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Cascadia Center of Discovery Institute's Bruce Agnew recently became the chair a NAFTA-chartered commission focused on the issue of sustainable freight transportation.
At the beginning of 2009, Seattle, King County and the State of Washington made the joint decision to replace the aging, earthquake-prone Alaskan Way Viaduct with a technologically advanced deep-bored tunnel. The decision, which had been the topic of regional debate for years, represents one of the most significant transportation choices the region has made in decades. Cascadia Center's "Facts About Seattle's Tunnel Choice" provides facts about the decision to replace the Viaduct with an advanced deep bored tunnel and improvements to transit and surface streets.
Animation of a tunnel boring machine (below) from the Washington State Department of Transportation's blog.
Three members of the Bellevue City Council were all ears Wednesday night when a California rails-and-trails advocacy group told how they mustered voter support for a 70-mile commuter rail line through Marin and Sonoma counties -- complete with a bike trail along the entire route.
Why are rails-with-trails so interesting to Eastsiders? Because the Port of Seattle last year purchased the BNSF Railwayrail corridor, which runs through the Eastside from Renton to Woodinville, and on to the town of Snohomish in Snohomish County.
There's a $50 million chunk of voter-approved money in the Sound Transit budget that could be used in partnership with a private firm to help get a commuter train running on the BNSF corridor.
