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Friday, October 23, 2009

Transportation / Politics Hutchison: Light Rail Tomorrow and Light Rail Yesterday—But Never Light Rail Today

Posted by on Fri, Oct 23, 2009 at 1:00 PM

Post by news intern Garrett McCulloch

Earlier this week, Susan Hutchison said the light rail line to the Eastside line that voters approved last fall should cross a new 520 bridge across Lake Washington instead of using the existing I-90 express lanes. Bad enough idea in itself—added delays, an Eastside route that skips most of Bellevue, and generally impractical—but wait! How long does Hutchison want us to wait before light rail would be built? In early September, she said (here and here) that Sound Transit should have laid its tracks eastward instead of building the initial line from downtown to the airport.

But let's retrace the dots. If you connect those two statements, Hutchison is basically saying Sound Transit should have built no light rail at all until a new 520 bridge is open—in 2014 at the earliest. Considering Bellevue developer and anti-transit zealot Kemper Freeman's support (his company donated $25,000 to the hit ad against light-rail champion Dow Constantine, who's running against Hutchy, and he and his wife have both made maximum contributions to her campaign), delaying light rail to death would make sense. According to Hutchinstein's logic, the airport line should have never been built. Now that it's there, she says she supports building another light rail line in the future—an impractical line—but come 2014, who knows if she'll even support that.

 

Comments (8) RSS

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Will in Seattle 1
I bet she tips 10 percent.

Always.
Posted by Will in Seattle http://www.facebook.com/WillSeattle on October 23, 2009 at 1:12 PM
w7ngman 2
This is a stretch. Just because she says it should go on 520 now doesn't mean that's what she meant earlier when she said it should go east instead of to the airport.
Posted by w7ngman http://userscripts.org/users/89370 on October 23, 2009 at 2:13 PM
Will in Seattle 3
By east, does she mean to Newport, Maine?

And, if so, will it be pulled by dinosaurs like Jesus rode?
Posted by Will in Seattle http://www.facebook.com/WillSeattle on October 23, 2009 at 2:32 PM
Baconcat 4
@2: You know precisely what she means with this rhetoric. Garrett just dolled it up with meaningless pieces of journalistic flair.
Posted by Baconcat on October 23, 2009 at 2:57 PM
crazycatguy 5
McGinn also supports light rail on 520, at least that's what he said last night. Is he getting money from Freeman, too?
Posted by crazycatguy on October 23, 2009 at 3:59 PM
Will in Seattle 6
@5 - no, he said he supports light rail on 90 and then on 520.

Maybe you should listen better ...
Posted by Will in Seattle http://www.facebook.com/WillSeattle on October 23, 2009 at 4:23 PM
7
www.susanhutchison.com
Posted by Vashon-Island-Stranger-Reader on October 23, 2009 at 9:46 PM
Tingleyfeeln 8
There should be light rail across both bridges.
Posted by Tingleyfeeln on October 23, 2009 at 11:05 PM

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