Sound Transit: Sound Move · 2008-11-25 · In May 1996, the Sound Transit Board adopted Sound Move. The plan includes a mix of transportation improvements: Sounder commuter rail

Sound Transit's regional network ofexpress buses, commuter rail, lightrail and transit facilities connectscommunities in King, Pierce andSnohomish counties.

Text mode

Riding Sound Transit

Schedules &FacilitiesHow To

RideFares &PassesRider

AlertsAccessibility &ADAEvent Service &

PromosPugetDestinations

News & Events

News ReleasesMeetings &EventsPhoto of the WeekServiceNewsProject UpdatesVideo and

AnimationGalleryMilestonesReportsSound

Move

Projects & Plans

ProjectUpdatesProjects By

AreaProjectListProjects By

ServiceExpandingLinkLong Range

PlanningLight RailSafetyDesign &

Const.ResourcesSTart

Public ArtProgramResearch &TechnologyService

Planning

Working With Us

ContractsDiversityJobsSTartPublic Art ProgramPublic

OversightReal Estate

About Us

Board of DirectorsCEOCornerAccountabilitySound Transit

DistrictHistoryEnvironmentalFacilities &VehiclesJobsFinancial DocumentsContact

UsPartners/Web LinksSite Map

Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates

Video and Animation Gallery

Milestones

Reports

Sound Move

Why Regional Transit?

The Regional Transit District

Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan

Using the System

Putting the System in Place

Paying for the System

Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move

Printer Friendly | Tell a Friend

Sound MoveIn May 1996, the Sound Transit Board adopted Sound Move. The plan includes amix of transportation improvements: Sounder commuter rail and Link light rail.The plan also includes new transit centers, park-and-ride lots andhigh-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) access projects. Since its adoption, Sound Transithas been fulfilling the promises made in Sound Move, while also making changesand adjustments to better fit with the Puget Sound region as it evolves.

When the Board adopted Sound Move, it also adopted a Long-Range Vision forregional mass transit. This "vision" is the Long-Range Plan for Sound Transit.

Sound Transit updated the Long-Range Plan in 2005, and over the past two yearsworked extensively with the public to identify the projects and services included inSound Transit 2, the next phase of the Long-Range Plan, which was adopted by theBoard in May 2007. Sound Transit 2 is the transit half of the Roads & Transitballot measure going to the region’s voters in November 2007. Sound Transit 2projects will be constructed if the ballot measure gets voter approval.

Click on the links at right toread the original Sound Moveplan.

Sound MoveWhy Regional Transit?



Using the System



Copyright 2006, Sound Transit

Sound Transit: Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/x2203.xml (1 of 2) [11/24/2008 6:23:46 PM]

http://www.soundtransit.org/x19.xml

http://www.soundtransit.org/x2203.xml?t3xt




























































































http://www.soundtransit.org/x2203.xml?ss=print

mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Sound Move&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2203.xml





http://www.roadsandtransit.org/


Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Why Regional Transit?


Why Regional Transit?The original 1996 Sound MovePlan

There's an old saying that advises "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." But if you areone of thousands of people traveling on our region's overburdened and cloggedhighways each day you can probably relate to a modified version of that proverb- it's broke, let's fix it.

The problem is traffic congestion. Our region rates some of the worst traffic inthe country (ranking behind only such major cities as Los Angeles, SanFrancisco, Chicago and New York). We've outgrown our transportation system.In the time it took to build our current freeway system, the region's populationgrew by two-thirds. At the same time, the number of miles people travel eachday grew by a whopping 450 percent. Today's increased number of two-workerhouseholds, more frequent job changes and longer work commutes are puttingmore demand on our transportation system than it can handle.

No one likes traffic. It takes a frustrating toll on our time and our nerves. Butmuch more sobering and far reaching is the impact congestion has on our jobs,economy and environment. Congestion reduces productivity by making it harderfor employees to get to work on time. Those same traffic jams also make it moredifficult to get goods to market. Such impacts can cause existing companies torelocate and potential businesses to look elsewhere for places to expand andbuild factories. And as companies leave they take vital jobs with them.

Just building more roads won't solve the problem. There isn't enough space ormoney to build enough roads to keep up with growing transportation needs.Southern California learned a costly lesson that investing billions in more roadsand freeways doesn't eliminate congestion.

The answer is to take a cost-effective and balanced approach to increase thecapacity of the existing system by offering a package of transportation options -including improving transit and increasing road capacity in some areas.Collectively that system of options could actually slow congestion growth,reduce the growing strain on our roads and provide a reliable, efficient andcongestion-free alternative for those that use it.

Why Regional Transit?Sound Move

The Benefits

Investing

Principles and Commitments


Sound Transit: Why Regional Transit?
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Why Regional Transit?&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2204.xml


Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Why Regional Transit? >Sound Move


Why RegionalTransit?The original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

Sound Move - The Ten-Year SystemPlanSound Move - the Ten-Year Regional Transit System Plan being proposedby the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority* - takes just suchan approach to begin "fixing" our transportation system. It's the first,ten-year step toward a long-range Regional Transit Vision. That vision isto expand the capacity of our region's major transportation corridors byadding new high-capacity transportation services and facilities.

Sound Move includes a mix of transportation improvements -High-occupancy-vehicle Expressway, regional express bus routes,commuter rail and light rail. The plan includes new community"gateways" - connections in urban and suburban areas for communities toconnect to the rest of the region.

Sound Move is an opportunity for the region to test drive a regional transitsystem before deciding how much more of the vision to commit to.

One Piece of the PuzzleSound Move isn't the only thing planned to fix our regional transportationsystem, nor has it been prepared in a vacuum without coordination withother regional efforts and agencies. The plan was developed to fit withinthe region's comprehensive Metropolitan Transportation Plan.

That plan includes all forms of transportation - high-capacity transit, localtransit, HOV lanes, ferries, airports, automobiles, freight traffic, bicycles,and pedestrians.

Sound Move also fits with the plans of local transit agencies who havebeen partners in regional transit planning. The RTA has designed newregional services that are coordinated with services provided by localtransit and transportation agencies, offering a regionwide integratedsystem of routes, schedules and fares.


The Benefits

Investing


See Sound Transit's 2005Accomplishments

>

Transit PartnersServices on ST Express regional busesand Sounder commuter rail areprovided through contracts with thesetransportation agencies:

Community Transit●

Pierce Transit●

King County Metro Transit●

Burlington Northern Santa FeRailway

●




































































































http://www.communitytransit.org/

http://www.piercetransit.org/

http://transit.metrokc.gov/

http://www.bnsf.com/

http://www.bnsf.com/

Growing andGrowing andGrowing...Growth in any area is desirable and is theby-product of a strong, healthy andcompetitive economy. In another 25years there will be 1.4 million more

people living here. In addition to being part of the comprehensiveMetropolitan Transportation Plan, Sound Move fits in with the region'sadopted vision for guiding future growth in ways that maintain our region'shigh quality of life and preserve its environment. The high-capacity transitsystem's purpose is to improve mobility within the urban areas byproviding travel alternatives so they may grow comfortably whilepreserving rural areas for future generations.

*Note: The Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority (RTA) isnow known as Sound Transit.


| | | | | Subscribe to E-mail Alerts | Contact Us | Terms & Conditions | Copyright | Privacy Policy | Site Map












http://www.soundtransit.org/x2560.xml#terms

http://www.soundtransit.org/x2560.xml#copyright

http://www.soundtransit.org/x2560.xml#privacy



Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Why Regional Transit? > TheBenefits


Why RegionalTransit?The Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

The Benefits - Investing inMobilityTransit today carries 40 percent of the trips through our region's mostcongested areas at the most congested times. If all of the people currentlyusing transit switched to driving alone they would create a line ofbumper-to-bumper cars almost 700 miles long (enough cars to completelyfill all the lanes of the Interstate 5 and Interstate 90 within the region).

Sound Move will expand on existing local transit services with aconvenient, reliable, easy-to-use regional system that is less susceptible tocongestion than current services. By year 2010, Sound Move willincrease transit system ridership to a level that equals a line of cars morethan 950 miles long (a line of cars that could easily stretch to SanFrancisco, and then some).

Sound Move can make public transportation a viable and attractivealternative to driving alone by offering fast, frequent service and a widearray of transportation options with regionwide connections. And SoundMove includes a single-fare system allowing people to travel around theregion using a variety of transit services with a single ticket or pass.

The Benefits - Investing inRegional ConnectionsSound Move creates more and better regionwide connections providingaccess to job sites, schools, shops, museums, parks, theaters and sportsarenas to everyone regardless of whether they have access to anautomobile.

Sound Move can help attract large special events to the region. Atlantawas selected to host the 1996 Summer Olympics in part because it had arapid transit system capable of handling large numbers of people.


The Benefits

Investing


Sound Transit's LatestRidership Report




































































































Sound Move can providedirect connections to theKingdome, the new baseballstadium, Husky Stadium, theTacoma Dome, MeydenbauerCenter and the WashingtonState Convention and TradeCenter. Those connectionswill provide the capacity tohandle large crowds andridership surges.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Why Regional Transit? >Investing


Why RegionalTransit?The Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

The Benefits - Investing in OurEconomyAn investment in transit is an investment in our region's long-termmobility and economic stability. The alternative to investing in ourtransportation system is worse congestion. And congestion already costsour region an estimated $1.2 billion a year in wasted time, money andresources.

"High-capacity transit can help attract businesses and jobs to theregion by helping make the overall transportation system workbetter and give employees better (and more) transportation choices."

Sound Move includes a new HOV expressway system and two new railsystems - electric light-rail and commuter rail. It is estimated that a $100million investment in transit capital improvements generates some 6,000direct and indirect jobs and a threefold increase in business revenues.

High-capacity transit can help attract businesses and jobs to the regionby helping make the overall transportation system work better and giveemployees better (and more) transportation choices. The presence oftransit stations and community transit connection points can encouragelong-term commitments from developers to invest and locate businessesnear stations.

Investing in reliable, easy-to-use transit to keep pace with our growingpopulation will enhance economic stability and actually add to the taxbase of the region, thus enabling us to address other needs, includingother transportation improvements.

For example, the Commonwealth of Virginia invested in its Metrorailheavy-rail system (serving Washington D.C.) starting in 1974. Twentyyears later they found that the investment provided a net rate of return tothe community of more than 12 percent annually and generated 26million square feet of commercial development (2 million above what


The Benefits

Investing


Final Supplemental EIS

This study supplementsand builds on the 1993

Regional Transit SystemPlan Final EIS, which

Sound Transit used whenadopting the 1996

Long-Range Plan fortransit investments.



































































































was projected). And by year 2010 Metrorail is projected to havegenerated 90,000 permanent jobs and spurred $15 billion in newdevelopment.

The Benefits - Investing in OurEnvironmentTransit already accounts for 75 million trips a year regionwide, or about258,000 trips daily 365 days a year. Imagine the effects on our air andwater quality if those trips were made by car instead? Cars are ourlargest source of air pollution and energy use. All types of publictransportation (trains, buses, carpools and vanpools) produce far lessgrams of air pollutants per rider than a single-occupant car. Sound Moveprovides several convenient and reliable energy-efficient alternatives todriving alone.

Sound Move's rail components require only one-third of the right-of-wayof a six-to eight-lane freeway but provide the people-moving capacity ofa 12-lane freeway. Because less land is needed, natural resources andscarce open space are easier to preserve and protect.

Sound Move provides the tools to make the region's growth managementplan work by connecting cities and major centers. The regional transitsystem plan also supports adopted land-use plans and helps meettransportation demand management goals. Similarly, transit-supportivelocal land-use planning and implementation are critical to the success often-year system plan investments.





http://www.findaride.org/














Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > Sound Move >Why Regional Transit? > Principles andCommitments


Why Regional Transit?The Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

Principles and CommitmentsBy adopting this ten-year plan, the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) commits to thefollowing principles:

Regional scope - the RTA'splan is a regional systemdesigned to recognizeregional as well as localneeds throughout thethree-county RTA District.The RTA recognizes thatinvestments in any particularsubarea yield benefitsthroughout the region, andthat these shared benefitshelp tie the RTA Districttogether.

●


The Benefits

Investing



































































































Conservative fundingassumptions - the primaryfunding sources will bemodest voter-approved localtax increases, federal grantsand long-term bonding. TheRTA assumes no state funds,thus placing no additionaldemand on limited stateresources that are needed forother regional transportationinvestments. The RTAassumes federal funding fornew rail starts of $55 millionper year and other federalfunding sources of $18million per year. Additionalfunds will be requested butthe plan does not speculatebeyond current soundestimates of federalsupport.Local tax rateincreases will include a localsales tax increase not toexceed 4/10 of one percentand a motor vehicle excise(license tab) tax increase notto exceed 3/10 of one percent.

●

Equitable distribution ofrevenues - local tax revenueswill be used to benefit the fivesubareas of the RTA District(Snohomish County, NorthKing County, South King

●




County, East King County andPierce County) based on theshare of revenues eachsubarea generates. Thisdistribution formula will applyto all future phases.

Simultaneous work onprojects in all subareas- workwill begin on projects in eachof the subareas so benefitswill be realized throughoutthe region as soon aspossible. Projects likely to beimplemented in the latter partof the ten-year period arethose requiring extensiveengineering and communityplanning.

●

Coordinated services -regional and local transitservices will be coordinatedand a single fare structure willbe used.

●

System completion within tenyears - different parts andsegments of the plan will beimplemented in stages and beoperational as soon aspossible; the entire systemwill be completed andoperational within ten years.

●



System expansion or taxrollback - Any second phasecapital program whichcontinues local taxes forfinancing will require voterapproval within the RTADistrict. If voters decide not toextend the system, the RTAwill roll back the tax rate to alevel sufficient to pay off thebonds and operate andmaintain the investmentsmade as part of Sound Move.

●

Annexations and extensionsof service outside the RTADistrict - the RTA may provideservices outside the taxingdistrict by contracting withlocal agencies. Areas thatwould benefit from RTAservices may be annexed intothe RTA District if citizenswithin those areas vote forannexation.

●

Public accountability - theRTA will hire independentauditors and appoint a citizencommittee to monitor RTAperformance in carrying outits public commitments.Citizens will be directlyinvolved in the placement,design and implementation of

●



facilities in their communities.Copyright 2006, Sound Transit

















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > The Regional Transit District


The Regional TransitDistrictThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued) The Regional Transit Authority (RTA) District boundary is shown on the RTA District map.It defines the service area as required by state law. The RTA District currently includes themost congested "urban" areas of King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

The RTA District boundary lines generally follow the urban growth boundaries created byeach county in accordance with the state Growth Management Act. The urban growthboundaries guide how and where growth will take place in each county. The RTA Districtboundary was adjusted in some places in consideration of voter precinct boundaries, citylimit lines, and geography.

The RTA boundary:

Shows the area wherehigh-capacity transportation(HCT) services will be addedto our transportation system,

●

Establishes representation onthe RTA Board as prescribedby state law,

●

Shows the area in which localtaxes authorized by voters tohelp finance the RegionalTransit System will becollected, and

●

Demonstrates how regionalservices and facilities cansupport growth managementgoals and adopted land-useplans.

●

For planning and budgeting purposesthe RTA has divided the district intofive geographic subareas. The systemcomponents in Sound Move addressunique needs in each of these areas.

The Regional TransitDistrictAnnexing New Areasand Extending RTAServices

Sound Transit: The Regional Transit District
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: The Regional Transit District&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2205.xml

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/pdf/about/ST%20District%20map.pdf

The local tax revenues generated in each of these areas will be spent on the investments thatbenefit those areas. Annexing new areas and extending RTA services.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > The Regional Transit District >Annexing New Areas and ExtendingRTA Services


The Regional TransitDistrictThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

Annexing New Areas and ExtendingRTA Services - AnnexationsAccording to state law, after voters within the district boundaries have approved a ballotproposition authorizing local taxes to support the ten-year system plan, the Regional TransitAuthority (RTA) Board may approve resolutions calling for elections to annex areasoutside, but adjacent to, the RTA District. An annexation may require adoption of a revisedRTA Regional Transit Long-Range Vision.

The following legal requirements are required to annex areas into the RTA:

Board membership - If the RTADistrict changes, a change inthe make-up of the RTA Boardmembership may be required.Board membership must be"representative" of theproportion of the populationfrom each county that fallswithin the RTA District.

●

Areas that may be annexed - Areas that would benefit from RTA services may beannexed into the RTA District. Services or projects proposed must be consistent with

●

The Regional TransitDistrictAnnexing New Areasand Extending RTAServices

































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: The Regional Transit District&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2214.xml

the central Puget Sound region's Metropolitan Transportation Plan.

Adoption by RTA Board and City/County councils - The RTA Board may call forannexation elections after consulting with any affected transit agencies and with theapproval of the legislative authority of the city or town (if the area is incorporated)or with the approval of the area's county council (if it is unincorporated).

●

Tax vote by area citizens -Citizens in areas to be annexed are permitted to vote onannexation and imposition of taxes at rates already imposed within the RTA Districtboundaries.

●

Because the RTA encourages areas to annex into the district as early as possible to expandaccess to regional transit system benefits, the authority will include the following policies inannexation agreements:

The RTA will not attempt to recover the capital costs from annexed areas offacilities put in place before the annexations.

●

The RTA commits that, when annexed, the taxes from areas joining the RTA Districtwill be used only for specific facilities and services for up to 5 years as described inan inter-local agreement with that area. After 5 years, the tax revenues from anannexing area would be combined with funds from the appropriate subarea.

●

Annexing New Areas and ExtendingRTA Services -Extending RTA Services Beyond DistrictBoundariesThe RTA will commit to extending new services beyond its boundaries to make connectionsto significant regional destinations contingent on agreements with local governmentagencies. Such service extensions would be implemented at a mutually agreeable cost.

This option would permit areas outside of the RTA District to function as part of theregional system. Extending RTA services outside of its district would require agreementswith the affected local transit agency or other appropriate government agencies.

The RTA will enter into agreements with agencies beyond the district boundary to integratefares. This will allow flexible transfers between various transit operators and preventcitizens who live outside the district from being penalized for making regional trips viatransit instead of an automobile.

Areas that may be annexed - Areas that would benefit from RTA services may beannexed into the RTA District. Services or projects proposed must be consistent withthe central Puget Sound region's Metropolitan Transportation Plan.

●

Adoption by RTA Board and City/County councils - The RTA Board may call forannexation elections after consulting with any affected transit agencies and with theapproval of the legislative authority of the city or town (if the area is incorporated)or with the approval of the area's county council (if it is unincorporated).

●

Tax vote by area citizens -Citizens in areas to be annexed are permitted to vote onannexation and imposition of taxes at rates already imposed within the RTA Districtboundaries.

●



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan


Sound Move - TheTen-Year RegionalTransit System PlanThe Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

A System of High-Capacity Transit(HCT) Corridors and New CommunityConnectionsSound Move is the first step toward improving the way we, as a region, move. Inturn, the plan maintains our region's economic strength locally and globally. Itfocuses on the most congested areas of our region, creating a comprehensive,regional high-capacity travel network. Whether people are traveling to work,school, recreational opportunities or shopping, the goal is to provide moreoptions - dependable alternatives for getting around in our communities and theregion.

One of the most important features of Sound Move is that it provides a networkof frequent, convenient and dependable services that can be used with a singleticket (see the ten-year system plan map). The services are tailored to the uniqueneeds of the diverse subareas within our region.

Think of Sound Move as the tie that binds the region together, connecting thecommunities of the Central Puget Sound region in a way that supports localland-use plans, joins economic centers and expands local transit services. Byproviding direct connections to many destinations, Sound Move will help reorientlocal services to meet more community needs.

New regional transit services will free up significant bus service hours nowprovided by local transit agencies. The RTA will work with local transit agenciesto identify local service and/or community connections such as park-and-ride lotsthat support the regional transit system. These local resources will be distributedto subareas based on the investment each makes in the regional serviceresponsible for freeing local bus service hours.

Transit centers, park-and-ride lots, commuter rail and light rail stations will bedeveloped to encourage and promote joint development through public/private

Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System PlanHOV Expressway

Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund

Gateways to the Region

We offer service to the Mariners,the Seahawks and many specialevents Find out more here >>>

Sound Transit: Sound Move - The Ten-Year Regional Transit System Plan
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Sound Move - The Ten-Year Regional Transit System Plan&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2206.xml


partnerships and partnerships withlocal jurisdictions. Thesepartnerships will provideopportunities to attract and shapedevelopment at and aroundcommunity connections in waysthat benefit both transit users andadjacent communities. The jointdevelopment program willencourage services and businessesthat support transit-use, walkingand bicycling. Paired withimproved access for pedestriansand persons with disabilities, the joint development program will broaden thescope of community connection benefits.

High-Capacity Travel CorridorsIn developing a comprehensive transportation plan, planners look at the maintravel corridors or routes that people use to go from one point in the region toanother. For example, Interstate 5 is a major north-south travel corridor in theregion. Sound Move expands on existing travel corridors and creates new HCTcorridors linking our economic centers and communities. The types ofinvestments made to create this system of HCT corridors have three objectives:

Do more with what we have,●

Build on existing facilities, and●

Begin building new corridors.●



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan > HOVExpressway



High-Occupancy-Vehicle Expresswaywith Regional Express BusesThe HOV Expressway will be developed through a partnership between theRTA and the state Transportation Department. It expands and improves upona network that the region has already begun, creating a permanent part of ourregional transit system. The HOV Expressway includes the state's program tofill the gaps and extend the existing HOV-lane system to create a continuousinside-lane HOV network.

The RTA will fund special access ramps to make it easier for transit andcarpools to reach and use the HOV Expressway. Traffic flow will alsoimprove in general purpose lanes since buses and carpools will no longerhave to weave through several lanes of traffic to reach the HOV lanes.

The HOV Expressways create new links between suburban centers servingour region's fastest growing areas with fast efficient transportation options. Asingle HOV lane carries the same number of people as three general trafficlanes.

New regional express bus routes will take advantage of the improved speedand reliability the HOV Expressway will offer. The new high-speed regional

express bus routes will offer frequent,two-way service throughout the day. Theregional express buses will serve majorregional centers and destinations and provideconnections to other transportationcomponents of Sound Move.

Working with the state TransportationDepartment and through the annual budgetreview process, the RTA will fund

Sound Move - The Ten-Year RegionalTransit System PlanHOV Expressway

Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund


Get updates for ongoing andcompleted HOV projects:

Bellevue HOV Access●

Federal Way HOV Access/S.317th

●

I-90 HOV Operations●

Lynnwood HOV Access/46thAve W

●

Renton HOV Access/N. 8th●

SR-522 HOV Enhancements●

Woodinville Arterial HOVEnhancements

●












































































































construction of new access ramps to the existing and already funded HOVlanes or fund other appropriate alternatives. The state TransportationDepartment will then move all HOV lanes in those corridors to the inside laneof the road.

The RTA Board views completion of the state's freeway HOV lane "coresystem" in the Puget Sound region as an important priority. However, theRTA assumes the state will complete construction of the core HOV lanesystem in accordance with its freeway HOV policy.

If the state does not fulfill its funding obligation, the RTA Board will conductan open and public process to determine whether RTA funding is available(e.g. from savings realized in other program elements) and should be used tohelp complete the core HOV lane system.

Because the RTA will be making a significant investment in the statehigh-occupancy vehicle system, it will have an on-going interest in how thatsystem functions. Before committing funds for HOV projects, the RTA Boardmust be satisfied that the HOV system will be managed in a way thatmaintains adequate speed and reliability for transit into the future.

The RTA will negotiate an agreement with the state TransportationDepartment and the Puget Sound Regional Council similar to the stateTransportation Commission's existing Statewide Freeway High-OccupancyVehicle Policy to specify mutually acceptable speed and reliability standards,and how those standards will be monitored and maintained. In negotiatingthis agreement the RTA will seek to specify how it will be compensated ifthose standards are not maintained and the advantages to transit created by itsinvestment are reduced.

The RTA will develop park-and-ride lots and transit centers that support theHOV Expressway and regional bus systems through a joint developmentprogram designed to establish and promote public/private partnerships andpartnerships with local jurisdictions. The RTA will look at ways to developfacilities that are pedestrian-friendly and easier to reach from adjacentcommunities by alternatives to the car (i.e. walking, biking and transit).Access improvements that extend the benefits and the scope of transit systemto more people and to more places will be considered eligible for RTAfunding as part of individual project budgets.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan >Commuter Rail



Commuter RailThe commuter railcomponent adds two-wayrush-hour train service usingexisting railroad tracksbetween Everett, Seattle,Tacoma and Lakewood.Commuter rail will offer afast, dependable andeasy-to-use commute option,linking major destinations inSnohomish, Pierce and Kingcounties.

The 81-mile commuter rail system includes 14 stations (and threeprovisional stations) as part of Sound Move. Additional stations may bebuilt in future phases. Commuter rail will share several stations withAmtrak and the state's expanding intercity rail service between Portlandand Vancouver, B.C., creating opportunities for interstate and localconnections.

Commuter rail builds on a railroad network already in place, increasingthe transportation system's people-moving capacity and, by makingnecessary track and signal improvements, improving the capacity ofthose lines for other passenger and freight trains as well.

Recognizing the on-going siting and design process for a new ballparkand other potential sports complex improvements in the Kingdome area,the RTA will also explore the possibility of providing special eventcommuter rail service if funding is available.

Sound Move - The Ten-Year RegionalTransit System PlanHOV Expressway

Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund


Find out more aboutSounder Commuter Rail.



































































































The RTA will develop park-and-ride lots, transit centers and stationsthat serve and support the commuter rail system through a jointdevelopment program promoting public/private partnerships andpartnerships with local jurisdictions. The goal of the program will be toencourage transit and pedestrain access to stations by establishing andpromoting partnerships with parties interested in locating in areasserved by commuter rail. The joint development program will try toestablish transit and pedestrian-friendly improvements and land uses insurrounding areas. Access improvements that extend the benefits andthe scope of transit system to more people and to more places will beconsidered for RTA funding as part of the budget for each station.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan > ElectricLight Rail


Sound Move - TheTen-Year RegionalTransit SystemPlanThe Original 1996 SoundMove Plan Continued

Electric Light RailThe electric light rail component adds a new form of high-capacitytransit for our region. The service is designed to connectNorthgate, Roosevelt, the University District, Capitol Hill, FirstHill, downtown Seattle, the Rainier Valley area and SeaTac(terminating at South 200th Street) - the state's highestemployment areas with the highest transit ridership in the region.

Sound Move includes 25-miles of a starter light rail system with26 stations within walking distance of major destinations as wellas connections to local bus service. Some stations will includeconnections to regional express buses, commuter rail, the Monorailand the Waterfront Streetcar. The most significant investmentrequired for the electric light-rail system - the downtown Seattletransit tunnel and its five stations - is already in place.

Recognizing the on-going siting and design process for a newballpark and other potential sports complex improvements in theKingdome area, the RTA will explore the possibility of providingspecial event electric light-rail service, including a potentiallight-rail spur serving the sports facilities if funding is available.

Sound Move also includes light-rail service connecting downtownTacoma with the regional transit terminal near the Tacoma Domewhere riders can connect with regional express services, commuterrail and Amtrak. Four stations will serve downtown Tacomadestinations.

Sound Move - The Ten-Year Regional TransitSystem PlanHOV Expressway

Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund


Sound Transit's systemmap depicts connections

between major populationcenters in the region.


































































































http://www.soundtransit.org/riding

http://www.soundtransit.org/riding

The RTA has identified reliable funding sources for building thelight-rail line between the University District and SeaTac (South200th Street). The RTA expects to find, and will aggressivelyseek, additional funding sources to build the segment of thelight-rail line between the University District and Northgate. Ifadditional funds are not found, the University District to Northgatesegment will not be built. If voters authorize additional capitalprograms after the ten-year system plan is otherwise in place, thissegment will be the first to be built under the new program.

The electric light-rail line is a cost-effective way to serve the coreof the regional system where transit ridership is the highest. Thisnew transportation link provides a stepping stone for expansioninto the next century (a two-way light-rail line can carry the samenumber of people as 12 freeway lanes).

The Northgate to SeaTac (South 200th Street) light-rail line will bebuilt in three segments. The first segment will be a line southbetween downtown Seattle and the airport serving the RainierValley area. That part of the system will be built primarily onaerial structures and on the surface through southeast Seattle. Thesouth light-rail line will include connections at the Boeing AccessRoad station to regional express buses and commuter rail. BetweenBoeing Access Road and SeaTac, the RTA will evaluate analignment using State-Route 99 and an alternative route usingInterurban Avenue to Southcenter.

The second segment will be built between downtown Seattle andthe University District via a tunnel under First Hill, Capitol Hilland the Ship Canal. The engineering work for the north line willtake longer to complete than the south line so construction of thenorth line will likely not begin until the south line is already underconstruction. The third segment of the light-rail line will bebetween the University District and Northgate, and will be builtwhen construction funds have been identified and guaranteed.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan >Innovation Fund


Sound Move - TheTen-Year RegionalTransit System PlanThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

Innovation FundSince we live in an age of continual change, Sound Move provides flexibility toconsider new ideas, services and technology innovations.

The RTA will evaluate and fund innovative ways to provide transit service, reducedependency on single-occupancy vehicles, improve public transportation'scost-effectiveness, and better respond to customer needs. The RTA will evaluatetechnological innovations (alternative fuels and propulsion systems, quieterequipment, lighter vehicles, energy efficient engines, and ways to improvepassenger comfort) and ways to reduce impacts on the environment. The RTA willalso explore incentives and programs to encourage people to use regional transitmore.

The RTA will work with the community and the private sector to take part in ademonstration of personal rapid transit (PRT) or other technologies. PRT is anexperimental type of automated transit consisting of small cars running on aguideway carrying two to six passengers per car. The demonstration could showhow PRT or other new technologies could be appropriate investments in futuretransit system phases.

"Crucial to the ten-year system plan and the entire regional transportationsystem are the mechanisms that make different transportation componentswork together to create an efficient network connecting the entire region."

Working Together - A CoordinatedSystem of Services


Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund



































































































By coordinating with local transit and other transportation services Sound Movewill make it convenient and easy to move around the region. Crucial to the ten-yearsystem plan and the entire regional transportation system are the mechanisms thatmake different transportation components work together to create an efficientnetwork connecting the entire region. These mechanisms include:

Coordinating local and regional transit schedules, tying services togetherand creating important regionwide connections,

●

Building transit centers, park-and-ride lots and stations where different types of transportation come together to make connections simpleand efficient, and

●

Developing a uniform pass or ticket that can be used on local buses,regional express buses and trains, making transfers easy.

●



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Sound Move - The Ten-YearRegional Transit System Plan >Gateways to the Region


Sound Move - TheTen-Year RegionalTransit System PlanThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

Gateways to the Region -Community ConnectionsCombined, new regional HCT corridors and services will link our economiccenters and provide new connections for local communities. Sound Move willcreate new "gateways" from communities to the region and from the region tocommunities. Those gateways include transit stations, park-and-ride lots, transitcenters and rail stations that create community connections where people can reachtheir destination on foot, by bicycle, or by accessing other transportation services.

New park-and-ride lot capacity improvements will be prioritized at locations whereHOV direct access and regional bus service increases demand and where nosurplus capacity exists. Criteria used to guide park-and-ride lot investmentsinclude: HOV direct access, adequate regional and/or local bus service levels andachieving standards for current and projected use.

To view matrixes showing the hundreds of connections that will be possible atthese new gateways (note: some facilities listed are existing but will be served bynew regional services under the ten-year system plan), choose one of thefollowing:

Snohomish County Connections●

North King County Connections●

South King County Connections●

East King County Connections●

Pierce County Connections●


Commuter Rail

Electric Light Rail

Innovation Fund





































































































Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Using the System


Using the SystemThe Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

Easy System AccessSound Move will create a regional transit system that is easy toreach and use by everyone including pedestrians, bicyclists, peoplewith disabilities and other public transportation customers.

The RTA will work with local public transportation agencies,communities and local governments to place and design transitfacilities that fit with local community plans. This will includemaking improvements within one-half mile of each station for safe,easy transit, pedestrian and bicycle access.

Transit facility designs will be flexible, allowing each station toreflect and fit into the community it serves while providing standardfeatures for transit customers such as:

Security and safety design standards,●

Consistent route and schedule information,●

Easy-to-read and consistent signs,●

Pedestrian-friendly design and full access for people withdisabilities,

●

Bicycle access and storage,●

Transit-friendly access to allow smooth transfers from onetype of public transportation to another (i.e. bus to rail, orbus to bus), and

●

Convenient taxi access.●

A One-Ticket RideSince high-capacity transit is just one part of the overall regionaltransportation system, it is important that Sound Move work wellwith services already being provided or planned at the local andstatewide level. One way to make sure Sound Move provides asmooth connection with other services in the region is to develop auniform, single-ticket fare system among local and regional transitproviders. This will allow customers to use a single ticket or pass totravel on any and all of the types of transit within the region (i.e.

Sound Transit has madeit easy to transfer betweendifferent types of service.

Find out how:

PugetPass●

Smart Card●

Sound Transit: Using the System
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Using the System&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2207.xml



local bus, regional bus, light rail, commuter rail and ferries). TheRTA will work with public transportation providers in the region todevelop an integrated fare policy for the entire public transit servicenetwork.

Coordinated Routes andSchedulesSimple and coordinated connections are necessary between all partsof the regional transportation network - buses, rail, ferries, carpools,vanpools, shuttles, circulators, intercity rail lines, taxis, airports,bicycles and pedestrians. These simple and coordinated connectionscan be achieved by sharing stations, simplifying transfer policiesand using common fares.

An important part of integrating these services is providing severalstations or transit centers where many transportation services cometogether, making transfers and connections convenient andexpanding the scope of the entire transportation system.

For example: Say you live in Bellevue and want to go to theUniversity of Washington. You catch a local bus to the BellevueTransit Center, transfer to a regional express bus which takes youdirectly to the University - all accomplished with a single ticket.

Or say you want to take advantage of the state's new intercity railservice between Portland and Vancouver, B.C. but don't live near anAmtrak station but do live near a commuter rail station. You cantake commuter rail to one of three combined commuter rail,intercity rail and Amtrak stations and purchase a ticket for either anintercity rail or Amtrak interstate destination. Those stations willalso be served by local and regional bus service as well as taxis.

The RTA will work with local transportation providers to make surethat local and regional transit schedules mesh and that parallel,competing services are avoided.



Sound Transit: Using the System
















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Putting the Systemin Place


Putting the System inPlaceThe Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

Implementing the Plan in StagesThe 10-year timeframe for putting the plan in place begins the day aftervoters approve funding for the new regional transit system. The plan that ispresented to the voters represents the RTA's preferred system based onextensive system-level planning and public involvement conducted to date.As the RTA proceeds to more detailed planning and engineering levels, it willcontinue to identify and evaluate alternatives that might achieve the samesystem goals and benefits more cost-effectively.

Individual parts of the system will come on line as they are completed and theentire system should be up and running within 10 years. While putting eachpart of the plan in place, the RTA will use a variety of techniques to makesure that the system is developed and operated as cost-effectively as possible.Techniques could include: value engineering, citizen committees, technicalreview committees and expert review committees. As services beginoperating, the RTA will monitor system performance and productivity andmake changes to service plans when appropriate.

HOV ExpresswayWorking with the state Transportation Department and through the annualbudget review process, the RTA will fund construction of new access rampsto the existing and already funded HOV lanes or fund other appropriatealternatives. The state Transportation Department will then move all HOVlanes in those corridors to the inside lane of the road.

The RTA Board views completion of the state's Freeway HOV Lane "coresystem" in the Puget Sound region as an important priority. However, theRTA assumes the state will complete construction of the core HOV lanesystem in accordance with its freeway HOV policy.

If the state does not fulfill its funding obligation, the RTA Board will conductan open and public process to determine whether RTA funding is available(e.g. from savings realized in other program elements) and should be used to

Putting the System in PlaceRegional Express Buses

Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail

Community Connections

Keeping on Track and Within Budget

Public Involvement Principles




●



●




●

Sound Transit: Putting the System in Place
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Putting the System in Place&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2208.xml











help complete the core HOV lane system.

HOV access ramps are the preferred investment for improving speed andreliability of regional express buses by eliminating the need to weave acrossgeneral purpose lanes to reach HOV lanes. Before building individual HOVaccess ramps, the RTA will work with the state Transportation Department,local transit operators, local jurisdictions and citizen committees to assesseach facility's location and function. This assessment will determine whetherthere are ways to achieve equivalent transit speed, reliability and ridership ata lower cost or by making transportation system management improvementsinstead. Regional and local land-use objectives and comprehensive plans willalso be considered in the assessment.

Actual design and construction of all HOV lanes and ramps will be done bythe state Transportation Department. Each HOV segment and direct accessramp will open as soon as the state Transportation Department completes it,with all of the RTA funded improvements operational by the end of ten years.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Putting the System in Place >Regional Express Buses



Regional Express BusesRegional express buses will be purchased immediately and begin operating assoon as the vehicles are delivered. Maintenance and passenger facilities willbe expanded as necessary. TheRTA will enter into interlocalagreements with Pierce Transit,King County Metro, CommunityTransit and Everett Transit tooperate the regional express busroutes using a single-ticketpolicy.

The RTA will work closely withlocal transit operators to put regional express bus services in place. Regionalexpress bus service will be expanded along with local transit service changesto make sure the services are fully coordinated and that subareas receivemaximum improvements while the region receives maximum mobility.

In areas where existing transit markets or capital facilities don't currentlysupport the planned new service levels, those services will be added inincrements to match demand. The RTA and local transit agencies willmonitor system performance and recommend changes to subarea serviceplans that are consistent with the RTA's adopted financial policies.


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail







●



●




●






























































































































Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Putting the System in Place >Commuter Rail



Commuter Rail

The RTA Boardand citizens fromthroughout theregion havediscussed andreviewed thebenefits and costs of commuter railduring the entire system planningprocess. Because commuter rail is amajor regional investment, theremust be continued, deliberate andcareful consideration given todeveloping this new north-south HCTcorridor. Communities, localjurisdictions and citizens will be partof the project from beginning to end.

"Communities, local jurisdictions and citizens will be part of the projectfrom beginning to end."


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail







●



●




●












































































































The commuter rail line betweenTacoma and Seattle will beginoperating first, followed soon afterby the lines between Everett andSeattle and between Tacoma andLakewood. Since a network of railtracks is already in place, thenecessary track and signalimprovements needed for commuterrail service could take between twoand four years to complete. Servicecould begin shortly thereafter. Thetrack, signal and communicationsequipment improvements required tooperate commuter rail will providethe speed and reliability necessary tooffer attractive passenger serviceand build ridership in the corridor.These improvements will alsoimprove the capacity, reliability anddependability of the state's intercityrail service, regular Amtrak interstatepassenger service and freight traintraffic.Copyright 2006, Sound Transit


















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Putting the Systemin Place > Stage I & II


Putting the System inPlaceThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

Stage IWithin the first two years following voter approval of funding for Sound Move,the RTA will:

Develop contractual cost-sharing relationships with affected organizationsand jurisdictions before putting commuter rail service in place (affectedorganizations and jurisdictions could include but are not limited to theBurlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific railroads; the ports ofTacoma, Seattle and Everett; the state Transportation Department; Amtrak;the federal government; and local governments). These partnerships willresult in lower capital costs than would occur if the RTA were to fund theimprovements alone.

●

Further analyze projected operating and maintenance costs to try to reducecosts. The goal is to achieve operating and maintenance subsidy levels thatcome as close as possible to regional bus service subsidy levels.

●

Establish performance objectives to monitor and evaluate commuter railservice productivity related to cost, ridership and other relevant measures.

●

Assess the results of the preceding tasks and make final decisions aboutwhat modifications - if any - should be made to the commuter rail programbefore any contracts are awarded (local jurisdiction review and publicinput will be an integral part of this process).

●

Stage IIThe RTA will negotiate service-provider contracts as part of commuter railoperations to make sure the authority is reimbursed for capital facilitiesand equipment costs it may no longer need to use.

●

Based on system performance and productivity monitoring, the RTA maychoose to modify service (i.e. increase or decrease service; add or dropstations; add or delete segments; change days and times of service, etc.).

●

In keeping with RTA financial policies, any savings realized by modifying orreassessing the commuter rail program will be reallocated to the subarea originally


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail


Keeping on Track and WithinBudget



































































































assessed with that portion of program cost.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Putting the Systemin Place > Electric Light Rail



Electric Light RailThe region has discussed and reviewed the benefits and costs of various electriclight-rail alignments throughout system planning. Based on extensive public andjurisdictional discussion and review, the starter system presented to the voters is theRTA's preferred alternative. However, since this is a major regional investment andprovides the region with significant new transportation capacity, there needs to becontinued deliberate and careful consideration of the alignments, markets served andstation locations.

The Northgate to SeaTac (South 200thStreet) electric light-rail line will be built inthree segments that will be developed inseveral stages. The preferred alignment forthe first segment is from downtown throughthe Rainier Valley to SeaTac (South 200Street). Between Boeing Access Road andSeaTac, the RTA will evaluate an alignmentusing State-Route 99 and an alternative routeusing Interurban Avenue to Southcenter.

The preferred alignment for the second segment is from downtown Seattle throughFirst Hill and Capitol Hill to the University District. The preferred alignment for thethird segment is through the Roosevelt District to Northgate.

The first implementation stage will include environmental review, preliminary designand preferred alternative refinement for each of the three segments. This stage will alsoinclude an extensive community process to refine the preferred alternatives for eachsegment and define potential alternative alignments.

"...minimize capital and operating cost per passenger trip and create the greatesteconomic net benefit."

Before supporting construction of the preferred alternative, alternative alignments willbe evaluated to determine which maximize ridership, minimize capital and operatingcost per passenger trip and create the greatest economic net benefit. In particular,


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail





































































































special attention must be paid to which alignment generates the most new ridership asopposed to riders simply shifting from one type of transit to another.

Once preliminary engineering and environmental review is completed the RTA willbegin the next stage - final design and right-of-way acquisition followed byconstruction. The RTA intends to begin building the south segment first while finalengineering is completed on the two north segments. When final engineering iscomplete, the RTA will conduct a major review of project funding status to make surethe authority's equity principle can be met before construction contracts are awarded. Ifthe cost is lower than etimated and/or additional funds have been appropriated, theRTA will build the light-rail segment between the University District and Northgate.

When electric light-rail service begins operating in the downtown Seattle transittunnel, the number of people using the tunnel will triple. This may require some busesto be shifted to surface streets. The RTA will work with Seattle and King County toaddress bus operational issues that may arise as a result of this shift.

As with any major construction project the community will be involved in the projectfrom beginning to end. Opportunities for public and technical review will be includedin each stage of the implementation plan.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > Sound Move> Putting the System in Place > CommunityConnections



Community ConnectionsTo maximize public access to the regional system, the RTA will fund a variety ofcommunity connection facilities including transit centers, transit access improvements,and park-and-ride lots. These facilities are intended to improve local access to theregional system while improving connections to local transit services.

The RTA intends to maximize the local benefits of these facilities by promotingdesigns and locations that encourage joint development and maximize pedestrianaccess. The RTA also intends to evaluate the degree to which these facilities reducethe need for people to drive. The objective of the evaluation will be to produce a mixof investments within the available budget which maximize public transportationbenefits in the area around the proposed community connection facilities. The location,design and construction of these facilities will be determined through a collaborativeprocess involving the public, local jurisdictions and local transit agencies.

Park-and-Ride LotsSound Move adds park-and-ride lot capacityin some areas to get the best performance outof the transit system while providingconvenient access for transit customers. Thedemand for expanded park-and-ride lotcapacity can be reduced if the RTA, localtransit agencies, local jurisdictions and thepublic can successfully:

Encourage as many people aspossible to reach the transit systemusing local transit or other HOVmodes.

●

Develop land-use polices that aretransit- and pedestrian-friendly andencourage mixed-use developmentaround transit stations.

●


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail





































































































Encourage joint use and developmentof park-and-ride lots.

●

Allow park-and-ride lots to beconverted to other uses when transit-and pedestrian-friendly developmentpatterns make the specific siteinappropriate for continuedpark-and-ride use.

●

Develop ways other thanpark-and-ride lots that are as efficientand effective in achieving ridershipgoals with less effect on theenvironment.

●



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Putting the System inPlace > Keeping on Track and WithinBudget



Keeping on Track and Within BudgetSound Move is based on extremely conservative cost and ridership assumptionsand methodologies reviewed by an independent expert review panel appointed bythe governor, the state Legislature and the state Transportation Department. Inaddition, the RTA has adopted strict cost management control principles to makecertain Sound Move stays on schedule and within budget. Those principlesinclude:

Hiring independent auditors and appointing a citizen oversight committeeto monitor RTA performance and make sure the authority maintains fullpublic accountability,

●

Rewarding contractors for excellence and penalizing them for costoverruns or not completing projects on schedule, and

●

Using outside or independent professional "value" engineers to analyzepreliminary designs and identify, wherever possible, less expensive waysof completing projects.

●

A Community Effort Citizens played a key role in shaping the ten-year system plan and will play aneven greater role in its implementation. Sound Move reflects the dynamic natureof our region. It therefore needs the ideas and collaboration of the region's diverseinterests to put the many new transportation services and facilities in place.

The RTA will provide the resources and support necessary to involve the public atall levels of planning (local, corridor, regional) and during all phases of putting theplan in place (environmental, preliminary engineering, final design, construction,operation). The RTA will also support independent citizen and/or technical reviewcommittees to oversee and provide advice to the RTA during detailed electriclight-rail segment planning.

One of the first tasks of a citizen committee for the north light-rail line will be to


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail





































































































consider and to help identify an alternative northern route which can be evaluatedagainst the preferred alternative during environmental review and preliminaryengineering stages. At a minimum the evaluation will include performance criteriasuch as ridership, cost, cost-effectiveness, compatibility with local communityplans, direct service to the University District, speed and capacity, and impacts toexisting transportation capacity in the corridor. The time and resources devoted tothe task of identifying an alternative northern route shall be established at thebeginning of the citizen process.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > Sound Move> Putting the System in Place > PublicInvolvement Principles


Putting the Systemin PlaceThe Original 1996Sound Move(continued)

Public Involvement PrinciplesThe RTA will work with local public transportation agencies,local jurisdictions and agencies to create an open publicinvolvement process with ample opportunities to inform andinvolve the community. Citizens and groups will have extensiveopportunities to interact with, and receive a response from,appointed and elected officials on issues of interest or concern.The RTA will ensure that:

Citizens' input is actively sought at all stages of planningand development a representative cross-section ofinterests is engaged.

●

All programs and activities are publicized and theproceedings and records made available for publicreview.

●

Citizens have opportunities to affect decisions beforethey are finalized.

●

Citizens' inquiries, suggestions and ideas are answered oraccounted for in the decision-making process.

●

The Environmental ProcessA goal of the plan is to maximize the positive effectswe canmake on our region's economic, social and physicalenvironments.The RTA will work with the community tocarefully evaluate the short and long-term effects ofimplementing and operating Sound Move investments.Citizenswill be involved in community-level environmental review ofeach facility as it is planned in greater detail. The RTA will fullycomply with all federal, state and local environmental evaluationprocesses.


Commuter Rail

Stage I & II

Electric Light Rail




Final Supplemental EIS

This final supplemental EISsupplements and builds on the1993 Regional Transit System

Plan Final EIS.



































































































Citizens have access to the planning process.



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Paying for theSystem


Paying For the SystemThe Original 1996 Sound MovePlan (continued)

RTA Taxing and Bonding AuthorityState law allows the RTA to ask voters in the Central Puget Sound region toincrease their local taxes to pay for a regional HCT system. The law allows theRTA to ask voters within the RTA District for up to a 9/10 of one percent sales tax,8/10 of one percent motor vehicle excise (license tab) tax, and an employer tax of$2 per employee.

The financial plan assumes the local funding for Sound Move at leass than 40percent of the authorized level. Funds will come from a 4/10 of one percentincrease in sales tax and a 3/10 of one percent increase in the license tab tax to becollected with the RTA District.

State law also allows the RTA to issue municipal bonds. The financial plan forSound Move includes long-term bond financing at a level significantly lower thanstate law allows.

Paying for the SystemFinancial Plan Framework

Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies


Sound Transit: Paying For the System
































































































mailto:?subject=Take a look at this page on Sound Transit that I found: Paying For the System&body=You can see this page at: http://www.soundtransit.org/x2209.xml


Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Paying for the System > FinancialPlan Framework


Paying For theSystemThe Original 1996 SoundMove Plan (continued)

Financial Plan FrameworkThe proposal to be placed before the voters will be a ten-yearconstruction plan financed in part by long-term bonds. Aselements are completed, they will begin operating during thatten-year period. After the ten-year period, the RTA's tax revenueswill be used to continue transit operations and pay for debtservice. Any portion of tax revenues used for further capitalexpansion will be subject to voter re-approval.

The RTA is committed to building and operating a ten-yearsystem plan that can be confidently funded and completed aspromised to the region's citizens. To carry out this commitment,the RTA adopted the following guidelines for the financial plan:

Local tax rates - Sound Move will be funded in part bylocal revenues, generated within the RTA Districtboundaries, including a local sales tax increase not toexceed 4/10 of one percent and motor vehicle excise(license tab) tax increase not to exceed 3/10 of onepercent.

●

State and federal program funding - The RTA assumes nostate funds, thus placing no additional demand on limitedstate resources that are needed for other regionaltransportation investments.

●

The RTA assumes federal funding for new rail starts of $55million per year and other federal funding sources of $18 millionper year. Additional funds will be requested but the plan does notspeculate beyond current sound estimates of federal support.

Conservative borrowing levels - The RTA Board hasestablished financial policies to ensure conservative use oflong-term debt (bonding). Because transit facilitiesprovide benefits over a long span of time, it is reasonableto finance their construction over a period that extendsbeyond the ten-year system plan construction timeframe.

●


Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies

Access Sound Transit'sFinancial Documents.




































































































Subarea benefits - The RTA is committed to investrevenues to benefit the areas where they are raised. Theamount of long-term debt financing used to benefit eachsubarea will be based on its financing capacity (defined byrevenues generated and ability to repay debt after coveringoperating expenses).

●

Ten-year implementation - Different parts and segments ofthe plan will be implemented in stages and be operationalas soon as possible. The RTA is committed to the entiresystem being completed and operational within 10 years.

●



















Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Paying for the System > Costsand Schedule



Costs and ScheduleTable 1 summarizes the cost of putting Sound Move in place and operatingregional express bus routes and rail lines. The costs associated with constructioninclude markups to cover potential mitigation, engineering, administration, projectmanagement, insurance, and other overhead costs, as well as contingencies forunforeseen expenses. Operating and maintenance costs include overhead andadministration expenses, and an operating reserve account equal to two monthsoperating costs set aside for unexpected expenses.

The schedule for funding the system follows the general implementation scheduledescribed in the "Putting the System in Place" section. Actual future cash flow willdetermine detailed scheduling priorities. The long-term cash flow analysis assumesthat debt financing (bonds) will be necessary during the concentrated constructionand implementation stages when capital costs alone exceed annual revenues.


Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies




































































































Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events >Sound Move > Paying for the System> Funding



FundingThe financial principles provide the foundation for determining what revenuesources should be relied upon to pay for Sound Move. The system plan will be paidfor with a combination of voter approved local taxes, federal grants, fareboxrevenues, borrowed funds (bonds), and interest revenues (see Table 2). Systemoperating costs beyond the ten-year implementation period will be paid for withlocal taxes, farebox revenues, interest earnings, private sources, and federaloperating assistance.


Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies




































































































Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Paying for the System > RiskAssessment



Risk AssessmentThe assumptions used to project costs and revenues for Sound Move areconsciously conservative. The assumptions have been carefully analyzed to providea cushion in case there are adverse changes in one or more of the revenue orexpense projections. Experience shows that if one assumption changes, other keyindicators would likely change in a similar manner. For example, if inflation wereto escalate projected costs, interest rates and earnings and tax revenues would alsobe higher than plan projections. The RTA, however, has adopted several strategieswithin its financial polices to reduce the impact of any imbalance between plannedexpenditures and available revenues.


Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies




































































































Text mode






News & Events



Move

Projects & Plans







Planning

Working With Us



About Us




Sound Transit Home

News & Events

News Releases

Meetings & Events

Photo of the Week

Service News

Project Updates


Milestones

Reports

Sound Move




Using the System



Home Page > News & Events > SoundMove > Paying for the System >Financial Policies



Financial PoliciesThe financial policies provide important tools to the RTA to make sure that SoundMove is financed on time and within budget, and that principles and commitmentsto the public are met.

Distributing revenues equitably - Since local tax revenues will be used tobenefit the RTA District's five subareas based on the share of revenues eachsubarea generates, adopting this ten-year plan represents an equitabledistribution of revenues and benefits. Budgets for each of the five subareas,including the subarea's projected share of local taxes, borrowed funds,federal grants, farebox revenues, and related expenditures, will bemonitored and adjusted on an annual basis to make sure that equitabledistributions of revenues are maintained.

●

Regional fund - The regional fund will pay for systemwide elements ofSound Move. These elements include the integrated fare policy that createsa single-ticket ride, innovative technologies, and planning for any futurecapital investments that will be placed before the region's voters. Theregional fund will also pay for RTA administration. The fund will becreated with an equal percentage of local tax revenues contributed by eachof the five subareas plus interest earnings.

●

Conservative borrowing levels - The RTA is committed to placing limitson its use of long-term debt. It has adopted several policies to make surethis commitment is met. These policies establish the conservative approachthe RTA will use to calculate the cash flow available to service debt, set adebt service coverage ratio policy, and reserve a portion of the RTA's debtfinancing capacity to provide a future potential funding source forunforeseen circumstances.

●

Public accountability - The RTA will hire independent auditors andappoint a citizen oversight committee to monitor RTA performance incarrying out its public commitments.

●

System expansion or tax rollback - Any second phase capital programwhich continues local taxes for financing will require voter approved withinthe RTA District. If voters decide not to extend the system, the RTAwillroll back the tax rate to a level sufficient to pay off the outstanding bondsand operate and maintain the investments made as part of Sound Move.

●


Costs and Schedule

Funding

Risk Assessment

Financial Policies



































































































Sound Move -- The 10-Year Regional Transit System PlanAs adopted May 31, 1996

Snohomish County Connections

Other projects:Pacific Avenue overpass (Everett);●

Lynnwood Transit Center/Park-and-Ride lot connection.●

401 S. Jackson St.Seattle, WA 98104

(206) [email protected]

Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/snohom.html [11/24/2008 6:33:54 PM]

mailto:%20%[email protected]


North King County Connections

*Note: Provisional station subject to funding availability from within the North King County subarea.



Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/nking.html [11/24/2008 6:34:25 PM]



South King County Connections



Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/soking.html [11/24/2008 6:34:26 PM]


Sound Move -- The 10-Year Regional Transit System Plan

As adopted May 31, 1996

East King County Connections

Other projects:Willows HOV (Redmond);●

Woodinville arterial HOV enhancements;●

I-90 two-way center roadway;●

SR-522 HOV enhancements.●



Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/eastking.html [11/24/2008 6:34:29 PM]

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/default.html



Pierce County Connections



Sound Move

http://www.soundtransit.org/documents/html/pierce.html [11/24/2008 6:34:30 PM]
