PORT OF SEATTLE

“Get on board with Eastside commuter rail,” urges the Everett Herald in a Sunday editorial following two community forums on the policy initiative last week, in which Cascadia Center previewed a new 501c4 non-profit – the Eastside TRailway Partnership – to raise public and private funds for a pilot route between Snohomish and Bellevue on old Burlington Northern and Sante Fe tracks to be purchased by the Port of Seattle. The Herald: Imagine relatively small, quiet, fuel-efficient trains carrying thousands of commuters and tourists between Snohomish and Bellevue, and perhaps farther south, each weekday — running every hour or even half-hour on tracks that already exist. Imagine a comfortable, scenic rail commute that includes seamless connections to buses to get Read More ›

At least that’s what I call our transportation situation–“mess”. And the mess now has a glimmer of hope of untangling itself, thanks to private companies that see potential in self-financed commuter rail. Let’s review a bit of history. Trolley lines and street cars, for the most part, were built and maintained with private money. Railroads were built and are still operated by private entities. Maybe it is time to revisit these scenarios and allow private companies to lease and operate commuter rail lines. It solves the problem of public financing. With precedent set for public ownership and private construction and/or operation (AKA “public-private partnerships”), there is no worry of “selling out” to big developers, or losing public assets. According to Read More ›

The action taken by the Port of Seattle yesterday in moving forward with purchase of the BNSF rail line east of Lake Washington is an extremely important milestone for the future of rails and trails on the Eastside. The new wrinkle has King County purchasing rather than leasing from the Port the Renton-to-Bellevue and Woodinville-to-Redmond sections, to remove the track and develop a gravel trail. That will need to be reckoned with, but it isn’t a deal killer. The Renton-to-Bellevue portion of the rail line was scheduled to be severed anyway, due to construction of an expanded section of I-405 at the Wilburton Trestle. What’s left right now, for possible – and we believe, eminently feasible – Eastside commuter rail Read More ›