Tacoma Tomorrow

Pierce Transit: Welcome back to 1980

2013-06-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

Monday evening, the Pierce Transit Board approved staff recommended cuts to bus service for implementation on September 29th.

The agency is slated to shrink from 418,000 annual bus service hours to 300,000 service hours, a 28% cut in total. The cuts will be most felt in the elimination of most weekend and midday bus service during the week. 300,000 service hours is near the agency's all time low of 261,000 service hours back in 1980.

Transit passengers should expect longer waits, more late buses, more crowded buses, and a substantial reduction in mobility - limiting access to education, employment, affordable housing, and medical care.

Pierce Transit's remaining ridership base is overwhelmingly low income, with most making less than $25,000/year. Many riders are high school and community college students, others are disabled or are senior citizens.

On the weekend, transit service will be all but nonexistent in the North End of Tacoma, with fewer than 30 trips total being operated on Routes 10 and 16 each day. For a full review of the service cuts, click the image below.

Sound Transit approves Hilltop Link

2013-05-24T14:05:00.004-07:00

Sound Transit's Rush Fisher Boardroom (5/23/2013)
Photo by Chris K.

Yesterday, the Sound Transit Board unanimously approved the selection of the E1 (North Downtown-Central) aka "Hilltop" corridor for an expansion of the Tacoma Link system. Light rail was selected as the mode over Bus Rapid Transit, because it better served the project goals of stimulating economic development and improving mobility and transportation access.

Unlike at the Tacoma City Council, where the light rail extension was contentious and ended in an 8-1 decision, the Sound Transit Board had very little to say about the extension itself before their unanimous vote. In the final anticlimactic moments before final approval, Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland indicated her hopes for revitalizing the historic shopping district couched between two regional medical facilities. Sound Transit Board Chair Pat McCarthy contrasted this extension process with the contentious and time-consuming process that Sound Transit and the City of Bellevue underwent to come to agreement on East Link. On that note, Mayor Strickland said, "Neighborhoods were clamoring for more transit." Both Pat and Marilyn thanked Sound Transit staff for their assistance and analysis.

Public Comment

Several members of the public addressing the Board indicated their support for an E1 alternative. Downtown On The Go's Kristina Walker cited the E1's feature of linking Downtown Tacoma with the Stadium District - which is the densest residential neighborhood in Pierce County.

Kevin Grossman, president of the Hilltop Development Association also added his words of support, "This is a dense and active area with a lot of underdeveloped land."

Robert Scheuerman, who I served with on the City of Tacoma's Streetcar Feasibility Study Committee in 2006 and 2007 spoke in favor of E1, while also calling attention to the need to find the additional $50m local match. "If we wait for the tooth fairy, we will be waiting a long time."

I also got up and spoke about how E1 is a justifiable corridor, although its geometry would benefit fewer current Tacomans and have less impact on travel time than a B1 corridor. In the end I told the Board something like, "There is no such thing as a perfect alternative, but this is a pretty good one that I can support."

Next Steps

With alternatives analysis now finally over, there may be a few of you who are curious about what the project schedule looks like. I was able to dig up the current draft schedule from some of Sound Transit's documents. The diagram below shows environmental review lasting into mid-2014, final design occurring after that, lasting about two years into mid-2016, and then construction and transition to service occurring sometime in 2020.

In the immediate future: over the course of the summer, the Tacoma Link Expansion team will be developing the next phase of the project, a draft of alignment and station locations in the corridor. The environmental review process will sort of flow from that and begin in the Fall of 2013.

Apply for the Tacoma Transportation Commission

2013-05-15T15:32:00.002-07:00

Do you think that you have what it takes to help plan Tacoma's transportation future? If so, Tacoma needs you to apply for the Transportation Commission.

The newly formed Transportation Commission will advise the City Council on transportation-related matters, including bike, pedestrian and mass transit-related planning initiatives, as well as other issues - like parking and ADA issues.

This new transportation commission will probably be integral to development of the comprehensive transportation plan in the coming months and will help to guide what priorities get called out for Tacoma in Sound Transit 3 and enhanced Pierce Transit bus service in the city.

Because of the critical nature of the commission, I am encouraging readers to suggest multiple individuals for appointment in the comments.

I will probably be seeking a seat on the commission, but I am open to working with others in Tacoma's sustainable transportation sphere to ensure that bike/ped/transit gets a strong majority on the commission.

From the City of Tacoma:

...

The commission will consist of 11 members - nine voting members appointed by the City Council who are City residents, with representatives from each of the City’s five Council Districts, who bring a range of perspectives and expertise that focus on the City’s long-term vision for mobility options throughout the City, and two non-voting members appointed by the City Manager.

It is recommended that the members appointed reflect the following categories of special interest/discipline: professional engineering sector, construction/private business sector, bike and pedestrian/mass transit sector, planning/urban growth sector, environmental/sustainability sector, general community and ADA community.

Regularly scheduled meeting dates and times have not yet been established for this commission.

Applications must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office by Friday, June 21, 2013. To apply, please visit cityoftacoma.org/cbcapplication or contact April Larsen at (253) 591-5167, City Clerk’s Office, Room 220, Municipal Building, 747 Market St., Tacoma, WA 98402.

Confronting Councilmember Boe's C1 Claims

2013-05-06T17:27:00.002-07:00

Tacoma Link at Commerce St. Station (Photo by Chris K.)

I hope that this is the last time I speak of Councilmember Boe's arguments against E-1. I find most of them shaky at best and dead wrong in many cases. You might be asking the question, "Why do I need to address his arguments even though a decision has already been made?" My response is, because it's important to speak truth to power and it's important for Tacomans to not have any lingering doubts in their minds about the decision that was made.

I want no one, several years from now, to go "if only we had chosen to build a hybrid route to the East Side." When someone says something like that in the future, please refer to this post so that others can remember, "Oh that's why we didn't do that."

I liken this post to Ben Schiendelman's 2008 critique of the never-built Green Line monorail in Seattle.

Each of Councilmember Boe's comments are in bold and italicized. They were initially covered on Exit133.

E1 is not part of a long-term plan

Sound Transit's Long Range Plan
Includes Tacoma Link expansion to
Tacoma Community College

There was city-wide light rail feasibility planning conducted by the City of Tacoma in 2006-2007. The study looked at technologies, grades, zoning, and costs. The results of the study indicated three primary alignments that made sense as part of an initial expansion of streetcar/light rail: 6^th Avenue via Stadium Way, Martin Luther King from Division and MLK and Portland Avenue via Puyallup Avenue.

After the study was concluded, several neighborhood councils fought to have an $80m Tacoma Link light rail capital contribution included in Sound Transit 2 in 2008. It was anticipated that the extension would be along Stadium Way to Tacoma General, with some level of extension afterwards.

A light rail connection along Stadium Way to Tacoma General is included in Transportation 2040 (as project 5459), the regional long range transportation planning document, as well as in Sound Transit's 2005 long range plan. The Division Avenue to 19th segment along MLK Way was not programmed in, and thus is not exactly a regional project, but the only other corridor that was was B1 (PSRC project 4075) and seven of nine Councilmembers didn't even mention that that corridor existed in this process. Funny that.

Anyways, since that time there hasn't been any actual planning done by the City because we handed off the study process to Sound Transit essentially in mid-2010. David Boe has been sitting on the Tacoma City Council since 2010. Where was the initiative by the Tacoma City Council before this time to engage the public with a long term transit planning process? It's not like this is anything new. Tacoma Link has been in operation since 2003. We have been doing studies for how to expand it since 2004. This argument that there has been no long range planning done has the caliber of some arguments that I have heard come out of Congress.

Light Rail design is a heavy transportation option – the system we have is for going fast on flat ground

Trolleybuses are used in Seattle and San Francisco
for steep grades that streetcars can't handle

There used to be 125 miles of streetcar lines in Tacoma. The pre-1938 streetcar system carried 30 million passengers a year, compared to 10 million served by Pierce Transit today and 15 million at Pierce Transit's peak. Historically, we adapted to the city's topography using a combination of different technologies. For traversing the city's steep slopes we used a cable car loop, that I have been describing in blog entries and emails to public officials since I learned about it close to seven years ago. Streetcars operated on relatively level grades and were integrated by the east-west cable car loop. The analagous modern transit technology for dealing with steep inclines in excess of 8.5% nowadays is the electric trolleybus, currently in use in Seattle and San Francisco.

You can’t go directly south from Hilltop – the E1 route cuts off half the city – we’re painting ourselves into a corner for long-term planning

E1 opens up B1, retains C1 and G1, and enables Tacoma Ave.

Where exactly are we painting ourselves into a corner in this? By expanding double-track to Division Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way, we are then capable of expanding westward to TCC via 6^th Avenue, or we could spur again down Tacoma Avenue from the Stadium District, or if we double-tracked all the way to 19^th St., we could create a bridge across the valley to the Lincoln District and beyond. It's not like Portland Avenue is going anywhere. We still need to address single track sections on Pacific Ave and S. 25^th before proceeding with any kind of streetcar buildout on the East Side of Tacoma. If we don't, then we will make it difficult to maintain service frequency because of bidirectional train conflicts.

At least going to the lower Portland Avenue center builds towards a long-term plan – the best option from a planning standpoint

Expansion to Portland Avenue is not the best option from a planning standpoint. The Eastside has a steep slope to its west side, which makes system expansion (west) to the rest of South Tacoma technically infeasible aside from S. 38th St. How is painting further expansion into a non-expandable corner the best long term plan? There are several one-mile extensions of rail that make sense from a ridership and development perspective off of E-1.

The goal of Sound Transit is to be regional player in transportation – MLK and Stadium are both located in downtown Tacoma – connecting the Eastside to downtown makes it more of a regional connection

That doesn't make any sense at all. Arguably the most “regional” connection was to extend Tacoma Link to Fife where we would run light rail through swaths of vacant land and industrial area, which in Councilmember Boe's mind would be ripe for transit oriented development with the right zoning.

MLK and Stadium are neighborhood mixed-use centers – an Eastside expansion could get you to a community mixed-use center – there will be pressure will be to upzone neighborhoods around the Link, where as the Lower Portland area is already a community mixed use center, with better ability to accommodate big buildings

There may be pressure to upzone Stadium and MLK and any areas that get rail. This much is probably true. The CCX zoning that Boe refers to here does have higher height levels, but only a difference of twenty feet. During the environmental analysis, if we determine that an additional height bonus is better, we could implement station area zoning for transit oriented development that could exceed existing heights for zoning. This is a reasonable change, given appropriate processes.

The Urban Land Institute said don’t get tied into the north/south corridor, but instead focus on east/west connections and getting up the hill from downtown

The ULI is right in this case. E-1 isn't the best way to scale the hill to connect the Downtown core. A better method would be to use high frequency buses with electric motors, but that doesn't invalidate the ability of the project to stimulate development along the MLK corridor.

There is no real development benefit to going up Stadium Way, other than getting up the hill to Stadium

You don't get development from rail in the absence of stations. You just don't. Ride Central Link in Seattle and take a look at what single story development and off-street parking lots still exist between the long distance between stations on their light rail line.

Getting to Stadium is of prime importance. It is the densest area in the County, if not the State, outside of the City of Seattle. Stadium is zoned for dense, mixed use development, and has several opportunities for infill, which will make the neighborhood contiguously urban and more livable and attractive.

C1 gives the potential to look at feeding in block by block for potential development

Are there any developers assembled, besides the Tribe? The proximity of this land to the noise and nuisance of the freeway doesn't make it the most desirable. The presence of one rail station connecting Tacoma Dome Station to Lower Portland Ave may not be enough of an economic boost.

Only one entity has come forward towards partnering on funding, and that’s for the C1 option – the project will require such a partnership, and here we actually have an interested party

Both the B1 and E1 options have a significant capability to raise funds via LID for their last-mile segment of the rail extension. B1 and E1 both have taxable property value in the range of $600m in an area ¼ mile along their mutual corridors beyond Division and MLK. The Tribe is offering $12m, when the needed local match will be undoubtedly higher.

E1 doesn’t relieve, but instead creates congestion – rail where freeway entrance ramps come into the city will create congestion

There is no station programmed or even considered along Stadium Way. With 12 minute headways, streetcars would travel along the corridor every six minutes. If the signal timing is synchronized, there won't be any impact as streetcars will travel with the existing lane of traffic. This is one of Boe's poorer arguments.

The original Link wasn’t laid out as a system, it was put in as a shuttle – we’re expanding off of a poor decision from a long-term standpoint – going to only E1 adds another poor decision on top of that

The original Link was a starter line. It was meant to get us ready for an extension up Stadium Way. That the City designed the monster that is Tollefson Plaza or didn't adequately vet where the stations were placed doesn't really have anything to do with how the route was configured for expansion. Additionally it has little relevance to how we're going to be connecting Downtown Tacoma and Tacoma Dome Station to other parts of the City. This argument is sounds a lot like sour grapes, to me.

C1 doubles capacity for people arriving at events at the Tacoma Dome and Convention Center – we need to look at ways to leverage investments in transportation to help these City assets, including connections to hotel rooms

How does David Boe justify that we are “doubling capacity” for people arriving at events at Tacoma Dome and the Convention Center? An additional direction of travel would be supported to Tacoma Dome during special events, but does that additional direction have sufficient nominal demand to support service over the remainder of its period of operation during the day? How much hotel space does Councilmember Boe think is viable in the Lower Portland Avenue Mixed Use Center that would be accessible from the single station on E 29th St.?

By expanding Link to Stadium and MLK, the areas with the greatest existing and future residential and commercial density, we have the ability to expand access to those events to local residents. There is still plenty of vacant land for hotels in Downtown Tacoma or on many potential sites along light rail on an E-1 corridor.

C1 has ability to take the development pressure. This will create gentrification. Rents will go up. Some businesses will have difficulty staying where they’re at.

Wherever rail goes, there will be some level of displacement. It isn't like that isn't going to happen to residents on Portland Avenue, either. However, development will not occur without sufficient ridership and residential and commercial demand. Ridership levels on C1 aren't as high as they are projected to be on E1 or B1.

We need to have a vision that says Tacoma can see development like Portland’s Pearl District – C1 has that potential.

The Pearl District had brick warehouses that were easily rehabilitated and converted into mixed use buildings. Portland Avenue does not have that kind of building stock that makes it easy to flip such buildings. Instead, new construction has to stand on its own, which will mean excessive amounts of parking so that banks will finance the projects, as well as a focus on market-rate tenants, which will have to charge high prices for goods and services. The Pearl District and gentrification are practically synonymous.

Tacoma Transportation Commission on Agenda

2013-05-06T13:02:00.001-07:00

Councilmember Ryan Mello (District 8, At-Large)

Tacoma City Councilmember Ryan Mello is sponsoring a resolution for the creation of a city Transportation Commission.

The purpose of the commission would be to advise the City Council on transportation-related matters such as short-term and long-range transportation planning; compliance with local, regional, and federal transportation regulations; bike, pedestrian, and mass transit-related planning initiatives; and parking and capital improvement plans.

The Commission will consist of 11 members from all five City Council Districts. Nine of the eleven will be appointed by the City Council, and will bring a range of perspectives and expertise that focus on the City's long-term vision for mobility options. The remaining two representatives will be appointed by the City Manager.

Additionally, it appears from the language in the resolution that the existing Parking Management Advisory Task Force and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Action Committee are proposed to be somewhat merged as Technical Advisory Groups or TAGs to provide input to the overall Transportation Commission.

This is pretty exciting news. It's a good first step towards a comprehensive transportation master plan that includes transit as a much stronger component than in the past. If this passes, the next step will be to determine a slate of individuals who are competent, knowledgeable about a particular field of transportation, and are capable of thinking long term about the City's needs.

The resolution is on the Tuesday Council agenda as Resolution 38669.

Who wants to serve on the City's Transportation Commission?

Single Track & TIGER grant for Hilltop Streetcar?

2013-05-01T10:44:00.000-07:00

Streetcar Route Map 2009
Tacoma TIGER Grant Application

Lewis Kamb at the News Tribune did a fine job of live tweeting (@lewiskamb) and reporting from the TNT on Council's 8-1 decision to stay with Martin Luther King Jr. Way as a corridor for light rail expansion in Tacoma.

Was there a little drama yesterday? Yes.
But it didn't change the core dynamic that a majority of Councilmembers were confirmed to support MLK yesterday --- and further, that E-1 has been the plan all along since at least 2009.

An amendment to the resolution for the H-2 hybrid failed on a 5-4 vote, with Boe, Campbell, Woodards, and Lonergan in support.

Anders Ibsen and Ryan Mello both indicated that they could not support the amendment, citing the need to keep the project cost competitive. The Mayor talked about how light rail on Hilltop will help to change the perception of the neighborhood and connect the hospitals.

Looking at Single Track on MLK

While most of the Council was enthusiastic in their support for MLK, the project still needs another ~$30m to be fully funded as a double-track extension, thanks to Sound Transit's cut to the Tacoma Link budget.

A Local Improvement District for the Martin Luther King / Hilltop neighborhood has been talked about, but never at that level of scale.

As we move into environmental review and conceptual design, it's worth looking into building the Martin Luther King segment south of Division Avenue as single track with passing lanes. A 2009 streetcar engineering study completed by Parametrix and paid for by the City of Tacoma indicated significant cost savings in the realm of $14m for a single track alignment on MLK versus double track.

Making such a design consideration would save the Hilltop neighborhood half of its potential contribution to the project.

DOT TIGER Grant Application

In 2009, City Manager Eric Anderson and his staff submitted an application for a $38m TIGER grant to the Federal Department of Transportation for the Stadium Way segment of track. Applications for the newest round of Tiger Grants are due on June 3rd, so we would have to move at lightning fast speeds to get them in on time. Now that Alternatives Analysis is more or less complete and a preferred alternative is all-but secured, it would be an opportune time to resubmit our application for a grant.

TONIGHT: Council to rule on Hilltop Light Rail

2013-04-30T08:30:00.000-07:00

Tonight the Tacoma City Council will consider Resolution 38664, which endorses the Downtown-Stadium District-Hilltop extension of Tacoma Link. As of this writing, six of nine Councilmembers, including Mayor Strickland, are in favor of this alternative, to varying degrees.

If you want to comment in-person before the votes are cast, arrive before 5pm today at City Hall (747 Market St) to sign in. Council Chambers are on the first floor.

Several citizens have filed petitions for various alternatives. The petitions total 45 pages, representing support from the Stadium District, Community Healthcare, the Hilltop Action Coalition, and the Eastside. Varying levels of justification are included in the petitions... see for yourself.

Dueling Light Rail Petitions: Eastside vs. Hilltop

Tacoma's East Side Light Rail Petition and Project Justification

Hilltop Action Coalition's Light Rail Petition and Project Justification

The full text:

TACOMA CITY COUNCIL

REGULAR AGENDA

APRIL 30, 2013

RESOLUTION 38664

"A RESOLUTION relating to Sound Transit's Link Light Rail; expressing support for the North Downtown Central (E1) corridor as the preferred alternative for the Tacoma Link Light Rail system expansion project, which will be a significant and important investment in Tacoma and an important addition to the regional transit system."

WHEREAS, in August 2012, Sound Transit initiated a study to identify preferred alternatives for expanding the Tacoma Link Light Rail ("Rail"), and

WHEREAS Sound Transit reviewed each of the alternatives, received and incorporated community input on each proposal, and provided comment opportunities until the conclusion of the study, and

WHEREAS, on January 22,2013, Sound Transit briefed the City Council on the study and identified alternatives for expanding the Rail, and

WHEREAS, on February 26, 2013, Sound Transit presented additional information on the initial screening of six alternatives and an evaluation summary with benefits and disadvantages for three of the proposed corridors, and

WHEREAS, on March 19, 2013, the City Council had further discussion on the three corridors evaluated by Sound Transit, as well as the possibility of a "hybrid" corridor which would include the best connection points of the North End Central (B1), Eastside (C1), and North Downtown Central (E1) corridors, and

WHEREAS, on March 21,2013, the City Manager requested that Sound Transit include an examination of the new hybrid corridor ("H1") as part of its analysis, and

WHEREAS, at the Study Session of April 16, 2013, Sound Transit provided evaluation results for the H1 corridor option and shared information on a second hybrid option ("H2") that was discussed by the Stakeholder Roundtable, and

WHEREAS, on April 23, 2013, the City Council continued its examination and discussion of several of the alternatives, focusing on the North Downtown Central (E1) and Eastside (C1) alternatives, and

WHEREAS the City Council has determined that the North Downtown Central (E1) corridor, which will reach the highest households and jobs density per acre, is the preferred alternative for the Rail system expansion project; Now, Therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TACOMA:

That the City Council hereby expresses its support for the North Downtown Central (E1) corridor as the preferred alternative for the Tacoma Link Light Rail system expansion project, which will be a significant and important investment in Tacoma and an important addition to the regional transit system.

6th Avenue anything but "Built out"

2013-04-26T08:30:00.000-07:00

The Marc, a 6 story mixed use building that was permitted for 6th Avenue and Alder St.

To those Councilmembers who say that 6th Avenue is "built-out," NCX zoning on Lower 6th Avenue will allow construction of buildings up to 65 feet in height. 6th Avenue, within the 6th and Pine Mixed Use Center is designated as a "core pedestrian street" and is eligible for height bonuses above the standard 45 foot limit, given certain investments in public amenities such as outdoor seating or sustainable construction practices.

I took a couple of photos yesterday that illustrate where that 65 foot limit is nowhere close to being met. These properties would all be along the not-chosen B1 streetcar corridor. And many of the properties have the potential to be stops along a 6th Avenue streetcar line and would be capable of being redeveloped into mixed use developments like The Marc - a proposed 6 story mixed use building that couldn't get financing a couple years back. Several ideas for stations along 6th Avenue have been thrown out as suggestions include: Sprague Ave, Pine St., Alder St. and Union Ave. Keep that in mind as you scroll through the photos.

I will be referring to this post in the future as we continue to push for a 6th Avenue streetcar as a sensible and logical 'Phase 2' expansion of Tacoma Link.

Sonia's Tacos @ 6th and Fife St.

Xtracare Dental @ 6th and Oakes St.

Tapco Credit Union @ 6th and Anderson St.

Taco Bell @ 6th and Pine St.

O'Reilly Auto Parts @ 6th and Pine St.

7-11 @ 6th and Alder St.

Defunct Overtime Bar and Grill @ 6th and Alder St.

Ace Check Cashing @ 6th and Alder St.

Bartell Drugs @ 6th and Union Avenue

Time to Come Together around Hilltop

2013-04-24T08:30:00.000-07:00

While it wasn't my first choice for the first extension of Tacoma Link, it was my second choice. The decision that seems to be gelling with the Tacoma City Council to expand to Hilltop via the Stadium District has six votes to proceed as the recommended alternative to the Sound Transit Board.

This is a good decision based on sound long-term ridership projections, an assumption of long-term dense, mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented real estate development, and a 'bet' on the medical industry's ability to provide family-wage local jobs to underserved communities. An added bonus is that B1 and E1 share about 2/3 of the same track, so we'll be that much closer to realizing that alignment.

ST3 is only three years away (2016), and that will be an opportunity to get us to Tacoma Community College via 6th Avenue, which is what Tacoma Streetcar and the Streetcar Feasibility Committee thought would be a really good option in the event of sufficient funds. We have the opportunity here to gain allies and to secure a future where a 6th Avenue extension of light rail is only a mile of track away.

With the E1 decision in the air between now and when the formal vote will be tallied next Tuesday on April 30th, I believe that it is time for B1 supporters to come together and to fall in line, in solidarity, with E1 supporters.

If you are a B1 supporter, I encourage you to write a message to the six E1 coalition members to indicate your support for the decision.

Here are their email addresses:

Mayor Marilyn Strickland - Marilyn.Strickland@cityoftacoma.org
Anders Ibsen - anders.ibsen@cityoftacoma.org
Ryan Mello - ryan.mello@cityoftacoma.org
Lauren Walker - lauren.walker@cityoftacoma.org
Victoria Woodards - victoria.woodards@cityoftacoma.org
Robert Thoms - robert.thoms@cityoftacoma.org

Streetcars as Historic Restoration

2013-04-22T08:22:00.000-07:00

Historic 'K' St at S. 15th, Now Martin Luther King Jr. Way

For the last couple of weeks I have been trying to get various organizations throughout Tacoma to speak up and to send letters to the Tacoma City Council and the Sound Transit Board regarding Link.

I don't care what routes they support. As with my Facebook Badge post, I just want people to make some statement, any statement, outlining how they see the issue in terms of benefits and impacts. Getting that information to decision makers is critical and allowing staff to address potential impacts in environmental review and engineering is in the entire city's best interest.

One area where I have found some success in this endeavor has been in getting organizations to address what Sound Transit, up until now, has said are "disadvantages" of the various alternatives.

One key disadvantage that Sound Transit has identified has been "potential impact to historic resources" for B1/E1. I kind of roll my eyes at this impact because historic neighborhoods were developed because of the transportation access created by streetcars.

Yesterday I got an email from the North Slope Historic District, that turned that "concern" upside down by calling out streetcar service as a kind of historic restoration that would be welcome addition and benefit to the neighborhood. North Slope Historic District Co-Chair Deborah Cade wrote,

"We are delighted that two of the proposed extension options, B1 and E1, recreate portions of these historic streetcar routes."

The Tacoma MetroParks Board is expected to make a similar statement regarding park impacts, but as of this writing, I do not have that letter. One parks board member indicated to me that light rail would mean 'the more the merrier' to parks in Tacoma.

Lower 6th Ave at Fife St.

Some Organizations Still Silent

Unfortunately, the 6th Avenue Business District and the North End Neighborhood Council haven't issued any statements of support or a list of concerns for any corridors. I find that especially puzzling because the North End established as a neighborhood goal "building a streetcar line in the North End" back in 2011 and 6th Avenue has been studied as a Tacoma Link extension corridor since at least 2005.

Leaders within organizations that have not yet provided input on Tacoma Link have little, if any, time left to do so now.

Tacoma Link and Transit Mathematics

2013-04-18T10:41:00.001-07:00

Tacoma Dome, just south of Tacoma Dome Station

To really "get" transit, you've got to understand a couple of key mathematical relationships. One that I stumbled on in college at UW Tacoma, was the relationship between the number of unique transit trips a passenger can take on a line versus the number of actual stations along the route. The relationship is t = n*(n-1)/2, where n is the number of stations on the line and t is the number of trips. This roughly simplifies, at large numbers, to (n^2)/2 - a power function, not a linear relationship.

What does this mean to us as we embark on expansion of Tacoma Link? It means that our transit world via light rail in Tacoma is about to get a whole lot bigger. Initially Tacoma Link opened for service with only five stations: Tacoma Dome, S. 25th, Union Station, Convention Center, and Theater District. With five different stations, it was possible to make 10 distinct point-to-point trips, with passengers boarding and deboarding at each stop.

Fig. 1- How mobility and accessibility grow with transit expansion

When the additional Commerce St. Station was added in 2011, vehicle headways went up from every 10 to every 12 minutes, but ridership still continued to climb. Several factors contributed to this change - the move to paid parking, being one of them, the increased access to more businesses being another. I hypothesize that increased utility of the streetcar line may be partially a result of an increased number of possible trips now available. The last scenario in the figure above demonstrates that the number of possible trips on Tacoma Link after 2011 jumped from 10 to 15, when we moved from 5 to 6 stations - a 50% increase.

Fig 2. - 55 Possible trips would be along this conceptual B1 alignment.
Striking resemblance to a local landmark.

Assuming full buildout of Tacoma Link on a B1 corridor, for instance, would grow the number of possible trips along the line from 15 today to 55, over a 350% increase. This assumes the introduction of five new stations at the Stadium District, Tacoma General Hospital, 6th and Sprague, 6th and Pine and 6th and Union. It would be possible to not only make trips along the entire route from 6th and Union to Tacoma Dome, but it would also make connections easy between UW Tacoma and Stadium High School, the Financial District and 6th Avenue mixed use center, and UPS and the Theater District.

It is this nonlinear relationship of additional possible trips that some people do not understand. We are not simply connecting two points with this light rail extension, we are connecting all points along the route where there are or will be stations. Each new station that we add should be a station that will provide ridership to many other points on the line, not just one or a few of them.

Update:

Due to popular demand, I added in some more detail to the corridor map and yielded one for the MLK (E1) Corridor as well. If you have suggestions for what else might be done with a diagram like this, let me know in the comments.

"We are showing all our cards next week," says Mayor

2013-04-16T15:32:00.000-07:00

Sound Transit walked David Boe through the challenge of going East-West in DT Tacoma

At the Council study session today, Val Batey and co gave a presentation on the hybrid corridors.

David Boe, Marty Campbell and Joe Lonergan, had a number of questions. David Boe constantly beat the drum against the B1 corridor, calling the 6th Avenue Mixed Use Center a built out "little box," with no redevelopment capability. Marty Campbell stopped Val in her tracks when she couldn't characterize why ridership projections on H2 were lower than projections of E1 even though H2 is a combination of E1 and C1. And Joe Lonergan wanted to look at overall average trip time savings when compared with current bus service levels. Sound Transit's response to that question was that you have to look at trip time, because that's a constant, whereas service levels, which dictate frequency have been in flux since 2007.

These three I will characterize as malcontents in this process, because they have their individual routes that they want and they're pretty much saying "to hell" with the public process, public comment, and Sound Transit analysis on what makes the most sense. They consistently tried to play a game of "GOTCHA" with Sound Transit because they don't like the direction of where the analysis was pointing. I don't see this group of three as having a huge background in transit planning and I've rarely seen them involved in the public process talking to open house attendees.

Marilyn Strickland played the role of ensuring that everyone got heard, and tried to talk about a process for building out a larger, citywide system to calm those who are not going to get what they want out of this first extension. She called for Councilmembers to talk about their own inclinations at this meeting, but was rebuffed by Boe and Walker. She made a number of comments about needing to construct a spine of a system that could be later built out, building on ideas from David Boe.

Ryan Mello had a few words at the end of the presentation when Mayor Strickland was calling for Council to plant flags on where they stand. He encouraged his fellow councilmembers to review the BOOK of public comment that has been received by Sound Transit on the extension and to reiterate the need for a transportation master plan to help inform Sound Transit 3 and future extensions.

Val Batey talked about where we are in the process and brought up the idea of moving forward with an "Environmental Analysis" as opposed to an "Environmental Impact Statement." She said that the new process would potentially take less time and put us in the queue for federal funds more quickly, but it would more or less require that a single route be chosen to move forward.

...yeah. I made eye contact with a couple of people around the room when that was said.

The Mayor then wrapped up the conversation by saying, "We are showing all our cards next week."

We shall see.

Get your own Tacoma Link Facebook/Twitter Badge

2013-04-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

I haven't seen very much online organizing for the Tacoma Link corridors, so I thought I'd put together a couple of Facebook/Twitter badges using Inkscape, to see if that might stimulate more activity in the final weeks before a route gets chosen.

My inspiration was drawn from Matt Newport's creative use of a cardboard light rail model to display his support for a Stadium-6th Avenue corridor on Twitter.

Feel free to download, share and repost these. I would love any feedback or suggestions on them, but be kind. Also, be happy that I went a bit further than using MS Paint.

Anyways, enjoy!

Facebook and Twitter Badges

Download PNG

April 11th Tacoma Link Recap with Hybrid Streetcar Maps

2013-04-12T08:30:00.000-07:00

Talking to blog reader and Tacoma Link Open House attendee Andrew Strobel
April 11, 2013
(photo by Matt Newport)

I came to the Tacoma Link open house. I saw the Hybrids. I spoke with the engineers about next steps. I took pictures of public comment and spent a little time transcribing them below. I left at around 6:30pm so I got most of what people wrote. If you missed the open house, check out the Tacoma Link Document Archive to see the same posters that we saw yesterday. The first panel image I'll share is one that shows how steep the grades are in South Downtown. It really illustrates what a challenge it is to go east-west using streetcar and why we never did it with the historic streetcar system.

When I asked an engineer about the next phase, the EIS process, he indicated that Sound Transit likes to have two corridors be the "locally preferred alternative" and then uses the next phase to evaluate the corridors in depth.

Anyways, if you have any questions about what happened, post them in the comments. I'll try to answer them if i can. Enjoy!

Grade issues plague H1.

H1 - Hybrid with South Connection to MLK (David Boe's Hybrid)

The engineering challenges of this approach seem insurmountable at reasonable cost. Plus, from what I hear, major alterations to 25th (the "trench") would have negative impacts on pedestrian and bicycle mobility in this key district for urban regeneration
I think this option should be explored looking at options to go from 25th ST to Jefferson and then to Center St. I also like the ideas of going out Portland Ave to 29th.
This would work too!
This plan adds service where there is already plenty of transit service. How does this promote econ development? The stretch along 25th st near Jefferson is crazy. That path will do nothing but worsen congestion that already chronically plagues the path between the I-5 juncture and hill from the UW. It's too steep and the distance between lights is too short for this to make sense. I can't believe we held up the process for these H1 and H2 plans.
This is stupid (H1). Just because Boe can draw lines on a napkin doesn't mean this makes any sense. Not doable from an engineering or cost standpoint. All he's doing is up progress. We've been working on this for 2 years. If he just discovered this project he's not qualified to be on the council. Kill H1 & get building on B1. Going to 29th and PDX is even more stupid. No one lives along the segment & few people work along it.
This is first creek (pointing to Lower Portland Ave)
Whoever came up with this falacy should be fired. Not only is it impossible to build. It duplicates parts of the existing system and only seems designed for the benefit of the Indians and their damn casino.
H2 is better! This doesn't reward stadium/division for being the highest density area in Tacoma!

H2 costs don't include double-track on Pacific or 25th.

H2 - Hybrid with North Connection to MLK (Stakeholders Hybrid)

This plan makes no sense. It's clearly designed to serve a few, narrow special interests, but not riders.
Waste of track. Walk times up the hill negate the MLK route, why not send the MLK section up to Division/6th? I want this to cover the most ground, not just make the downtown hill easier.
If the casino wants to pay for it let them. Otherwise toss this stupid and impractical ideas out the door and build on 6th Ave!!!
WHY would Sound Transit run rail at Portland Ave to freeway interchange? This area is already a mess with exiting traffic off I-5. With the Link, the delays would be horrendous waiting for it to pass through. How about going on Bay street under freeway? Less traffic back up in that area.
Build to terminus #1. Run separate train on Portland link and transfer at Freighthouse Square (work around 'single track' problem. If there must be a hybrid this still serve a majority of the populace. throw the casino a bone to get the $.
Ditto -- It would be great if they could bay for this too -- my 2nd choice as a taxpayer - non gambler. Maybe a terminus in the stadium district?
~~This would totally help~~
I am suspicious in general of the influence of casino interests on our transport planning process. I hope EQC folks are talking about subsidizing construction and offering access to park-and-ride spaces in their newly-announced parking garage.
go for it!
Awesome! Stadium/Division and MLK most deserving [illegible]!
This is a dumb plan. I can't believe we held up the process for this.
This or H1 would be handy, then expand to the hill
The idea of extending to 29th and PDX ave is stupid; a route with no people living along it & few people working on it. Where are the riders? People that go to the casino won't be riding Link. Kill H2.

6th Ave: Ridership and Right of Way

B1 - 6th Avenue

My preferred alt. It starts a trunk of service to a broader section of Tacoma.
Division would be a great street for dedicated center lane right of way. It's so wide. this is my preferred alignment.
I am concerned w/the congestion that this will cause on an already highly volume area. The hospitals $ ambulance & emergency accesses are important to maintain. School buses and hefty cost make me wonder if this is the best choice.
This is the best option to pull in a large residential network of commuters, shoppers, and in-town workers. Ridership will be high. We need this to succeed in order to secure funds for additional lines (such as C1/D4)
This is still the best alt. Nothing has changed since the idiot Boe started drawing lines on a napkin. Where was Boe for the last 2 years when the citizens of P.C. were analyzing alternatives & expressing their views
This is going to ruin the historic streets and will not fit in
The streets historic fabric used to have streetcar on it. Lower 6th avenue was a streetcar suburb originally and used to be the West End of the city.
BUILD ME NOW!!!
This is the most sensible option, serves old dense streetcar neighborhoods, that have solid residential and commercial development and offer the best chances for future expansion to the north and south.
Do this one. Historic District will be supportive.

Eastside: "When is our turn?"

C1 - Salishan via EQC

Proctor/Hilltop/6th Ave enough When is our turn? -Monica
This is under budget, but still better than the other routes
As a resident on Portland Ave I would strongly recommend this Tacoma Link, also my 473+ friends in the neighborhood along Portland Ave
This choice C1 would benefit so many in our community allowing for more "green" commuting and now with the new Emerald Queen Resort a whole new bunch of commuters. My family and I strongly recommend this choice
I would like to commend the proposition of this route. It seems very cost effective & likely to promote growth in business & ridership. I like that this plan does not impact the hospitals & that is creating a very innovative redevelopment in conjunction with the new casino. Kudos!
How dare you hold the lack of bike lanes against us. You build them, not us.
You're only partnership is really this route. There residual goes to grands based off of Salishan's attractive TOD stature. Light rail doesn't build itself. It requires partners, $$, and a cheap route to spur further development. Godspeed.
The zoning would support higher density if we had a real planning dept that did real master plans. The zoning issue is a failure of leadership in the city, not a shortcoming of the area. C1 is the best route that meets all criteria.
The east side is working hard to build our business district and help build downtown. We are ready! - Christian
Least distractive, least disruptive - Tony
This would help me on my commute to school. John G Swan Creek / 1st Creek Neighbors
C1 totally lacks the needed density to support a streetcar.

Hilltop: Development Development Development

E1 - Hilltop via Stadium

Don't care for the horse shoe shape. It would limit end to end ridership. No one will ride 19th and Pacific Ave to 19th and MLK. When they could walk up the hill
*This would really help in the revitalization of the Hilltop community!
I think that this is a beautiful route when considering foot traffic. Although it is pricey, I think that it is a reasonable route, though I am hesitant because of hospital traffic
This route would help facilitate the development of Hilltop as recommended by the Urban Land Institute.
My 1st choice as a taxpayer - also out of complete self interest.
Our district needs this.- Sonics guy
"Make it so!"
Yes! Prime for development, waiting for years for this
Make this happen
Wrong wrong wrong this will destroy the road for too long
Keep your eye on the ball. We want light rail to SEA, don't waste the funds running around Tacoma. Build what you said you were going to do. Then expand down here. This is the worst option.
When did public transportation become for the few! Hilltop Stadium have gotten enough money.

General comments

If EQC wants to write a check, I love the North Hybrid. Would be even better if we could be also have the 25th ST. connection as well. Grade being an issue is too bad =(.

WA Senate playing games with Amtrak/Sounder

2013-04-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

Tacoma's Trestle, slated for replacement, is under threat

The creaky, century old wooden trestle leading up to Tacoma's Freighthouse Square, which was planned to be replaced with a new concrete structure with double-track, is being threatened with defunding by the Senate Transportation Committee.

This project would allow additional commuter rail service to Seattle and intercity rail service to Portland and would further help migration of the City's Amtrak Station to Freighthouse Square.

Here's how the Seattle Transit Blog's Ben Schiendelman puts what's going down:

There are two troubling changes to Regional Mobility Grants, state grants for transit capital and operations.

The first is how it’s appropriated: in the past, it’s simply been competitive. If a project is more cost effective, it ranks higher on the list. This makes a lot of sense!

The Senate budget added an “agency cap” – any one agency can’t get more than 25% of total projects. This is effectively an attack on Sound Transit – it cut the $7 million grant to the Tacoma Trestle project. ...

If you have a Senator on the Transportation Committee, this would be a good time to tell them how this budget concerns you – and if you have a Rep on House Transportation, give them a thumbs up for not having done these things in their budget.

Locally, Mike Carrell (R) 28th District-Lakewood/Dupont and Nathan Schlicher (D) 26th District-Gig Harbor/Key Peninsula, serve on the Senate Transportation Committee. Tell them that Tacoma Trestle should be funded and Regional Mobility Grants should continue to be based on project merit, not artificially spread over more agencies. Also, let Mayor Strickland know that the City of Tacoma should exert pressure on the Senate on this issue.

Link Route on 6th Ave/MLK can help Downtown Development

2013-04-06T12:29:00.001-07:00

Broadway Ave - in Downtown Tacoma

What is behind Transit Oriented Development?

A lot of people noticed David Boe's contention in the Tacoma Weekly on Friday that 6th Avenue can't do transit oriented development because there isn't enough cheap vacant land, while at the same time rent rates on the corridor are 'half of what they would need to be to justify new construction.'

If we take his points at their face value, then what we need for transit oriented development is 1) cheap vacant large parcels of land that are easy to develop on, and 2) high rent rates surrounding this cheap land. To me this is puzzling. For this to make sense, the only reason why land should not develop in this situation (on its own) is an instance where conventional means of transport do not make it viable to develop without light rail. For this to be the case light rail must be the appropriate catalyst, providing a unique kind of competitive advantage to the vacant land.

The question then becomes, what is this unique advantage that light rail brings to the table that other modes cannot?

For the sake of the reader, I will make the claim that it is the concentration and steady stream of passengers without the need for storage of private vehicles, that is this unique advantage. In Tacoma's case, our streetcar system carries a million riders a year, 1/4th as many as Portland's, while we don't have a light rail network bringing 100,000 passengers in and out of the downtown core every weekday (like Portland does). As we've seen thus far in Tacoma, transit oriented development has been sparse and I make the additional claim that that is because ridership has not grown because it has been stunted by the lack of access to dense residential and mixed use neighborhoods that would find utility in a light rail connection to Downtown Tacoma. I have no definitive proof that this is the case, but it is an explanation that happens to fit the facts.

It's not light rail that's the catalyst, it's the ridership that it brings

High Ridership from B1 and E1 could help to stimulate demand for development in Downtown Tacoma.

Assuming that passenger demand is the key to encouraging transit oriented development, higher passenger demand might have a stimulating effect on demand for development in Downtown Tacoma, if not along the expansion corridor itself. The expansion corridors themselves do not have to be the only areas where development occurs for the project to be considered an "economic development success." Both the 6th Ave and MLK corridors are expected to render a 3.0-3.5 million passenger/year ridership response by 2035. If only one of those corridors were constructed, it would grow our passenger counts to the size of the Portland Streetcar system.

On Real Estate Markets

Further, David's methods for calculating real estate demand mentioned in the Tacoma Weekly article are a little like measuring the temperature of the fire before lighting the match. It's pretty well documented that adding streetcar along a corridor with enough ridership tends to increase property values within one block of the line tenfold (in at least in the case of Portland). Even if this were a doubling of value it would yield a situation where it would be economic, by his own calculations, to assemble multiple parcels of underdeveloped single story buildings or parking lots on 6th Avenue and to construct multistory office, residential and retail that is encouraged by 6th Avenue's mixed use zoning.

If passenger demand and not the price of vacant land is the determining factor in the precipitation and success of transit oriented development, extension of our existing light rail system to areas without development, without people, and without ridership would be a risky proposition at best.

Moving Forward - Tacoma Link Presentation

2013-04-06T10:40:00.003-07:00

Moving Forward on Tacoma Link from Chris Karnes

Above is the presentation I made for "Moving Forward on Tacoma Link", as was requested. I enjoyed sharing the presentation, while meeting so many rail transit supporters in Tacoma. Sadly I don't have any photos from the event, but I am told that a story of some kind may be in the works in the Tacoma Weekly.

We had folks attend from Hilltop groups, the New Tacoma Neighborhood Council, the Stadium District, the North End, and elsewhere. We had representatives from Sound Transit and Pierce Transit, and even Pierce Transit Board Member Derek Young.

As long as we get up the hill

After the presentation and after speaking with people individually, the consensus I found was this:

"I can live with an option that gets us up to the hill [past Tacoma General Hospital]. If my route is not built today, it will someday, because it just makes sense to once we are already that far."

Some people offered ideas about using one route or another for the federal small starts grant and to use LID funding to get us the rest of the way.

And while it was not my intention to try to sway anyone from their preferred corridor, I was asked to talk a little bit about my own preference. I've already spoken at length on the blog about 6th Avenue, so I won't repeat it again.

Keeping the project on track

At the meeting, several officials told us that probably the most effective way of influencing the process from here is really just emailing your City Councilmembers. They are engaged and they are listening.

Other potential opportunities for public comment are below:

April 9th - Citizens Forum (City Hall - 747 Market St, 5pm)
April 11th - Sound Transit Tacoma Link Open House (Tacoma Dome Light Rail station, 4-7pm)
April 16th - Tacoma Council Study Session with Sound Transit (no public comment at this meeting)
April 23rd or April 30th - Possible dates for City resolution recommending route alternatives to ST
May 9th - Sound Transit Capital Committee (Sound Transit HQ - Ruth Fisher Board Room, 401 S. Jackson St. Seattle, WA, 1:30pm)
May 23rd - Sound Transit Board (Sound Transit HQ - Ruth Fisher Board Room, 401 S. Jackson St. Seattle, WA, 1:30pm)

Many thanks to Morgan Alexander for offering us his great space.

Move Tacoma Link Forward at 5pm Today

2013-04-05T12:15:00.004-07:00

I'm putting on an event at the Amocat Cafe (625 St. Helens) tonight at 5pm. At 6 o'clock I'll be giving a short talk and presentation about the process so far, using maps and local webcomics as a means of gauging where the public discussion has been over the years.

We will be gathering input on boards with questions like:

How do we make an extension of Tacoma Link a success?
What challenges will we face heading into environmental review and engineering?
Where do we go in the next phase of expansion?

We will have a short letter for the Sound Transit Board and Tacoma City Council there, that I hope you sign, so we can present it to them at their next public meetings. They need to hear from transit advocates in Tacoma that we believe that we're done with analysis at this stage.

EVENT: Move Forward with Tacoma Link 5pm, Amocat Cafe

Three Years since Tacoma Streetcar Initiative

2013-04-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

Tacoma Link and the HyBOErid (2013)

RR Anderson's latest Tacomic has reminded me of days long since past.

Back in 2010, Morgan Alexander and I, after getting fed up with over a years worth of complete inaction by the City of Tacoma on the streetcar issue after Sound Transit 2 passed in 2008, got together and wrote an initiative to construct a 6th Avenue streetcar line to TCC.

In our minds, the research had been done, Stadium Way was in desperate need of being reconstructed, so we were under a time crunch to ensure that track could be included in the design so that we wouldn't have to dig up the street twice in a row.

If not now, when? If not us, who? (2010)

The only funding mechanism that made sense at the time was the Transportation Benefit District (TBD) sales tax option. There was just one problem, while other cities like Seattle, Olympia, and Bremerton, had created TBD's, Tacoma hadn't - so the enabling authority for the taxing mechanism wasn't there. So, after we had drafted the initiative, had it submitted, gotten a ballot title and were getting ready to gather signatures - the City, in it's infinite wisdom, decided that they were going to take us to court to get an injunction to stop signature gathering. We were shocked that Council would react in such a manner, when all we were trying to do was to get some movement on an issue that had languished for years.

Later that year (2010), the City and Sound Transit called together another 'streetcar stakeholders group' that had practically none of the previous members on it, aside from Rollie Herman on the Hillside Development Council. That committee was stacked, yes stacked, full of supporters for an MLK or Eastside route. Also, that committee was mostly devoid of transit riders or anyone with a transit background, with the exception of Andrew Austin (Transportation Choices). Several members of the previous committee watched in horror as the same debate of bus versus light rail and streetcar vs light rail vs heavy rail played out in front of our eyes. From time to time we chimed in to give some guidance to both stakeholders and staff, since they obviously weren't aware that more knowledgeable people had been passed up for the committee. At the end of that exercise in 2011 the top three corridors were the same as those that had been recommended by the feasibility study in 2007.

From there we proceeded into pre-alternatives analysis, which took up the rest of 2011 and most of 2012 and then full blown alternatives analysis from 2012 to now - all the while losing several different opportunities for tens of millions in capital grants from the federal government. On top of that Tacoma lost $29m in capital funding for Tacoma Link during the budget cuts at Sound Transit, without any public notice. Additionally, Sound Transit scaled back the assumption for a federal grant for the expansion from $75m to $50m, meaning that the City of Tacoma is now responsible for making up the FIFTY-MILLION-DOLLAR difference! That's right, that's the cost to Tacoma taxpayers for delay of this project.

Shut Up Build Already (2012)

Not even that, but now Council can't even come to grips with making a decision on a preferred corridor on Tacoma Link. It's embarrassing and it's sad and there needs to be accountability.

No movement has been made on a transit master plan. The Mobility Master Plan, covering bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, is nowhere near on track to completing its short term bike network within the time frame. The City's street infrastructure backlog is at $800m and counting and the Council - only recently implemented a TBD to backfill some of the losses to the public works budget after city cuts. The parking enterprise fund is projected to eat into the general fund in future years. The only bright spots in the Council's record over the last few years have been the restoration of the Murray Morgan bridge... thanks to a $20m loan from WSDOT - currently not repayable, the Pacific Avenue streetscape project that was mostly funded for its stormwater component, and the one-mile downtown Prarie Line Trail, some of which remains still - unfunded.

In terms of transportation infrastructure, this Council has not met the test. They are being myopic, when they should be taking the long view, and they are being timid, when they should be bold. From the outside looking in, it appears that the Council acknowledges that there's a problem, they appoint a task force to figure out how big it is, and then they make some half-hearted attempts to find the money to fill potholes when the list of unfunded measures like complete streets, a bike network, and a light rail extension all languish and the local bus system shrinks to half its size.

Some serious questions about strategy and planning (and yes, competence) should await the Mayor and her fellow councilmembers seeking reelection this year. Transportation should be, finally, an election issue this year in the City of Tacoma.

The Logic behind a 6th Avenue LINK Corridor

2013-03-30T09:46:00.000-07:00

Tacoma General Hospital, a major employer on the B1 corridor.
Right: Stadium High School Wright Park in Background

This post comes out of the frustration that I feel when I read editorials like this in the paper about corridors like C1. I understand where the author is coming from, but in corridor evaluation, you need to try to back up your claims with numbers and with specifics. I try to do that here.

Here's why 6th Avenue needs to be given more serious consideration. The bold parts are categories of criteria for evaluating the project that were designed by the stakeholders group and were prioritized in part by public comment. If you have more to add to this, mention it in the comments.

Improve mobility and transportation access for Tacoma residents and visitors.

Long Range Bicycle Map around 6th Avenue
11 streets with bike lanes and bike boulevards intersect with B1

The B1 corridor along 6th Avenue between Central Tacoma and the North End is slated to have a ridership response of 3.0 to 3.5 million additional riders per year or greater than 10,000 riders per day, matched only by the E1 corridor. The B1 corridor would link together Tacoma Dome Station, Downtown Tacoma, the Stadium District, Hilltop, and 6th Avenue - tying E1 for the number of distinct neighborhoods and mixed use centers served by a corridor.

Bicycle connections are planned at eleven - yes eleven - cross streets to the corridor, making it easier to expand access to more than just areas that are within ¼ mile to the line. Federal regulations on transit investments allow federal grant money to be used to expand bicycle access within 3-miles of each station. The eleven cross streets slated for bike access along B1 are: Union Ave, Puget Sound Ave, Alder St., Pine St., State St., Ainsworth Ave, J St., I St., Yakima Ave, St. Helens Ave and Tacoma Ave. Also, local transit service from Pierce Transit routes 1, 11, 13, 14, and 16 would be available for redeployment to act as feeder and connecting services. Bus service from these routes could also potentially be redeployed to other parts of the city, further enhancing ridership and access to Downtown.

Increase transit ridership within the City of Tacoma.

The B1 corridor has the largest existing population center in Tacoma. The 98403 zip code, which represents the North Slope neighborhood of the Stadium District is the 12th most dense zip code by population in the state and it is the densest in Tacoma by far at 7,830 people per square mile.

The Stadium District and 6th Avenue are rivaled again only by similar, but lower, existing population density along the MLK E1 corridor.

10,000 students, including those from UW Tacoma (3,662), UPS (2,600), Stadium High School (1,699), Tacoma School of the Arts (515), and others would have access to the line. Students are very reliable users for public transit during all periods of the day.

Commuters would benefit by being connected with Tacoma General/Mary Bridge Hospital, the Downtown Tacoma regional growth center and connecting regional transit services at Tacoma Dome Station. Tourists and visitors would be able to visit entertainment venues and green open spaces on 6th Avenue and at Wright Park in the Stadium District, not to mention the many festivals and farmers markets that take place in these areas. Shoppers would have more choices in the Stadium District and on 6th Avenue. Tacoma Link service would run late at night to match demand from existing night life venues in Downtown and on 6th Avenue.

Goal Criteria and B1 (Source: Sound Transit)

Serve underserved neighborhoods and communities in the City of Tacoma.

The B1 corridor would serve significant portions of low income and minority populations and more than twice the proportion of households without a vehicle when compared to the C1 Portland Ave corridor. In fact the number of households without a car adjacent to B1 is higher than that found on average in Seattle or Los Angeles (also see Goal Criteria; right, for B1 reference).

Use transit to spur economic development and other types of investments

The Stadium District is zoned for mixed use development and there are a number of vacant parcels capable of being built upon. The entire 6th Avenue corridor all the way to TCC is either zoned for mixed use or for commercial development and has many opportunities for additional density. At least one six story mixed use project is in the works for the corner of 6th and Alder St that might better pencil with light rail.

Jazzbones, an example of vibrant nightlife entertainment on 6th Avenue.

10 minute frequencies would be viable for up to 20 hours a day because of high ridership and proximity to businesses that stay open late. New businesses would fill existing buildings currently for lease and in new buildings that would be constructed. Proximity to entertainment venues as well as the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center would make development of hotels a possibility in the Stadium District.

Wright Park in the Summer time. Wright Park would be served by B1 and E1.

Ensure that the project is environmentally sensitive and sustainable

High ridership means fewer cars on the road. Fewer cars means better quality air and less pollution into Puget Sound. B1’s high ridership makes it easily one of the most environmentally beneficial routes considered.

The B1 corridor would be next to the 27 acre Wright Park with playground and sprayground facilities, a one mile trail, a botanical conservatory and pond.

The B1 corridor is consistent with the City of Tacoma’s Climate Action Plan, Comprehensive Plan, and Streetcar Feasibility Study. No habitat corridors are affected by a B1 route.

Establish a project that is competitive for federal funding

The B1 corridor easily can match any other corridor in project justification for federal funding. The mobility benefits of a B1 corridor would be profound, ranging from increased bike access to a 30% increase in transit reliability between 6th Avenue and the Downtown core. High ridership again means more environmental benefits for the region. It is a cost effective use of resources because it will save on the order of 2-3 minutes per trip between 6th Avenue and Tacoma Dome Station. Local land use patterns are incredibly supportive of public transit, as is evidenced by high ridership on Pierce Transit’s Route 1. Economic development is zoned for and vacant land is available for development. And finally, a local improvement district for a B1 corridor, that is the local match, is incredibly viable because local property values are high enough to support it.

Tacoma Link Delayed, Open house 4/11, 2 new hybrid corridors

2013-03-29T12:36:00.000-07:00

David Boe's E2/C1 corridor

Take the Sound Transit survey on Tacoma Link expansion. Tell everyone else you know to fill this out. The more public comment on the alternatives, the better.

Tacoma Link Recommendation Delayed

The selection of the Tacoma Link recommended alignments to move forward for environmental review has been delayed due to schedule conflicts with the Tacoma City Council (apparently). This pushes back the ability of the Sound Transit Board to approve the corridors and to move them into environmental review and conceptual engineering. That meeting is now likely to occur on May 23rd, instead of April 25th.

Two new hybrid corridors under consideration

Additionally, two new hybrid corridors are now consideration in addition to the three corridors previously analysed by Sound Transit staff (B1, E1, and C1). David Boe's alternative, an amalgam of E2 and C1 and the Tacoma Link Stakeholders group [yeah remember them?] combination of C1 and E1. More than twenty corridors have been evaluated so far and the same three corridors keep rising to the top, so it'll be interesting to see what comes out of the analysis.

Open House April 11th @ Tacoma Dome Station

Sound Transit will be holding yet another open house on Tacoma Link expansion on Thursday, April 11th from 4-7pm just off the Tacoma Dome Station light rail stop. Feedback will be gathered on the three corridors plus the two hybrids. So, you might want to make it, especially if you want to put in good word for the fairly unrepresented B1 6th Ave corridor.

These hybrid corridors are very different from what I am hearing in the community, which is the hope that B1 and E1 move forward into environmental review - on the basis of projected high ridership, economic development, potential connection to TCC, bicycle connections and other very good things.

Please, please, please take the Sound Transit survey on Tacoma Link expansion. Thanks.

Quick update: Yes, $29m was cut from Tacoma Link.

2013-03-27T10:28:00.001-07:00

Click the image above to get access to Sound Transit meeting video

This is a follow up post to the one that I did a few weeks ago - "Has $29m gone missing from Tacoma Link"?

A couple of days ago I spent part of my weekend watching a recording of the March 14th Sound Transit Capital Committee meeting, where they were getting a general update from Val Batey, who is managing the Tacoma Link project.

At the end of the presentation, Joni Earl, the Sound Transit Chief Executive Officer, answered a question from Seattle Mayor and ST Board Member Mike McGinn about whether the $50m number in the presentation was the right number. Here's how the exchange went. If you want to view it for yourself, it is at time index 1:00:40. It only lasts about a minute and a half.

Is $50m the right number?

Chair: "Are there any other pressing questions?"

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn

Mike McGinn: "Well I'm not sure it's pressing, but just to make sure that I understand. So there was 50-million in Sound Transit 2 for this purpose and the goal was to federal funding and then partner funding would be uh, municipal governments, LID? What's the thinking on partner funding under contemplation?

Joni Earl: "It's a combination. It's a cobbling together of dollars, the city has already talked about waiving fees, utility... you know being able to lower what would be our costs...

McGinn: "I see. And so they might be able to pick up some genuine, in-kind costs that would reduce actual capital costs."

Earl: "Right. Yeah, and and keep in mind this was ST2 prior to the recession and so you know, I mean it was putting the concept together before everybody knew that City of Tacoma's budget would be down, Pierce Transit's budget would be in such bad shape, so..."

McGinn: "So is the 50-million-dollars, then now that you've raised that - what is then the status of that $50m contribution in our resizing of the finance plan for the work?

Earl: "That's what's left in the resizing."

McGinn: "Oh." (yeah, 'oh' is right.)

Earl: "So we started - we've already cut it back."

McGinn: "So 50 is the number?"

Earl: "50 is the number now, yes."

McGinn: "So we've approved this now and 50 is in the financial plan."

Earl: "Yes."

Reactions?

Sound Transit has made a cut in the capital contribution to Tacoma Link. $29m is a steep cut to a project that is already cost constrained. Is there something else that Sound Transit can do to make up for this drastic reduction in our budget? Can they up front some more planning dollars to allow us to move a second corridor into environmental analysis, perhaps? I'm open to ideas.

We don't have time for this

2013-03-25T10:45:00.003-07:00

The Tacoma Link Alternatives Analysis schedule

David Boe, from his comments in the articles in the Tacoma Weekly and The News Tribune, indicate that he doesn't just want to look at a "hybrid route," he doesn't just want to look at wireless electrified bus rapid transit, he wants to see if we can delay this process to do a comprehensive, citywide transportation study.

Let's look at what that might entail

Rather than try to argue semantics and strategy, I tried help evaluate that course of action. The first stumbling block for such an idea is that it is currently unfunded. There is no line item anywhere in any budget to help pay for such a process, which if Seattle is any measure, would cost no more than $600,000. It is not included in the six year transportation plan or in the Transportation Benefit District's list of priority projects.

However, if this were to change, let's say at an emergency meeting of the City Council tomorrow, we might be able to have it included in the funds that will begin flowing from the vehicle license fee in three months time. At the same time Council and staff could develop a scope of work, a public involvement plan, and develop a request for proposals from an outside consultant.

It took Seattle 12 months to work on their transit master plan.

If all went well, a kickoff could be arranged sometime in July or August, but probably in September, to allow for evaluation of the proposals, and the bulk of the work would last about 12 months in duration. The City of Seattle and the City of Bellevue encountered similar timelines in the development and update of their transit master plans. At the conclusion of that timeline we would be in late 2014. Council adoption of the plan could then take place as early as January 2015.

There is one issue with this plan that should be highly concerning to Tacoma residents. It would completely delay the start of development of environmental analysis and engineering on a Tacoma Link extension until January 2015. I highly doubt that the Sound Transit Board is willing to keep the contractor on standby for that long. Preliminary engineering and environmental analysis on the Sound Transit side are both funded and scheduled and contracted to occur after ST Board approval of a preferred alternative.

However, the very same timeline has a lot of merit if we want to have appropriate levels of study done to include a second phase of Tacoma Link expansion in ST3 and potentially additional targeted transit service from a state transportation package. ST3, by all indications from rumblings in King County (Legislature willing, of course) will be in November of 2016. We obviously have to have some analysis completed by then to have any projects included in the package.

The clock is ticking. Let's not waste anymore time delaying what's already in the pipeline

Tacoma Link may be delayed by Boe, Campbell, Strickland

2013-03-23T12:12:00.000-07:00

Does Council really think we need to study more corridors?

If you haven't already, please take the latest Sound Transit survey.

Lewis Kamb at The News Tribune is reporting today that the Tacoma City Council has sent a letter to Joni Earl requesting that the schedule for Tacoma Link alignment adoption be pushed back two weeks, and Board adoption by at least a month to study David Boe's "hybrid" corridor.

The concept was introduced with support by Mayor (and ST Board Member) Marilyn Strickland, was outlined by David Boe (At-Large), and was later supported by a number of city councilmembers like Marty Campbell (Eastside) at the Committee of the Whole meeting on March 19th.

I don't think that I can mince words about how foolish this kind of reality-divorced groupthink makes the Tacoma City Council look to Sound Transit and to the rest of the Puget Sound. This only serves to embarrass the city and to show how little they understand the factors that influence how public transit operates. They are attempting to hijack a process without a system plan or Transit Master Plan, and jumping in with their own uninformed long range vision. By making this request, the City Council has actually weakened their own position in the process of selecting a preferred alternative, and has strengthened the voices of the community calling for other well-documented corridors. I only hope that Sound Transit will see this for what it is and continue with the established schedule.

Refuting the "Hybrid's" Expandabilty Argument

Additional graphic on C1/E2 Hybrid Corridor

If either a B1/E1 alignment were chosen for expansion, more neighborhoods would have "last mile" access to Tacoma Link than the Hybrid: Tacoma Ave, Market St., MLK, 6th Avenue, Portland Ave, Lincoln, Old Town, and "I" St. The Lincoln District on 38th and G St. would still be just as accessible from a Tacoma Ave line intersecting with the Stadium District at North 1st and Tacoma Avenue, but would still face significant engineering challenges getting across the valley. So after all of the budget is exhausted, we would still be no closer to expanding Tacoma Link to any additional neighborhoods in Tacoma. Council is really proceeding down a path that is not recommended by anyone - not staff, not constituents or transit riders, not the stakeholder committee, nor any previous studies of Tacoma Link extension.

The idea is to build, "a parallel line to the existing line, within walking distance, that travels through no dense residential areas, exceeds the possible budget substantially, and potentially has a circuitous double-back on itself north to south to reach St. Joseph Medical Center."

If I were to suggest this as a transit planner, I would be fired for gross incompetence. It is divorced from the reality that we already have 1.6 miles of track in the ground, that the City has already invested millions in the reconstruction of Stadium Way to make it streetcar ready, and the fact that there are significant sections along Pacific Avenue and S. 25th St that are single track and capacity constrained.

Are we dealing with one new last-minute proposal or three?

Tacoma Link as it exists today is
practically ignored by David Boe's Hybrid

This bit from the article is particularly astonishing (emphasis mine).

...city officials are “fully aware” the hybrid route is longer than any of the three recommended corridors, Broadnax said the city is “open to the terminus of this corridor being located in another location” other than Sixth Avenue within the MLK mixed use center. He suggested other potential terminus choices as South 19th Street and MLK Way, or South 11th Street and MLK Way.

They don't even know where the terminus should be. How are you supposed to evaluate an alternative without knowing a specific terminus? That sounds more like three different alternatives than just one. The city obviously has no clue about what it's doing. They failed to create a plan to prepare for this decision and now they are grasping at straws, desperately trying to retain some level of relevance.

The saving grace of the City Council at this point seems to be the levelheadedness of Ryan Mello, who at least put to bed the concept of recommending a BRT alternative when he said, "For these monies and this purpose, we've chosen the mode. That train has left the station.”

Ryan's levelheadedness, unfortunately is matched by Marty Campbell's ... interesting grasp of basic laws of physics, when he indicates that regenerative braking from a hybrid-electric bus down Tacoma's slopes could be used to propel the vehicle. What's even more ludicrous is his insinuation that light rail is an antiquated technology that has been surpassed by improvements in bus technology. To him, I say, go ride Central Link in Seattle and then take a trip on RapidRide. There's a world of difference in ride quality, vibration, speed, and reliability.

Read more here: http://www.thenewstribune.com/2013/03/23/2526500/hybrid-corridor-idea-for-link.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: 'Hybrid corridor' idea for Tacoma Link modifies timetable

Again, if you haven't already, please take the latest Sound Transit survey.

An Open Letter to the Tacoma City Council on Tacoma Link

2013-03-21T09:31:00.000-07:00

Tacoma Link, Summer of 2006.

Tacoma City Council-

I know that you don't want to hear this, but Tacoma Link is bigger than you. I'm not talking about the 30-ton streetcars themselves, but rather the marathon-like process that the community has gone through to get this far. Now, you may think that it's your opportunity to leave a mark on the city and do well by your constituents at the same time. You may think that it's your duty to see that "the best line gets built," even if that line isn't in the scope of what's been under consideration for ages. But you know what, this process is not about you, it's not about what's perfect - it's about what's a step forward, it's about what's attainable, and it's about what's supported by the community today.

David Boe's Hybrid Alternative

David Boe's Hybrid E2 & C1 alignment.

While some on the Council may be intrigued by the new "hybrid" of E2 and C1, it has some pretty serious flaws not the least of which is that it has not been properly vetted by the public at this late stage of Alternatives Analysis. The hybrid red line, if projected to run from the Emerald Queen Casino along Puyallup Ave to Tacoma Dome to Tacoma Ave to 6th and MLK is roughly four route miles. Four route miles is about as far as we can possibly hope to extend Tacoma Link with the ~$150m budget allocated. That, in and of itself is not a fatal flaw, but when you factor in that this route bypasses the population density of the Stadium District AND doesn't reach a neighborhood outside of Downtown, AND doesn't connect the hospitals, AND duplicates a lot of the same corridor that Tacoma Link already serves, you start to see how this idea might be a bit premature. Ridership and cost figures from Sound Transit will likely indicate that this corridor just doesn't have the market share to be successful at this stage of rail transit expansion. Maybe later, but not now.

City of Tacoma Streetcar Feasibility began in the Summer of 2006

Meetings about Tacoma Link have been held over the course of going-on seven years. I know, I've been to most of them. They have been diverse - full of advocates from Lincoln, the East Side, Stadium, 6th Avenue, Hilltop, and so on. We have heard from sustainability advocates and bicyclists, small business owners and current transit riders. We have taken into account community priorities like economic development, service to underserved populations, and mobility. We have, together with Sound Transit staff, evaluated over 20 different corridor alternatives spanning all the way from Point Defiance to PLU, from TCC to Fife. And we have kept the City Council apprised of the process each step of the way.

It's been nearly ten years since Tacoma Link opened and over four years since ST2 passed in 2008. You had ample time to mull over your options, come up with your own proposals, and get the City to do some planning of its own. I encouraged this course of action on several occasions, so that we could all be on the same page - but you didn't really care enough then to move forward with it. "Tacoma doesn't plan transit, that's Sound Transit's job," one of you once told me. It's sad that that myopia let you miss your chance to have a real impact on this initial phase of expansion. But Council's procrastination shouldn't mean that you should be able to manufacture a crisis and have veto authority over conclusions built on all of the time, effort, and resources that have gone into studying Tacoma Link expansion. Hundreds of surveys, comments, and suggestions have been received by Sound Transit staff about how best to proceed with this project. The community got on board the train, and it has left the station.

Tacoma's expectation is that the Tacoma Link expansion project should move forward on Thursday, April 25th, when the Sound Transit Board selects a corridor or two to advance for environmental review. If the Tacoma City Council cannot come to a reasonable recommendation that is grounded in facts by the beginning of April, we will kindly ask you to step aside and allow the community to speak in your place. We hope it doesn't come to that. We hope that you can come together and portray the image of Tacoma as a strong regional partner in transit expansion.

There will be time to talk about additional phases of expansion. If we get started on planning what we want out of the next phase of transit expansion with our own Transit Master Plan, as Seattle has done, we might be able to position Tacoma for more funding from Sound Transit 3 in 2016. Consider for a moment that that's where your energies might best serve your constituents and the City.

I invite others to sign on to this letter by contacting the Mayor and your city councilmembers.

Onward,

Chris Karnes