed ST3 in 2016. Would you support paying extra to speed that up? A bill enabling that option is headed to Gov. Jay Inslee‘s desk after final passage in the Legislature today, as reported when the City Council got a legislative briefing this afternoon. Here’s how the transit-advocacy group Seattle Subway summarized the legislation, Senate Bill 5528:

The bill allows a city, subarea, county, or combination thereof to have the option to create an “Enhanced Service Zone” to target the investments their voters care about most. SB 5528 allows the Sound Transit Board to give voters the opportunity to fund faster construction timelines on existing projects and/or fund new transit improvements and services for individual cities and sub-areas within the Sound Transit district. The funding mechanisms included in the bill are a motor vehicle excise tax (MVET) not to exceed 1.5%, and a commercial parking tax. If authorized for public vote by the Sound Transit Board, voters still must register a majority in favor for the funding mechanisms to go into effect.

You can read the Legislature’s report on the final version of the bill here. Speeding up construction is just one of the possible uses of extra funding it spells out.

If you haven’t yet decided how – or whether – to comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement about West Seattle’s potential light-rail routing/station locations, Tuesday might bring some help: That’s when the West Seattle/Duwamish-area Community Advisory Group convened by Sound Transit will take what’s supposed to be a “deep dive” into the DEIS. It’s an online meeting, 5-7 pm Tuesday (March 8th), and everyone’s welcome. No public comment, but this could set you up with better information before you send in yours (which you can do at any time before April 28th – go here). The meeting’s livestream will be here. (Our past coverage of the project is archived here, newest to oldest.)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

With 10 weeks left for your comment(s) on West Seattle light-rail options, some neighborhoods are organizing their own briefings and reviews of Sound Transit‘s Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the extension.

Wednesday night, the Avalon-area neighbors who first organized in 2020 invited ST for another presentation and Q&A. What they asked, and suggested, might help you if you haven’t already commented (which you can do via the ongoing “online open house”).

The ST team – led by facilitator Leda Chahim and West Seattle/Duwamish segment manager Jason Hampton – opened with a presentation almost identical to what they showed the Community Advisory Group last week (WSB coverage here). That included select pairings of Junction and Delridge station alternatives – the location of the Avalon station, closest to where most of Wednesday night’s participants live, depends on what’s chosen for those two ends of the WS extension. Here’s the full slide deck from the meeting:

(You can also see it here.)

Read More

(One routing option by WS Golf Course, from page 253 of DEIS section 4.2.1)

If you’re still trying to get up to speed on the Sound Transit Draft Environmental Impact Statement for West Seattle (and beyond) light rail, here’s your next chance to watch a briefing/discussion: Tuesday morning, it’s on the agenda for the 9:30 am online meeting of the City Council’s Transportation Committee. The DEIS is the document that details various potential impacts of the multiple routing and station-location options. Sound Transit is taking comments through April 28th; then its board will decide this summer which routing/station locations will go through the final phase of environmental studies. The city has multiple roles in the process — it’s working with ST on station planning, it could consider contributing “third-party funding” for options that would cost extra, and it has two reps on the ST board, City Council President Debora Juarez and Mayor Bruce Harrell. You can sign up to comment at Tuesday’s meeting – the agenda explains how – and you’ll be able to watch it live (or recorded for later playback) via Seattle Channel. If you want to review the DEIS independently, you can do that via ST’s online open house here, which also offers opportunities for comment.

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Part of the Sound Transit-convened West Seattle/Duwamish Community Advisory Group’s role is to help neighbors understand the light-rail project before it’s built – and while the 2032 opening date seems distant, construction could be only four years away.

Now that the Draft Environmental Impact Statement has been out for a week and a half, evaluating the routing and station possibilities, CAG members got a briefing and Q&A on Tuesday night.

Sound Transit’s Cathal Ridge reminded group members that while you’ll have to transfer at SODO in the first few years, by 2042 the system buildout will mean one ride all the way from Seattle to Everett.

Ridge also reminded the group that the Draft EIS includes preferred alternatives and other potential alternatives, to be winnowed by the ST Board in a few months. Ridge stressed. He recommended reading the document itself, not just summaries like this. (Later in the presentation, the list of topics it covers was shown – so if any interest you, that’s another reason to read it:)

Read More

(Rendering from Draft EIS executive summary page 28, Avalon/Genesee)

Two weeks after the West Seattle light rail Draft Environmental Impact Statement went public, have you dived into it yet? You have until April 28th to get your thoughts in about the potential routing and station-location alternatives, but, well, time flies. If a briefing might help, you have an opportunity tomorrow night: The West Seattle-Duwamish Community Advisory Group for this section of the project gets a presentation Tuesday (February 8th) at 5 pm. The agenda’s here; the livestream will be here.

(Rendering from DEIS Executive Summary, looking east on SW Genesee, east of Avalon)

What route will West Seattle’s future Sound Transit light-rail line travel, and where will its stations be? Data to shape those decisions is what you’ll find in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the West Seattle and Ballard light-rail extensions. The DEIS has been public since last week – all the documents are linked here, starting with the executive summary – but the official 3-month comment period didn’t start until today. First, from today’s announcement, here’s what ST is offering so you can learn more and tell them what you think:

Members of the public are invited to attend an online open house at wsblink.participate.online, where they can review alternatives and station options, and submit formal responses. People can also provide feedback by phone, by mail, by email, or at upcoming virtual, and possible in-person, public meetings.

Virtual public meetings will take place on the following dates and times:

Tuesday, March 15, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (Interbay/Ballard focused)
Tuesday, March 22, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (Downtown focused)
Thursday, March 24, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (CID/SODO focused)
Wednesday, March 30, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. (West Seattle focused)

If public health guidance permits, an in-person open house is scheduled for Thursday, March 17 at Union Station from 12 – 7 p.m. This event may transition to virtual in accordance with public health recommendations. More information on attending the public meetings is available by visiting the online open house site.

Comments may be sent via email to WSBLEDEIScomments@soundtransit.org or by voicemail at 800-471-0879.

Written comments can be mailed to:

WSBLE Draft Environmental Impact Statement Comments
c/o Lauren Swift
Sound Transit
401 S. Jackson Street
Seattle, WA 98104

The Draft EIS is available for review at the online open house. Printed copies are available for review at Union Station, and at select Seattle public libraries and community centers. A list of locations is available on the open house site.

In West Seattle, all four Seattle Public Library branches are on that list, as is Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW). In addition to the ST events mentioned above, the West Seattle Transportation Coalition also plans to host a workshop about the DEIS during its March 24th meeting. The commenting deadline is April 28th; after that, the ST Board will decide what should be in the final EIS, and then after that’s out next year, board members make the final decision on routing and station locations. West Seattle light rail is currently scheduled to launch in 2032, two years later than the date projected when voters approved the ST3 ballot measure more than five years ago.

P.S. ST will be making other community appearances over the course of the comment period; we just got word that one of the first will be at the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce‘s monthly online lunchtime event, noon February 10th, membership not required, and while a donation is requested from attendees, it’s not required either. Both members and nonmembers can register here to attend. And two days before that – at 5 pm February 8th – the Community Advisory Group for West Seattle will have its next meeting; watch here for attendance info.

4:18 PM: Though Sound Transit had announced the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the West Seattle and Ballard extensions would go public on January 28th – it’s out now. Its many chapters are linked here. We found it on the ST website after a tip that it was out, and have barely begun looking at it, but wanted to let you know, for starters. If you need a refresher, here’s what this phase of the process is all about – including public comments.

(Rendering of potential guideway near Delridge station’s Dakota Street option)

4:58 PM: If you want to skip ahead to the visuals, go to this section, the Visual and Aesthetics Technical Report. Renderings for the options start on page 106. If you haven’t been paying much attention until now, note that the Draft Environmental Impact Statement does not propose any new routing or stations – it just analyzes the potential impacts of all the ones the board agreed a few years back should be studied.

6:54 PM: The overview is, as you might guess, in the Executive Summary. This includes tables listing the major impacts of each option, including how many residences and businesses would potentially be displaced. For example, along the Delridge alternatives, the Dakota Street North Lower alternative is projected to displace the most residences, almost 200. Of the Junction alternatives, the Fauntleroy Way station alternative is projected to displace the most residences, 435. The 41st/42nd elevated Junction alternative would also take out both the Trader Joe’s and Safeway stores, ST projects.

One more note – though the DEIS is out early, the official public-comment period still doesn’t start until January 28th, ST spokesperson Rachelle Cunningham tells WSB. She says the early release was mandated as part of the process to get a notice published in the Federal Register.

(Sound Transit recording of Tuesday’s meeting)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Three stations are planned for Sound Transit‘s West Seattle light-rail extension – Delridge, Avalon, The Junction. Each one still has multiple potential locations under study, but the newest ST public presentation provided an official detailed look at early design possibilities for all of them.

That happened during the first meeting of the West Seattle/Duwamish Community Advisory Group for the project, which is now projected to launch light rail to/from the peninsula in 2032.

The slide deck for this meeting ran 119 pages – you can scroll through for the closest look yet at all the station possibilities that are being studied and will be part of what’s addressed in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement:

Read More

One week into the new year, things are about to get busier. Among the community meetings happening this week, the Sound Transit-convened Community Advisory Group for West Seattle and vicinity meets online Tuesday, the group’s first meeting since the November joint gathering of all four advisory groups set up for the West Seattle/Ballard extensions (WSB coverage here, including the ecplanation of these groups’ role). The agenda’s not published yet but it’s expected to focus on station planning. The meeting will be livestreamed at 5 pm Tuesday (January 11th) via this YouTube link. The biggest event of the year for West Seattle/Ballard light-rail planning is not until month’s end – the release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement, set for January 28th.

ADDED MONDAY: Here’s the agenda.

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

After convening as one supergroup for their first meeting, the 52 people chosen as advisory-group members for Sound Transit‘s West Seattle to Ballard light-rail project will meet as four separate groups from here on out.

That was the main headline from a meeting that otherwise was mostly devoted to a mega-recap of ST history and the potential routing/station sites being studied for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.

The DEIS is “very close” to being published, group members were assured, though the new estimate delivery date of “early 2022” is a year later than once forecast. Then again, the West Seattle light-rail launch date is now two years later than the 2030 date with which ST3 went to voters in 2016. Ballard could face even more of a delay – four years, to 2039 – if an “affordability gap” isn’t closed along the way.

Read More

Earlier this fall, we put out Sound Transit‘s call for people interested in being on a new Community Advisory Group for the West Seattle-Ballard light-rail extensions, as ST approaches the next planning milestone, the release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement. That’s been delayed multiple times but is now projected for publication early next year, opening a new public-comment period. More than 230 people applied; Sound Transit has appointed 51 in four groups, with the largest lineup representing the West Seattle-Duwamish section – here’s the roster for all four:

The meeting will be online, 5-7 pm Tuesday, viewable here (livestreamed or archived afterward). Here’s the agenda.

Want to get more closely involved in the West Seattle light-rail planning process as it approaches the next milestone? Sound Transit just announced it’s extending the deadline for people to apply to be on the Community Advisory Group for the West Seattle-Ballard extension. From the announcement:

We’re looking for people who:

-Live, work and/or volunteer along the project corridor.
-Are a part of, or have a deep understanding of, one or more of the communities along the corridor.
=Have knowledge and/or interest in public transportation, mobility and how transportation affects the lives of people in the region.

We ask that members be prepared to:

-Act as a community ambassador, willing to share information with community members and bring forth community values, concerns, and ideas.
-Consider the community as a whole and go beyond personal interests.
-Participate collaboratively with group members whose views may be different from their own.
-Attend approximately six monthly meetings from fall 2021 through early 2022, participating fully in the process. Members will receive a stipend for their participation.

You have until 5 pm next Monday (November 1st) to apply. Go here to find out more, including how to apply.

Thanks to everyone who tipped us that Sound Transit has sent letters to owners of properties that ST might have to acquire for developing the West Seattle light rail line. (See the letter here.) While researching this, we asked ST about the status of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the West Seattle-Ballard extension – most recently expected to be released before year’s end – and learned it’s been delayed again.

ST spokesperson Geoff Patrick tells WSB, “Given ongoing coordination needs and the upcoming holidays, Sound Transit now expects to publish the Draft EIS for public review and comment in early 2022. While we have not yet identified a specific date for publication of the DEIS, it was a priority for Sound Transit to send out the notifications in advance to ensure property owners have the opportunity to learn about the project, how to engage, and how and when project decisions are made.”

As for who got notices and why, Patrick says the DEIS “identifies potential property acquisition needs associated with each of the project alignment options that is under consideration. We have sent letters to owners of approximately 1,400 potentially affected properties. This notification of potential impact does not mean a decision has been made to purchase property. It should be noted that while we’re studying multiple routes, in the end we’ll just build one. So, ultimately, many of those properties we are currently notifying won’t need to be acquired to build the project.”

All the routing possibilities that are being studied for the DEIS are shown on this website. The final routing decision will be up to the Sound Transit Board to make, after the final Environmental Impact Statement is published, currently expected in 2023. Patrick says there’s more information for potentially affected property owners on this ST webpage. The letter received by property owners invites them to participate in virtual briefings, with dates offered in November and December.

It was only this past June that the Draft EIS release was announced as delayed until fall. At the end of last year, the projected timeline was “mid-(2021).” As a result of the recent “realignment” decision, the expected opening date for the West Seattle extension is likely 2032, two years later than what was originally planned when voters approved the ST3 ballot measure five years ago.

As Sound Transit gets closer to the next milestone in West Seattle-Ballard light-rail planning – publishing the Draft Environmental Impact Statement this fall – it’s just announced a plan for new Community Advisory Groups. Here’s the announcement:

Sound Transit is looking for people along the West Seattle and Ballard corridor who bring diverse perspectives and lived experiences to serve on a community advisory group (CAG). The CAGs will provide an additional forum for community members to help inform the Sound Transit Board’s confirmation or modification of the preferred alternative for the West Seattle and Ballard Link Extensions project.

The CAGs will work collaboratively to highlight issues and tradeoffs to the community for the Sound Transit Board to consider as the agency works to deliver a project on time and within scope. Feedback from the advisory groups will be taken together with all the input gathered from the public comment period when Sound Transit releases the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the project, and shared with the Sound Transit Board before it confirms or modifies the preferred alternative early next year. In addition to participating on a CAG, community members will be able to engage in a variety of ways during the public comment period including at public meetings, by phone, mail, email and online.

The CAGs will include a balance of neighborhood and community interests and reflect the diversity throughout the corridor, including income level, race, age, physical and cognitive abilities, and lived experience. Each advisory group will be comprised of 10-15 community members, and organized by geographic area.

Sound Transit is seeking people who:

· Live, work and/or volunteer along the project corridor.

· Are a part of or have deep understanding of one or more of the communities along the corridor.

· Have knowledge and/or interest in public transportation, mobility and how transportation affects the lives of people in the region.

Sound Transit asks that members be prepared to:

-Act as a community ambassador, willing to share information with community members and bring forth community values, concerns, and ideas.
-Consider the community as a whole and go beyond personal interests.
-Participate collaboratively with group members whose views may be different from their own.
-Attend approximately six-monthly meetings from fall 2021 through early 2022, participating fully in the process.

Interest forms will be accepted through 5 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 27. Fill out an interest form at wsblink.participate.online/#cag. For assistance, contact the West Seattle and Ballard Link Extensions project team at wsblink@soundtransit.org or 206-903-7229.

Share This