Editorial: Delay for Everett light rail dissapointing reality

From the Herald editorial team

If there was a sign announcing the expected arrival of Sound Transit’s Link Light Rail System at Everett Station in 2036, it might need to be pasted over that date: “Please lower your expectations.”

How low Now, the light rail may not arrive in southwest Everett until 2038 and not until 2042 at Everett Station.

What is behind a possible waiting period of two decades? The bad news, announced earlier this year, was that a combination of reduced revenue and increased cost projections meant that system-wide delays were likely for the entire Sound Transit expansion project schedule – aided mainly by the voter-approved tax increases in 2016 – for – light rail, express bus and S-Bahn in the counties of Snohomish, King and Pierce.

Given the initial forecast of a $ 11.5 billion funding gap, communities were told to allow for a delay of at least five years on projects beyond the current schedule.

Sound Transit’s 18-strong board of directors, made up of officials from the three districts, is now trying to better bundle these potential delays through a possible realignment of the ST3 project schedule, particularly for the expansion of the Link light rail system, and the completion of the system on Everett, Tacoma, Ballard, West Seattle, Kent, Issaquah and elsewhere.

While these decisions are being made, there is some good news; the initial deficit of $ 11.5 billion announced in January has been reduced by a few billion. As the pandemic and its economic impact weakened, both fare and sales tax revenues have improved, reducing the projected loss of revenue to $ 1.5 billion. Still, ST3’s expansion still predicts real estate, construction and labor cost increases that could rise by $ 6.4 billion, adding a total of $ 7.9 billion to ST3’s original price of $ 54 billion .

Some on Sound Transit’s board of directors, notably Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, have opposed agreeing to realign the system’s project schedule and instead promote a campaign to seek more funding from local, state and federal sources and counting on sustained economic growth to alleviate the shortage.

Sorry, Ms. Mayor; this train has left the station. Even an improved economy will not offset the region’s ever-increasing real estate market and other costs.

As much as they might want to stick to the previous schedule and the arrival of the light rail in Everett in 2036, the three members of Snohomish County – County Executive Dave Somers, Lynnwood Mayor Nicola Smith, and Everett City Council member Paul Roberts – instead support the best Option under the worst-case scenarios to place projects within the expected turnover. The Chairman of the Sound Transit Board, Kent Keel, a councilor from University Place, has proposed a realignment plan with four levels of delay: two years or less, six years or less, nine years or less, and 10 or more years. Keel’s plan includes a delay of up to two years in the arrival of the light rail in southwest Everett; and up to six years for his arrival at Everett Station.

They are all hoping for sooner, Somers, Smith and Roberts admitted during a conference call Thursday, but the Transportation Department and its board of directors must proceed with a realistic plan that will be accountable to the public and taxpayers of the Sound Transit district.

“We need to make it clear to the public and taxpayers that we believe we can do this package,” said Somers.

That doesn’t mean the three of them easily accept the delays and don’t push for completion as soon as possible. Early in the realignment process, the trio sold in a letter to the rest of the board that the completion of the Everett extension would best fit the board’s original strategy for ST3 of prioritizing projects based on five core principles, namely the light rail competition “spine “Between Everett and Tacoma, the connection of work and residential centers, passenger potential, socio-economic justice and logical extension beyond the spine.

Significantly, according to Roberts, these principles also serve the paramount importance of light rail and urban transport in combating climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector by serving as many passengers as possible and reducing vehicle mileage by keeping commuters and others out of theirs Vehicles with only one occupancy are taken away. Everett, Roberts said, was justifying its Tier 1 rating for these reasons.

Assuming Keel’s reorientation proposal is accepted, Snohomish County members will continue to push for the light rail terminus in southwest Everett to be as far north as possible. An operational and administrative facility for the system’s trains would be built in Everett, and up to eighteen locations along or near Airport Road, between a planned station at Mariner High School and the manufacturing work center and airport at Paine Field, would be in Considered.

Importantly, Smith noted, the board is also considering the need for periodic program reviews to better anticipate changes in revenue, costs, and debt capacity, which could allow for adjustments to project plans, and possibly early completion of some projects.

Many will find it difficult to accept the additional delay in the light rail arrival in Everett, especially when commuters to and from Everett see the tantalizing advances on display as work on the Link light rail connection with Lynnwood continues through 2024. Her arrival in Everett by 2036 seemed far enough away already.

But the hope of wishing reality away – especially because of the cost of buying real estate – will not stop the trains on time. The agency’s board of directors should support Keel’s realignment proposal during a special meeting scheduled for August 5th, and keep an eye on revenue and costs so the schedule can be adjusted.

This fulfills the obligation incumbent on taxpayers in the Sound Transit District and on current and future transit users.