Light rail chosen to link Seattle, Eastside

Any high-speed transit between Seattle and the Eastside should rely on light rail service rather than special express buses, Sound Transit's board decided Thursday.

But the trains, planned to cross Lake Washington along Interstate 90, won't start running for at least 15 years -- and won't run at all unless voters approve the taxes to pay for them.

The Eastside rail service, projected to cost up to $3.9 billion for an 11-mile route from downtown Seattle to Redmond, would be part of the second phase of the regional transit agency's development, stretching over the next 20 years. It is expected to be among the projects that Sound Transit will submit to voters in its service area in a tax package next year.

The board is considering a proposal to increase sales taxes by 0.3, 0.4 or 0.5 cents per dollar, equivalent to 3, 4 or 5 cents on a $10 purchase. Over 20 years, the increases would raise an additional $4.1 billion to $6.9 billion, depending on which level is enacted. The agency currently levies a tax of 0.4 cents per dollar in its service area, which includes the urban areas of King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

The board has not settled on exactly which second-phase projects to include in the tax proposal, or what size increase to ask for. Those decisions are expected this fall.

The high-end, $3.9 billion design for light rail to the Eastside would include a tunnel under downtown Bellevue. Using elevated trains there is estimated to cost $500 million less.

The line, as envisioned, would connect to Sound Transit's initial light rail link from Seattle to Sea-Tac Airport at Seattle's International District station and cross Lake Washington in the center lanes of the I-90 bridge. The initial route is under construction, with trains expected to begin running between the International District and the airport in 2009.

The board unanimously endorsed light rail for the I-90 corridor, even though it's expected to cost $500 million more than the other seriously considered alternative, express buses running in their own dedicated lanes that could be converted to rail.

Light rail to the Eastside was part of the original Sound Transit proposal rejected by voters in 1995. A scaled-back proposal was approved in 1996.

Before the board vote Thursday, critics said the light rail option would saddle taxpayers with too much expense. But Sound Transit officials said there could be millions more in costs if a bus system became so crowded that higher-capacity trains were needed to replace it.

Actually, board member Richard Marin said, in that case, "You would never build (a rail system) because it would be almost impossible."

The major Eastside cities of Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland and Issaquah also have endorsed light rail. Bellevue Mayor Grant Degginger said it appears rail "will carry more passengers at greater speed and convenience" than buses.

Besides "convertible" bus rapid transit, the agency considered using monorails to the Eastside or serving it with a larger fleet of buses using the existing bridge lanes or new ones that would be added to I-90. Will Knedlik, leader of a group called Truth in Taxation, said the board's decision would waste $1 trillion in taxes during the rest of the century. The choice of light rail over bus transit "reflects utter disregard ... for responsible use of public funds," he said.

John Niles of the Coalition for Effective Transportation said a rail system would worsen traffic conditions for buses and other vehicles using the bridge. Bellevue resident Renay Bennett criticized light rail as an "outdated and bloatedly expensive mode."

P-I reporter Larry Lange can be reached at 206-448-8313 or larrylange@seattlepi.com.

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