State transportation planners have announced that revenue from tolling of the future tunnel under downtown Seattle is half what they forecast. I expect this is the first of many problems with this flawed project.
Spending billions of scarce dollars to let cars bypass a major downtown is a 21st century solution to a 1950s problem. Instead of facilitating sprawl we should be looking for ways to spend money more efficiently to strengthen the center city and move people and freight more effectively.
At what point will people decide to move away from Seattle rather than pay for this sort of thing?
During my council campaign last year I argued vocally against the downtown tunnel -- a principled stand that cost me the November election. A majority of the citizens who voted for the project in an August referendum did so, I believe, because they were exhausted by the issue and just wanted a solution, any solution. After that vote I predicted -- correctly -- that there's still lots of work to be done in order to make the project work.
All over the world cities are finding ways to innovate. Seattle has an opportunity to show how a smart city solves problems and meets the challenges of rising energy prices, congestion, a fraying sense of community and climate change. Instead we're mired in megaprojects like building this downtown bypass for cars (most freight won't use the tunnel and there are no downtown exits) and a wider 520 bridge.
I'm convinced that the best way to replace Seattle's rickety viaduct freeway is with a holistic approach that improves streets, adds transit and makes I-5 work better. There's plenty of evidence that this solution would work by better using existing capacity and providing new alternatives. Traffic on the 520 bridge is reportedly down 40 percent since tolling began in December and it hasn't all shifted to other routes. Imagine if we added transit to meet commuter demand. Across the region transit ridership on existing routes is growing as people adjust to it.
As a city we should be making it easier to move goods and easier for people to get around. We should be building a stronger urban environment with better zoning, a fantastic waterfront and all the other pieces that make the city greater.
Yes, we're building the tunnel. But the news that the project is as flawed as many of us thought should force us to face reality and avoid similar mistakes in the future.
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