I hate that Metro has to go begging the state just to tax ourselves, but that’s the way we do it in Washington, so sure. Representative Farrell has a bill to let localities either have a $40 car tab or in some cases up to 1% of the value of the car go to transit.* She has a post on Slog in support of the bill.
When King County Metro was last facing service cuts, the legislature authorized a temporary congestion reduction fee that temporarily stabilized budgets of transit agencies. It was temporary because the state expected to move quickly to provide a more stable, comprehensive funding source for public transportation.
That state support has not materialized, however, and with transit services in jeopardy, we need to take action to ensure our economy, our environment, and our quality of life aren’t degraded. My legislation would give King County the local funding options they need to save core programs and high-demand service routes.
OK, I’m sold. You can find your legislator here.
* I kind of glazed over reading the bill, and the post doesn’t have the specifics, but I think that’s a fair description.
Not a lot of comments about this one, Carl.
@1, how about this:
Why is it that we have to subsidize the rest of the state to the tune of 2.5 billion a year, then turn around and ask the state so we can tax ourselves AGAIN to fix our infrastructure here in KC?
Why can’t we instead spend OUR TAX MONEY to take care of KC first then maybe spend what is left over on the REPUGNANT counties where, you know, they complain about having to pay taxes.
I love paying taxes on a car that sits in my garage…
From 2,
I take it you live in King County.
3. You know what I think is even more fun? Paying taxes on a car that sits motionless in jammed-up traffic, especially with me in it.
Let’s go through this again…you want to relieve congestion? Look at that bus up ahead of you. If it’s one of the big articulated’s, during a peak-hour run it’s easily carrying 100 passengers who believe it or not are mostly working people on their way to and from perfectly good jobs, who decided (as I’ve done) that driving just ain’t as much fun as it used to be. Assume then that if the bus wasn’t available at least 75 of us would grudgingly get back in our cars. Now, think of 75 cars in front of you instead of that one bus, driven by disgruntled, grouchy old road hogs like me. Now, think about how much it would cost you in tax dollars, tolls or whatever to pour, maintain and police enough concrete to accommodate 75 more cars with six car lengths of headway, considered the minimum safe distance for 60MPH.
Quit your bitchin’. You’re getting one helluva deal.
Just to get it out of the way:
Why should people that drive cars have to pay for deadbeats (like me) that take the bus. If it weren’t for you darn socialists we’d have a 20 lane bridge across the lake and drivers would never get stuck in traffic.
And oh yeah, get off my darn lawn hippie!
One thing about Metro, right-sizing buses to the routes to appease the naysayers, has drawbacks. Yesterday, I was a little late for work, because the 30ft Gillig Phantom they put on the 50 recently, broke down. I had to catch the one scheduled 20 minutes later, and it was overloaded, as the smaller bus was doing the work of two runs. The 50 needed a 40ft bus because it serves riders making short trips, but in a series of segments, the backdoor would have come in handy, especially for the crowd(and it is one) transfering to LINK at Columbia City in the morning, while another load transfers from LINK and the 8 to the 50 headed up to Asa Mercer Middle School.
As for HB1959, I sent my letter to my State Reps.
To clarify, the Gillig Phantom 30ft, which Metro uses for bus routes that don’t exactly have the ridership to justify a longer bus, but too many riders for a shuttle van, on this particular model, the rear door is an option, and an option Metro chose not to excercis. Apparently 2 more seats were more important, than flexibility. The good news is Metro has had this type for about 12 years so it is due for retirement, but I hope they do not replace them with the 30ft model of the Orion VII, because on the low floor 30ft buses, there is no room for a rear door, and the front axle takes up what would have been a row of seats. A 35ft low floor bus is an equivalent 30ft bus. Having only one door also slows a bus down. One thing I like about LINK is the 8 doors on a side for a two-car train, and when they go to three cars, that will be 12. That lowers dwell times.
http://metro.kingcounty.gov/am.....iesel.html
Also, the RapidRide C and D lines have a drawback right now, no ORCA scanners in Downtown, which makes them no different on that segment than the 15 and 54 that they replaced. To lower dwell times at stops in Downtown, they need all three doors available for boarding.
Metro has raided the Vehicle Replacement Fund in the past when they found out they had set aside more than they needed. They do have a few contracts outstanding with their manufacturers, New FLyer, and Orion although the latter’s parent has ended production, and New Flyer has picked up the contract. It seems to answer my question about the 30ft bus replacement. Prior to the contract, Metro had only 15 35ft buses on roster, and roughly 100 30ft buses. THe remaining order picked up by New Flyer had 60 40ft(standard length bus) and 60 35ft. The earlier 35ft buses were mainly used on Vashon Island, as tidal conditions affected anything bigger being loaded aboard the ferry(and 2 buses overnight on Vashon Island). They only needed about 8 to hold down the schedules for 118/119(rush hour runs of those routes go aboard the ferry at Fauntleroy headed into Seattle in the morning, and to Vashon in the evening).
http://www.metro-magazine.com/.....racts.aspx
Hopefully Metro can get their remaining non-hybrid and non-electric buses replaced within a few years, the sooner the better, as hopefully fuel savings will help lower costs. A Hybrid will work on the 50, with the routes West Seattle and Southeast Seattle stretches(hills). Although capital purchases are not worth anything if you do not have the operations funding to run them.
Yes. Live and work in KC. And have family in one of the REPUGNANT counties that suck up KC tax money.