Regional Transportation Investment District
April 2007 E-News
One Region, One Plan—and Now, One Vote!
Over the past two years, RTID and Sound Transit have been working together to develop an integrated proposal for road and transit investments. Citizens across the region have said that they want a coordinated, connected plan that keeps the region moving. One of the final challenges was to make sure that voters would have to cast just one vote for this plan – rather than two separate votes, one for roads, one for transit. One of the final challenges was to make sure voters would have to cast just one vote for the plan rather than two separate votes, one for roads and one for transit. The 2007 Legislature passed a bill that provides for a single ballot.
“This bill clears a major hurdle for the package and keeps the plan on track for a November vote,” said Regional Transit Investment District Chair and Pierce County Council Member Shawn Bunney. “This green light from the Legislature means we are one step closer to finally doing something about the traffic mess.”
Under the new, improved framework, votes on a single Roads & Transit ballot measure will be counted once within the Sound Transit district and once within the RTID district, which extends further north into Snohomish County. The measure will take effect if it passes in both districts. The area that falls outside the Sound Transit district will pay only for the roads projects.
“The strong bipartisan support for the bill shows the Roads & Transit package has a lot of momentum,” Bunney said. “We are heading into the home stretch and look forward to finalizing the plan over the coming months.”
The legislation, HB 1396, passed the Washington State Senate Tuesday April 17 on a 44-4 vote, and earlier passed the House on a vote of 96-1. It now goes to Gov. Chris Gregoire for action.
Roads & Transit Hits the Air Waves
If you watch the evening news or start your day checking the weather on TV, you might have seen the spots about the Roads & Transit plan. The camera pans from choked freeway to traffic jammed bridges—sights that are all too common in our region. It then shows roads where cars are moving at a reliable speed and a light rail station with passengers getting on board. That’s the potential of the Roads & Transit plan—to tackle our traffic mess and keep people and goods moving.
Didn’t get a chance to see the spots? Click here to view them now. These spots also encouraged viewers to take a survey on the Roads & Transit plan—which almost 1,000 individuals did. read a summary of the survey results
Roads & Transit Open Houses and Comment Period a Big Success
Over the past three months, RTID and Sound Transit held six Roads & Transit open houses. More than 700 people attended. They got a chance to hear directly from board members about the plan and task questions of them and dozens of expert staff who were on hand. Citizens who attended the open houses submitted more than 250 comments. In addition, RTID and Sound Transit have been contacted by thousands of people about the draft road and transit investment plans.
We are grateful to everyone who took the time to share their feedback and help advise RTID as the Blueprint for Progress is being finalized.
Public Shares Feedback Through RTID Opinion Survey
In addition to the hundreds of people who attended the recent Roads & Transit open houses and the hundreds of people, organizations, and local governments who submitted comments about the Blueprint for Progress, more than 115 people have taken RTID’s online opinion survey. The survey results mirror what we’ve been hearing loud and clear across the region: people want an integrated package of investments to reduce congestion, improve safety and reliability, and provide more transportation choices.
"Path Forward" Workshop Highlights Policy Opportunities for Blueprint
The RTID Planning Committee hosted a well-attended workshop on key environmental policy elements and how they could be integrated into the final Blueprint for Progress. The workshop, held March 28 at the Washington Park Arboretum, centered on three main topics: tolling and congestion pricing, greenhouse gases, and construction mitigation.
Panels comprising regional leaders and experts led off the discussion, with questions from the audience advancing the issues.
RTID Executive Board members will consider the workshop discussions as they finalize the road investment plan this spring.
Upcoming RTID Executive Board Meeting
May 4, 2007
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
King County Council Chambers – Floor 10
516 Third Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
Road to the November 2007 Ballot
January-April 2007:
- RTID gathers public input on draft plan
- RTID & Sound Transit continue integrating road and transit plans
Late spring 2007: RTID & Sound Transit finalize plans
Summer 2007: County councils vote to place road plan on ballot
November 2007: Public votes on Roads & Transit package
For more information or to have the newsletter e-mailed to you, please contact info@rtid.org
