Mass transit may end up as biggest winner in Seattle's viaduct vote
OLYMPIA -- Transit supporters will likely be the big winners in the wake of Seattle voters' "thumbs down" to an elevated structure and a waterfront tunnel as options to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
Seattle's verdict Tuesday may not be enough to prevent the state from going ahead with the elevated replacement -- deemed by the state as the only viable option for a must-do project -- nor will it be the seal of approval for a proposal to tear down the viaduct and replace it with surface streets and expanded transit.
But under every scenario for the state's post-election action plan, Seattle will get a big infusion of new transit options. That's more buses to mitigate standstill traffic during construction or to be used as a permanent alternative if the city successfully blocks the elevated viaduct.
"You can't take on any of these mega roads projects without a significant investment in transit," said state Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle. "The vote tonight points out that we can no longer plan roads without transit."
Murray opposes Gov. Chris Gregoire's plan to proceed with construction of a new, $2.8 billion elevated viaduct. He said the vote should be seen as a mandate to reconsider.
"Tonight's vote points to the need to start planning a multimodal corridor instead of just building 'a road,' " he said.
Jessyn Farrell, executive director of Transportation Choices Coalition, a pro-transit group, said there's a silver lining to the vote. "This really is an opportunity for all sides to declare victory because, regardless of what we do, we need to start thinking about how we move people around differently," she said. "What's really important is that we now make a commitment to doing those transit investments really, really well because, if we do them well, we may discover that we don't need a highway on the waterfront."
Continue reading this article from the Seattle P-I:
Mass transit may end up as biggest winner
