Week of Oct. 15, 2007

Preserving transportation network key theme for 2008 proposed budget

King County Executive Ron Sims unveiled a proposed 2008 transportation budget this week that emphasizes the preservation of vital infrastructure and service quality while responding to rising costs.

For the King County Department of Transportation (KCDOT), the proposed budget would increase financial stability and also allow the department to continue inventive new projects and programs.

“The proposed county transportation budget strikes a balance between the delivery of high-quality services and the ongoing need to contain expenses as the cost of doing business continues to increase,” said King County Transportation Director Harold Taniguchi. “It is also a budget that calls for continuing our innovative approaches to providing transportation services in more environmentally friendly ways – approaches that have helped us become a nationwide model in the fight against global warming.”

New bus and vanpool service

A key highlight of the transportation department’s proposed budget is the addition of new bus service to meet passenger demand as part of Metro’s Transit Now initiative. Service will be added for developing areas in the East and South parts of the county, high ridership and core routes throughout the county, and through partnerships with businesses and jurisdictions. Metro will also continue to work toward implementing RapidRide bus rapid transit service in five heavily traveled corridors in the county beginning in 2010.

Metro is also proposing to add new vanpools and begin taking delivery of new hybrid buses next year. Those clean and green buses will complement Metro’s current articulated hybrid fleet, one of the largest in the nation. Services for transit passengers with disabilities will additionally be expanded to better meet service “gaps” identified in the Transit Now plan.

While Transit Now funding is identified for service expansion, the proposed budget includes a 25-cent fare increase to maintain the existing system. It would be the first bus fare increase since 2001. Fuel costs have tripled and operating costs have increased 37 percent during those seven years. The 25-cent fare increase would give Metro Transit greater financial stability at a time when it is recording the fastest growing increase in bus ridership in the nation. Fares would also more closely match neighboring transit agencies' fares.

Cleaner and greener operations

All KCDOT divisions will carry on efforts to operate with environmentally friendly practices that are also cost efficient. This includes:

• All department divisions will continue their commitment to using a 20 percent mix of biodiesel to power buses and diesel-powered fleet vehicles in 2008.

• The Fleet Administration Division will continue to purchase hybrid electric vehicles to replace older model vehicles as they are retired.
Additionally, Fleet has assumed a leadership role in the region, forming consortiums with other public agencies to develop a market for medium and heavy truck hybrid technology.

• The Road Services Division Coordinated Reduction of Waste Program (CROW) sorts waste materials such as asphalt, concrete, and fill resulting from county road maintenance projects so that they can be effectively reused in road projects and recycled.

• The Road Services Division Street Waste Alternative Program (SWAP), which is a component of CROW, will continue to process tens of thousands of tons of street debris removed from county roads and drains. After processing and testing, about 97 percent of the debris is transformed to clean fill material to use for site reclamation.

• The Airport Division will carry out noise insulation in 100 homes near King County International Airport.

• New facility construction and rehabilitation of existing facilities will be conducted to Leadership in Energy and Environmental (LEED) and King
County Green Building Ordinance standards.

Investing in new technologies, new techniques

King County continues to invest in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), which has modernized existing traffic signal systems along arterials and major transit routes throughout the county maximizing the efficient use of existing roadways. The Puget Sound Regional Council recognizes traffic operations management as one of the most cost efficient way to reduce congestion.

The executive’s 2008 budget continues work on five critical ITS corridors upgrading 30 traffic signals resulting in anticipated travel-time savings of 30 percent during the peak periods.

Another key area of modernization is the countywide culvert replacement program. Since 1999, the Road Services Division has replaced almost 100 culverts underneath the roadways in unincorporated King County, opening up many miles of stream habitat. In addition to benefiting fish, the size, structure and configuration of the replacement culverts have multiple benefits for the county's road system and the traveling public. The proposed budget includes funds for up to 18 culvert replacements in 2008.

Taniguchi said the majority of the road projects in 2008 will focus on preserving and maintaining the existing network. He said without new revenue sources, King County will likely only be able to fund high-priority safety and preservation projects in the future. Projects that increase capacity, or are not considered as high-priority safety or preservation cannot be funded at this time.

He said increasing costs of operating, maintaining, and preserving the county road network combined with revenue losses from federal and state sources result in a $32 million reduction in the Road’s capital program over the next six years. Those projects have been deferred beyond the Roads Division’s six-year planning horizon.

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