Seattle’s unbelievable transportation megaproject fustercluck

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://grist.org/cities/seattles-unbelievable-transportation-megaproject-fustercluck/
Seattle’s unbelievable transportation megaproject fustercluck
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In short: There is no plan to resolve the dispute over cost overruns, which are ubiquitous on projects like this; at $4.2 billion, it’s the most expensive transportation project in state history. The tunnel will have no exits — no ingress or egress — throughout the entire downtown core (which makes the support of downtown businesses all the more mystifying). It won’t allow transit, only cars. It will be tolled, highly enough, by the state’s own estimates, to drive nearly half its traffic onto the aforementioned side streets. It will be a precarious engineering feat, the widest deep-bore tunnel in history, digging right between a) Puget Sound and b) the oldest part of Seattle, with vulnerable buildings and God-knows-what buried infrastructure. Also: Pollution. Climate change. It’s the 21st f’ing century. On and on. People said all this and more, in real time, to no avail.

One of the people fighting hardest against the tunnel? Visionary mayor Mike McGinn, who spent his term in office warning that exactly what is happening now was going to happen. For his efforts, Seattle voted him out of office. We prefer to hang on to our illusions.

Holden’s 2010 list of things that might go wrong with the project began with this:

1. The tunnel-boring machine gets stuck

Spoiler alert: The machine got stuck.

2. Our plan to deal with a broken machine is inadequate

Spoiler alert: Our plan to deal with the machine is a slow-motion fiasco.

3. The ground caves in

Spoiler alert: … Oh, you get it.

—

[ismnotwasm]

1. I voted against that idiocy.

It's shit-for-brains stupid and I'm pissed.

[easychoice]

2. the people who will benefit from it are not paying for it.

Nobody wanted it,we knew it was going to end up like this.Because the Company doing it doesn't have the experience or the money or the expertise.My Bridge engineer buddies who work for the state were screaming their asses off about these clowns.
And since we are in it for a billion we aren't going to stop,say the project managers.
Buncha Jerks.

[brooklynite]

3. Bear in mind that most traffic on the Alaskan Way viaduct is not entering or exiting downtown...

...there's only one intermediate interchange, for southern traffic only. The goal of the tunnel was to tear down the viaduct, to improve the waterfront area and to prevent an earthquake collapse. The only practical alternative would have been to tear down the viaduct, build nothing and push ALL the traffic onto local streets.

[uppityperson]

4. A bit from the OP, wondering your thoughts. I thought so also, but then reading more, it doesn't

seem like that would happen.

Turns out most people simply can’t fathom getting rid of an urban highway. No matter how many examples to the contrary accumulate, people instinctively think that tearing down a highway means that all the same traffic will just spill onto side streets.

In the OP article is the link to this story about that not happening.
http://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/2014/may/what-other-cities-learned-tearing-down-highways?single=1

[brooklynite]

6. I drive on West Street regularly. The difference between that and the West Side highway is...

...that I now have to stop for traffic lights.

[ismnotwasm]

7. To me that was the only viable alternative, aside from putting off the decision.

I hated, loathed, despised the tunnel idea, the viaduct was lovely to drive over, but worn out--a decent city thoroughfare was the best option.

But no-- we get a frigging tunnel going through landfill just blocks away from the old underground-- and not just the tourist trap

[AtheistCrusader]

10. Um, northbound has the Seneca and Western offramps...

For onramps, the bell st. ramp is technically past the viaduct's endpoint, and is also total suicide to use... But there's the 1st ave ramp by Railroad St. that used to exist prior to the start of this project. (I think they moved it over behind the Pyramid Alehouse) The onramps sort of bookend downtown proper.

[freeplessinseattle]

14. Where's all the Western st exit traffic going to go?

It's already a nightmare just trying to get a few blocks around that area. I bet a lot of them would opt to head towards Mercer onto 5-jamming up that traffic doozy that seems to have only gotten worse since the big Mercer project.

I would seriously lose my mind if I had to do that commute daily like all those drivers do!

[davidpdx]

5. The hole looks like the beginnings of Mitt Romney's new car elevator

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. What could possibly go wrong? Sounds like just about everything.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

9. What next? Is it going to flood?

[AtheistCrusader]

11. Well, the seawall isn't done, so technically, yes, it is flooding right now.

[AtheistCrusader]

12. Mayor McGinn was right. City of Seattle is on the hook for all cost overruns too.

This thing is going to hit 5 billion, EASY.

[freshwest]

13. All you had to say was the word 'toll' and you know it's gone wrong. Meanwhile, what has proven to

work that the former mayor supported, goes begging for money to keep operating...

[kickysnana]

15. Following a hearing in the Twin Cities attendee spoke of all parties are on "light rail crack".

(I googled for the sound bite clip but did not find it.)

He hit the nail on the head. It seemed they had to go ahead with the boondoggle because of the free cash despite the outcome and impact. Outcome slowing and concentrating trains for buses and environmental. small business and neighborhood impact.

They ran light rail from downtown St Paul to Minneapolis along University ave which went to the U of M but was through a poor part of St Paul. Then were planning on having no stops the last 4 miles so from Snelling to the State Capital for those less fortunate people would not upset the apple cart. of hip urban transport. Also an express bus trip from downtown to downtown on I94 took 20 originally but they added stops before the freeway to slow it down so the shock of 45-60 final minute trip with no alternative would take more time. They also got the revenue for the buses from passengers. Nobody on the trains to collect them or to handle mayhem and mischief on the train. It is an on your honor system and my kids who live in the city say nobody pays. No way for passengers to know who pays and who doesn't so there isn't even the guilting factor in operation. (My kids drive they are repeating colleagues and neighbors water cooler talk.)

I know I want my commute to be three times longer and a chance I still will have to get off the train and onto a bus inc case of a breakdown or accident several times a year.