The Regional Transportation Investment District’s roads funding package took another step towards the November ballot as the Metropolitan King County Council today unanimously approved the “Blueprint for Progress” plan for submittal to voters in the three-county district. Action by either the Snohomish and/or the Pierce County Council is still required for the RTID package to appear with the Sound Transit Phase 2 plan on the November ballot.

The RTID package, known as “Moving Forward Together: A Blueprint for Progress,” would implement and invest in improving the regional transportation system by replacing vulnerable bridges, improving safety, and increasing capacity on state and local roads to further link major school, job, and shopping centers. The ballot measure would pay for the projects with a one-tenth of one percent sale tax and a local Motor Vehicle Excise Tax of up to eight-tenths of one percent.

“The time for process, studies and planning has passed,” said Councilmember Julia Patterson, Vice Chair of the King County Council and Vice Chair of the RTID Executive Board. “After five years of extensive planning and public involvement, voters will finally have the opportunity to consider a comprehensive plan that will reduce congestion and provide more transit service across the Puget Sound region. Whether you are traveling in a car, bus, train or truck, the ‘Roads and Transit’ plan will make it easier to get around King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.”

“In my district, people want solutions to our traffic nightmare. They’ve lived through extensive population growth with no action and now they want it fixed,” said Councilmember Reagan Dunn, chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee and an RTID Executive Board member. “The ‘Roads and Transit’ plan fixes 405 and 520 and will reduce congestion throughout the region.”

“As the only member of the RTID Executive Board whose district includes part of the city of Seattle, I wanted to ensure that this package offered real benefits to citizens who currently travel the Alaskan Way Viaduct and West Seattle Bridge,” said Councilmember Dow Constantine. “I worked to include funding to reconstruct the South Park Bridge, improve the Spokane Street corridor by widening the roadway and adding new ramps for transit, freight and cars, and to create a new elevated east-west corridor at Lander Street—all of which will help keep Southwest King County moving.”

“This is a seamless plan that builds on currently funded projects and enhances east-west connectivity in King County,” said Councilmember Jane Hague, an alternate member of the RTID Executive Board.

“The strength of this plan is that it has a true regional focus, concentrating the money where the transportation chokepoints are,” said Council Chair Larry Gossett. “From the 520 bridge that connects the Eastside to the heart of my district to the vital links in south King County, this proposal understands that everyone benefits from improvements to the road and transit system.”

“This package, which has been developed over six years with all three counties working together, gives the citizens the opportunity to decide the future of transportation in this region,” said Councilmember Kathy Lambert, who represents Northeast King County. “Reducing traffic congestion so people can spend more time with their families is an important part of our quality of life.”

“This plan provides real congestion relief for the dangerous I-5 and SR 18 and SR 161 triangle interchange,” said Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer, who represents Federal Way, Auburn and other south county communities. “The public now has the opportunity to decide if this plan addresses their needs within their budget.”

The State Legislature charged RTID with developing a transportation package to be submitted to voters this fall for improving significant highways and bridges in King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties. RTID’s “Blueprint for Progress” builds on current state investments in roads, bridges and freight routes. If also adopted by either the Pierce or Snohomish County Councils, it would join Sound Transit’s Phase 2 transit package on the November general election ballot as the combined “Roads and Transit” plan.

"This plan is bold, because our transportation problems are significant," added Patterson, who holds a number of leadership positions on transportation policy boards across the region. "Voters have told us time and again that they are tired of the piecemeal approach to our transportation problem. We have listened and developed a proposal that goes beyond band-aids and quick fixes and will deliver real congestion relief."

Read more about this legislation on the King County Council’s LEGISEARCH system.
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