Cascadia Report

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  • Second airport part of fix for Sea-Tac

    Backers of passenger service at a second Seattle airport say about one in five Sea-Tac travelers would use Everett’s Paine Field.

    While there’s plenty of community opposition to adding some flights, it looks like a partial solution to limited capacity at Sea-Tac. The project needs to seen as a long-term fix for a region that seems incapable of siting a new, larger airport that could one day relieve Seattle’s main airport.

    Vancouver International has plenty of space to continue growing into Cascadia’s dominant airport (it’s already the only one expecting to handle the new A380 ). Sea-Tac could still grow as a function of the Seattle area’s demand for additional nonstop connections. But extra capacity will need to be provided by Paine Field and improved train service to Vancouver and Portland.

  • Seattle approves criteria (but not a plan) for 520

    Solving obvious transportation problems around Seattle is like establishing peace in the Middle East: endless plans, criteria and road maps but very little progress.

    The latest example is the Seattle City Council’s agreement on criteria for replacing the 520 bridge, a decision they delayed a week ago citing an outpouring of comments. The latest plan calls for a mediator to negotiate with all sides and present a plan in 20 months. They couldn’t even get behind the governor’s call for a replacement that would include transit lanes.

    Remember this isn’t an optional project. Just like the viaduct freeway, there’s a real chance that the bridge could collapse in a natural disaster, costing lives and the economy.

  • Time for house cleaning at Seattle’s port

    The latest Port of Seattle controversy erupted because commissioner Pat Davis supposedly cut a deal to pay the retiring CEO a full year’s compensation — without telling the rest of the board.

    Running up costs and losing business to rivals apparenty hasn’t been enough to shake the port’s management culture. Even last winter’s fiasco over Christmas trees at Sea-Tac could be dismissed by some as part of wider cultural confusion.

    The latest example of mismanagement ought to be enough for voters to demand change.

  • Blame traffic on daylight-saving time

    Moving up the start of daylight-saving time in the U.S. and Canada has spurred consumption of gas, according to a report quoted in the Globe and Mail. Maybe that explains the traffic too.

    The time-change policy was supposed to save energy by reducing demand for electricity. Instead it’s grown, according to economist Peter Tertzakian:

    “You are given an extra hour of daylight — you are going to come home and go out and do something. And in our society, ‘doing something’ more often than not means getting into a car and going somewhere.”

  • B.C. support for cross-border rail service

    Finally, a sign of growing support in British Columbia for better regional transportation.

    Apparently the recent speed record by France’s TGV convinced the Vancouver Province to editorialize today in favor of better passenger rail service between Vancouver and Seattle.

    Though Amtrak has already announced extra service, it will take political will for B.C. to provide the funds for track improvements north of the international border that are required for a significantly faster trains. Today’s editorial isn’t quite a full-throated endorsement (it ends with a tentative “All aboard?”) but it’s a start.

  • Why some people miss the old Alaska Airlines

    Alaska Airlines is rapidly changing from a whimsical local airline into a big business that has to compete on dreary criteria like on-time arrival. The transition parallels Cascadia’s changes amid globalization.

    eskimo on Alaska Airlines; by dearmitt.comOne sign of the shift for the Seattle-based airline is the replacement of older planes.

    Friday’s Wall Street Journal ($) has a wistful story of the “Arctic Eagles” who piloted old 737-200 jets into Alaska’s small towns, supplying a lifeline of everything from groceries and medical supplies to tourists. Now they have to get used to new, more automated planes and deal with routine demands of flying in the Lower 48.

    Although new route assignments will take the Anchorage-based pilots to sunny destinations like Cancún, Mexico, and Palm Springs, Calif., the pilots say they’ll miss the old challenges and the camaraderie with crew members and local passengers.

    I remember riding one of the old planes into Kodiak and noticing then that the feel of the cabin and the on-board atmosphere was different from the Seattle-to-Anchorage flight. One captain, who co-piloted a landing in Juneau that took 10 approaches, told the WSJ that flying planes that get “food on the table in Nome” will always be more rewarding than “getting a bunch of irate people to Newark.”

  • Why we need regional transport planning

    An opportunity for an integrated rail and bus transportation hub at Seattle’s Husky Stadium may be squandered according to this story and this op-ed article.

    The ludicrous lack of coordination (one planner is quoted as saying the inefficient routes are “pretty much set”) is the latest example of why the region’s transportation planning needs to be better managed.

    In a major step in the right direction, the state legislature is considering bills that would create a single government agency with authority to prioritize, plan and finance transportation projects for the entire metropolitan area.

    This week the Municipal League of King County sent this letter to Gov. Chris Gregoire and legislative leaders Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen and Rep. Judy Clibborn urging a package that coordinates planning without undermining support for existing projects. (Note: I’m a trustee of the League.)

  • Seattle port losing share to rivals

    The Port of Seattle continues to lose market share to other West Coast ports, thanks to inefficiency on the docks and transportation hurdles.

    Seattle faces increased competition from ports in California and especially expansion projects in British Columbia. Marshalling an effective response is squarely on the plate of the port’s new CEO.

  • Start tolling on floating bridges now

    The idea of charging tolls on both of Seattle’s floating bridges is back in the news since the state treasurer called foul on financing plans to replace the 520 bridge.

    A couple of thoughts on the controversy:

    — Tolls should be implemented right away and the 520 project should start immediately. The charge would help finance the rebuilding project and be an incentive to use transit. Now driving makes sense despite soaring gas prices because buses have less convenient routes, take longer and sit in the same traffic as cars. Charging, say, $1 for each car crossing would begin to alter the calculation. Make it $2.50 next year and $5 after that and the calculus would change.

    Tolls or congestion pricing must be paired with commensurate improvements in transit in order to realize the full benefit. Instead of just a regressive tax on poor drivers, tolls are a device to make more efficient use of the infrastructure. It’s important that people see improved mobility as a result.

    — A steep charge to use the floating bridges — it could be as much as $10 — would lead to dramatic changes in the culture of the metropolitan ara. It would make living closer to work more desirable, keeping more Eastside workers closer to the job and stimulating demand for other services. Nightlife in Bellevue would grow beyond multiplexes and Cheesecake Factory.

  • Whistler-like resort coming to Spokane

    A developer plans a $1 billion resort community including 2,700 housing units, hotels and retail next to an expanded ski area north of Spokane.

    The proposed town would be similar to several other planned communities taking shape around the region. This week another instant city centered on a golf resort was announced north of Vancouver.

    The Spokane-area resort hasn’t been billed as a major ski destination. Yet, while far smaller than Whistler, B.C., it would still meet demand from a growing population of skiers. It’s worth noting that the area has received abundant snowfall when many other ski areas in the region went without.