Much easier and cheaper to Uber/Lyft to Seatac these days. Typically less than $40 from North Seattle, which is the same cost (roundtrip) as 2 days of parking. Only possible since the taxi cartel got smashed.

So unless you're just doing a day trip, or driving in from Bumfuck, Washington, not much point in parking at Seatac these days.

Of course the Mariners are winning -- but they're only doing it to spite Spike; soon as he's attached, they'll no doubt (if History repeats itself) find a billion more ways to lose. But, that's okay. We're Seattlites so pretty used to it.

GO, Mariners!

(EXCITING fucking Games, last two days. Down to the bottoms of the ninth in one and the 10th in the other. Once with the bases loaded . . . . their bats are HOT and much of the defense seems Playoff Caliber. Enjoy it while we can)

So many Homers...

I either use yellow cab ($30 something dollars from west seattle), get a lift from a friend or significant other, or use one of the car lots near Sea-Tac Airport outside of spring break for extended vacations.

The bottom line is a lot of people have moved here over the past 25-30 years and all we have to show for efficient right of way public transportation ( thanks to a reactionary fake progressive political class and some of our cheapskate citizens) is a pencil sized light rail system that doesn't serve nearly enough people that need to get to the airport. It's improving in the coming years, but way overdue for the growth we've experienced.

@3 Yellow cab? Do you also use phone operators and steam ships?

That the Sea-Tac parking lot is full, should be only a pertinent news item for travelers. Why such hostile reactions is most curious. The lot isn't creating any additional cars. In fact, those same cars could be at other locations just as as upsetting to Nathalie and others with similar delicate sensibilities.

BTW, that baby fell out of a window in Redmond, not Renton.

@4: I still take cabs. Pay a little more but assured of insured and sober drivers.

@4, One phone call and it arrives whenever you want it. Lo-Fi, no apps, no ride sharing with other mooks, and it's efficient.

Take light rail. The more you drive, the less intelligent you are.

Try getting a yellow cab to show up reliably at 5am on the dot so you can catch a 630AM flight to SFO. Last time I tried it was 45 minutes late. I've taken probably a 500-600 Lyfts/Uber in the past 8 years, never had a drunk, or any problem. I take that back, I once gave a driver 3 stars because his car smelled like cigarettes...the way all cabs do.

Rideshares they are insured now, the city required uber/lyft drivers to cover passengers with commercial liability insurance in 2015 (which Uber also).

Last time I took a Yellow Cab, however, from Seatac, with the family, I had him pull over downtown and let us out he was driving so badly. Want to complain? Fill out this form in triplicate. Before Lyft/Uber, cabs in Seattle were horrible. Happy to see them loose market.

But enjoy your horse and buggy.

"The more you drive, the less intelligent you are."

I'm not driving, someone else is. I'm reading the New York Times and drinking my coffee in the back of a spotless Prius (most likely) with a polite and enthusiastic driver..

"Take light rail"

So I can make a 25 minute drive into a 45 minute train ride (plus commute to train station and wait times)? Maybe your time isn't worth it. Mine is. Actually I know your time is worth it.

" loose market."

Hate typos: lose

@5 Renton, Redmond, you think Slog writers care about the difference? They’re both suburbs that start with “R,” amirite?? Throw a dart!

For those who think it’s more cost-effective to take Uber or a taxi, you should check out the Extra Car lot. Fast service to the airport, and you can park for a week for the price of a round-trip Uber/cab, which means you can go exactly when you want and run errands/get groceries on your way home.

Awwwwww, shit! Wait---Sea Tac's parking lot---the second biggest in the world is already FULL? Well, there goes my brilliant idea to relocate the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in 2020 to Sea-Tac International Airport.
@8 DOUG: Unless you live in Burien, what do you think about my above-mentioned idea?

Don’t take the trail shuttle. The trails are full.

If that doesn’t persuade you, how about this: put your climate change money where your mouth is and stay in the city. Do cross-fit. Don’t buy a metric ton of polyester (read: petroleum-based clothes) just to “get back to nature.” You’ll hike four or five times and then throw those clothes away, like a true eco-warrior.

So Nathalie doesn't even read Slog PM after she posts to see what the comments are like, or what glaring corrections she should fix. Good grief, the staffers could fix these from their phones and not even go into the office. She could have switched 'Renton' to 'Redmond' before the waiter comes back with the drinks.

2 I said it every year until they finally dumped Robinson Cano's sorry ass: Dump Robinson Cano's Sorry Ass. The guy was a blackhole. Huge salary and huge talent which he used just enough to shame his teammates about their lesser skills. Just watching him in the throw around between innings, he couldnt be bothered to pick up a grounder, just let it roll on by. He was the ultimate selfish dude in a team sport. Lose 1 guy and you suddenly have a good squad.

16 Fools.
They shouldda Listened to you!
Earlier!

@16
It's also called addition by subtraction.
The Mariners are averaging over 2 home runs per game-
and almost as many fielding errors.

From the parking problem article: "...Martin and her two children barely made it inside to welcome their father home from a trip to Holland."

So they could have just done a curbside pickup, but they had to spend time looking for a parking spot for that more "romantic" airport welcome.

How many other spots are filled by people who don't actually need to be parking there?

@14 Polyester could be one of the feel good story of recycling plastics if it became industry wide to make all sorts of outdoor garments as shown by Patagonia since 1993:
https://www.patagonia.com/recycled-polyester.html

As to your greater point regarding outdoor recreation, it seems that public transportation to popular trails is a step in the right direction. I am not for having masses of people trampling little flowers everywhere but do we need people to embrace nature to care about it?

@14/20- It's more like how great it feels to be out of the city than anything else.

@20

Much better to reduce than to recycle, I think. The point is that you don't need to put on a shirt with more exciting colors and patterns on it before you can go for a long walk. You can just wear the shirts you already have.

Encouraging people to take long walks starting at their own front doors would be a a step toward responsible recreation; by comparison publicly funding fossil-fuel-burning bulk transport of people who want to take long walks seems pretty regressive.

And yes, one thing we've been really bad at to date is reducing the impact of people who "love nature" so much that they won't leave it alone.

A half-century ago, conservationists thought that people would be more inclined to preserve undeveloped lands if they went out and saw them, so we had nationwide campaigns promoting wilderness recreation. Maybe the old conservationists were right about that, or maybe they were reading just a little too much of the kind of writing that romanticizes "wild places," but they succeeded beyond all expectations, to the point where today a visit to a national park is as crowded as a visit to Disneyland, and some "nature-loving" city-dwellers are putting a thousand miles a month on their four-wheel-drive station wagons to get out "to the woods" every single weekend.

@22 I agree that recycling by itself isn't the solution but even after drastic reduction there will probably be some use for plastic. Sure, you could wear wool but polyester, nylon etc are far superior for some outdoor use. I still use 40 year old outdoor gear albeit not with the same frequency.

Whatever the reasons people invoke to go into nature, having a large population implies more people going out of the city so it is preferable to concentrate use in a few places (like parts of national park) and having the rest remain mostly untouched. I am clearly not for building large infrastructure for fossil fuel supported outdoor pursuit but other use is fine if not desirable when managed adequately (and clearly not regressive)

@19 I've been really perplexed as to why Sea-tac fills more parking than any other airport. Are these grand, family pickups "a thing" there more than anywhere else?

@24: You always give me the munchies.

DOLPHINS: They also speak in SENTENCES...

https://www.stuff.co.nz/science/84188424/dolphins-speak-in-sentences-research-suggests

Why is the parking thing news instead of the % of people boarding planes that bought a carbon offset? Wouldn't it be far greener to stay home for spring break?