This joint use agreement (allowing light rail trains to run through the bus tunnel) is one of the few aspects of Sound Transit's plan that the city council actually has some control over. Sure, light rail dissidents like Council Member Nick Licata can float resolutions and "statements of intent" about light rail all day long, but when it comes to actually having an impact on the light rail plan, the council's power is limited.
With that in mind, I urge the council--despite a recent committee vote to sign off on joint use--to take the opportunity and use the tunnel vote as a much-needed check on Sound Transit's plan.
Before agreeing to let Sound Transit use the tunnel, the council should make two simple demands:
· Sound Transit must secure the funding to get all the way to Northgate.
· Sound Transit must secure the $500 million in federal funding it needs to build the first phase of the project (the 14-mile line from almost-Sea-Tac to downtown Seattle).
Both prerequisites are no-brainers. First, handing over the tunnel to Sound Transit before the agency secures the $500 million federal grant--20 percent of Sound Transit's initial capital costs--is like booking a weeklong trip to Mexico for two just because you got some hottie's phone number at last weekend's party. As your best friend would tell you: bad idea.
Meanwhile, the Northgate demand is equally obvious. If light rail runs to Northgate, a load of Metro buses with routes to Northgate will become unnecessary. This will shrink the fleet and make it feasible for light rail to share the bus tunnel. But if there isn't a light rail route to Northgate, the Metro fleet won't shrink, and light rail could displace nearly 100 buses from the tunnel. In short, the joint use agreement will send a fleet of buses onto the streets of downtown Seattle, where they will snarl traffic.
But don't take my word for it. Displaced buses are a major concern of the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA). In fact, back in 2000 the DSA said they would not support Sound Transit's plan unless light rail went to Northgate in the first phase. They've been a little quiet on the issue lately, but after a recent board meeting, the DSA, which represents 398 downtown businesses, is reportedly set to publicly reaffirm their position this week.
Good for them. (Oh, and good for those righteous badasses in Tukwila!) Seattle's elected officials should take a clue.
