The next most important thing any Washingtonian can do this year is vote against Initiative 976. This fecal-matter frittata would destroy funding for nearly every type of public transportation in this state.
I-976 was birthed from the anal cavity of Tim Eyman, and though it almost looks appealing, because it would save you a few bucks—it would cap all vehicle licensing fees at $30 and repeal Sound Transit’s ability to collect taxes—it would create apocalyptic impacts for transportation in the state, resulting in ever more apocalyptic traffic, and a bevy of other road-repair and transportation crises. It would cost the state $2.3 billion, local governments $1.9 billion, and Sound Transit $20 billion. Sound Transit, in case you’re new here, is the agency building light rail routes to get cars off our insanely clogged streets.
The impact of these cuts would be felt in every corner of the state, from pothole repairs in Spokane to light rail in Bellevue to bus service in Seattle (no joke, I-976 would cut more than 170,000 hours of bus service in Seattle every year). I-976 also cuts $1.3 billion from our ferry system, repeals funding for Amtrak trains, cuts funding for major highway projects on I-405 and I-90, and would entirely eliminate transit agencies in rural places like Garfield County.