As Eli reported earlier, the Bellevue City Council voted to approve by a 7-0 margin last night, Sound Transit’s light rail alignment through downtown Bellevue, a route that includes a controversial gold-plated tunnel. And how are Sound Transit and Bellevue planning to pay for the extra cost of this fancy-schmancy tunnel? In large measure by siphoning up to $150 million in Seattle generated revenues from the Seattle subarea.
You’re welcome, Bellevue. Don’t say we’ve never given you anything.
UPDATE: Or maybe not. Now I’m hearing from folks at ST that its contribution is all East King subarea money. So I take back my “you’re welcome.”
and this tunnel, too, is as useful as tits on a boar.
@1
Mixing fixed-rail transit and cars results in piss-poor operational performance for both. If you want to see transit succeed in this region, this is a must-have. And this is not the same as running in the center of MLK through the Rainier Valley.
Maybe Bellevue could return the favor by allowing SPL cardholders to place holds at KCLS again.
You do realize that Kemper has been against light rail to Bellevue because it will make it easier for anyone in Bellevue and Redmond (i.e. Microsofties) to travel to Seattle to shop, right? This is great for Seattle.
Just make sure the toll lane heading west is 10¢ higher before Sounders, Mariners, and Seahawk games, and they can make it up on the 520 bridge.
Just saw the Update. Christ, does anyone at the Stranger check shit out before posting it? Or is it considered OK to post and then wait until someone emails you to correct it?
@5, ten cents? It’s still 1965 in your world, is it? I’d say more like two dollars.
Time to form Sealth County and let Fnarf move to Bellevue.
@6 hey if it works for the NY Post, why hold The Stranger to a higher standard?
@7, that’s not how you cook a frog. 1st, get them to agree to higher temperatures, 2nd, turn it every year.
This is great…now there will be no excuse not to rent lower cost, cleaner and more modern office space in Bellevue instead of dangerous overpriced Seattle.
High tech workers can now glide from the U. District right through downtown, on to Bellevue while reading on their Wifi Kindles.
@11: you think there will be Kindles in 12 years? more likely we’ll have wi-fi hi-def screens on the inside of our eyelids.
@2: why is downtown bellevue different than MLK? they’re hella busy with traffic.
Another Stranger writer hating on Bellevue, even when they do something good. You guys are such idiots sometimes.
Kill the gold-plated tunnel and use the money to build diamond lanes paved with actual diamonds.
Kemper Freeman must be shitting himself bigtime. He spent $1 million for his boy friend Timmy to stop light rail and was unsuccessful.
@12: I’m still waiting for my jet pack.