Coalition for Effective Transportation Alternatives

CETA
530 Dayton, No. 202
Edmonds, WA
98020
425 412-3674

CETA's Consensus Package
of Regional Transit Alternatives

CETA has drafted this package of cost-effective alternatives to Sound Transit's Link light rail project. This has the support of former Gov. Booth Gardner, King County Councilmember Rob McKenna, numerous elected officials, Sane Transit, Freeway Monorail, and advocates of bus rapid transit, monorail, and personal rapid transit.

Links to: Vision Statement | Projects | PDF version

People are frustrated because their cars and buses get stuck in traffic every day. They yearn for ways to reduce traffic, speed it up, or avoid it altogether. Frustration turns to anger when they see that putting a prohibitively expensive rail line in one corridor won’t address the traffic problems that most of us face.

People recognize the importance of mobility not just for commuters, but also for a growing senior and youth population, families, shoppers and freight. They see that growth has not followed traditional patterns and thus requires non-traditional solutions. Our region is not a single downtown hub surrounded by a ring of suburbs. It has become a web of interconnected urban centers, with equal numbers of commuters flowing into and out of Seattle.

People are looking for 21st century solutions. They want to balance the convenience of road-based transportation with a desire not to pave over paradise. They want transit that works for more people in more places, while reducing the burden on the environment created by single occupancy vehicles.

People continue to distrust government. They want to see that the taxes they have approved are producing results. They do not want to dismantle what works well now. They would rather see success demonstrated in an incremental series of smaller projects and innovations that provide the most benefit for the least cost.

We recognize that there is no one silver bullet for Puget Sound's complex transportation problem. We need a package of effective strategies. Given the scope of the problem, our unique topography, limited resources, and the need to ensure money is being spent wisely, we call for a redirection of our Sound Transit light rail project dollars. It is simply the wrong technology for our region--that is why it costs so much here. Light rail was never meant to be elevated or tunneled to the extent that would be required in our region.

We propose two key strategies. The first -- in recognition of the urgent need for near term results -- calls for redirecting some of the $3 billion into expanding existing successful programs.

The second strategy is to quickly launch a sincere, thorough, an objective comparison of other promising alternatives for our Region. Instead of spending any more time or money figuring out how we can afford to get to Northgate or the Airport with light rail, let’s take a fraction of the time and money to improve the ways we already get there! The remainder of the $3 billion should be spent on those which bring the most benefit for the least cost.

More specifically we recommend the following: