69 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Crosscut, 9/14/18:

 

Without a third streetcar line, are the other two worth keeping?  

 

 

If all had gone smoothly, Seattle’s downtown streetcar line would’ve opened sometime in 2020. The Center City Connector would be running 1.2 miles from where the First Hill streetcar currently ends in Pioneer Square, up First Avenue, and along Stewart Street to the South Lake Union streetcar’s endpoint near the Westlake Mall downtown.

 

 

Column

[Lightning]

Next stage of this ongoing saga:  At least good news (for now).

From the Seattle Times.

[KevinKorell]

Sort of... but another 5 years seems a long time to wait.  Ideally this could have been in place before the viaduct is taken down, given that the latter also seems to have been continuously delayed.

[Lightning]

Sort of is right.  (I had to dash off earlier to the dentist, so I just had time to post the link and not comment further.)  But at least at this stage, the mayor did not kill the project outright.  And yes, anything and everything [bad] can happen in the next five years, but IF the money is procured and IF construction actually begins, then I think it would be a pretty safe bet.  Even if the grandiose plans for a city-wide streetcar system come to naught, at least the two orphan lines will have been connected.  As you probably know, the viaduct closed on January 11.  We are in "viadoom" hopefully only until the tunnel opens, scheduled for February 4.  In March the buses get kicked out of the transit tunnel forever, not due to any Link scheduling, but rather that the land on which the Convention Place station sat (and from which buses entered the tunnel via the once-northern portal) is being redeveloped with a greatly expanded Convention Center.  The station itself closed a few months ago, but buses have been allowed to drive through the construction site to enter the tunnel up until now and into March, at which time that portal will be closed and eventually sealed and all buses still using the tunnel will be sent packing "upstairs".  

[KevinKorell]

Anti-Streetcar column in Seattle, WA Times, 1/18/19:

 

 

 

What explains Seattle’s streetcar fixation? Look at who really benefits

 

 

 

Mayor Jenny Durkan should have gone with her first instinct. She should have scrapped the Seattle streetcar.

 

 

Column

[KevinKorell]

Opinion in Seattle, WA Times, 1/31/19:

 

 

  Streetcar through downtown Seattle is a smart investment 

 

 

The people have spoken: Whether they currently ride public transit or not, they want more of it; they want it in dedicated lanes; and they want the Center City Connector Streetcar.

 

 

Opinion

[KevinKorell]

Seattle, WA Times, 8/12/19:

 

 

  Seattle City Council approves $9 million loan to restart downtown streetcar work  

 

 

Design work will resume soon on the delayed downtown streetcar, but the project remains years from completion and still faces a multimillion-dollar funding gap.

 

 

Details

[KevinKorell]

Mass Transit Magazine, 8/13/19:

 

 

  Seattle City Council approves $9 million loan to restart downtown streetcar work   

 

 

Design work will resume soon on the delayed downtown streetcar, but the project remains years from completion and still faces a multimillion-dollar funding gap. 

 

 

More

[KevinKorell]

Seattle, WA Times, 6/24/20:

 

Downtown streetcar on hold again as coronavirus craters Seattle city budget

 

 

At one time, a new streetcar through downtown Seattle was expected to open this year. Instead, 2020 will bring more delays for the troubled project.

Article

Cross-posted between Coronavirus forum and regular location for discussion of downtown connector.

[KevinKorell]

On again??

 

KING-TV, Channel 5 in Seattle, WA, 10/6/21:

 

 

    Plans for new streetcar in central downtown resurrected in Seattle's 2022 budget proposal

 

 

Plans for a troubled transit project originally approved by the Seattle City Council in 2014 were revived in the 2022 budget proposal.

 

Read