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@skubly.bsky.social

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@skubly.bsky.social · 4d ago

If they find money by 2033 we are on track. The cynic in me says “wow 1.5 election cycles from now. Well after anyone on the board will face electoral consequences and well after the current CEO retires.” To use a football metaphor The Prevent Defense www.theurbanist.org/full-ballard...

Full Ballard Link Line Could Take Until 2060 To Build, Sound Transit Says

The new 2060 timeline for light rail stations in Interbay and Ballard assumes Sound Transit isn't able to unearth any major cost savings or unlock additional financial tools. But the agency painted an...

theurbanist.org

@skubly.bsky.social · 5d ago

At this point supporting ST doesn’t make you a fan of transit. It makes you a fan of public works spending. Transit fans should be appalled at our cost being 2x-3x our international peers. We get less transit, slower because ST is not competent. www.theurbanist.org/full-ballard...

Full Ballard Link Line Could Take Until 2060 To Build, Sound Transit Says

The new 2060 timeline for light rail stations in Interbay and Ballard assumes Sound Transit isn't able to unearth any major cost savings or unlock additional financial tools. But the agency painted an...

theurbanist.org

@skubly.bsky.social · 5d ago

@kirkhovenkotter.com sound transit needs to be pushed to do better. Not spend more. The rest of the world does this better than us. It’s not about spending less on transit. It’s about getting more for every dollar we spend.

Trevor Reed@transportreform.bsky.social · 5d ago

Having $18.1B in identified funding ($2.3B per mile) and it not being enough is the issue. Skytrain's Broadway Extension opening in '27 is delivering 6 underground stations over 3.5 miles (3.1 tunneled, .4 elevated) for $~600M per mile (US). www.broadwaysubway.ca

@skubly.bsky.social · 5d ago

Back in April @transportreform.bsky.social and I forecast 2059. This was a very simple exercise. This is not a 3.5 month exercise. People need to be less credulous of sound transit when they avoid answering questions or dissemble.

Bild
Ryan Packer@typewriteralley.bsky.social · 5d ago

Sound Transit: "If the region does not secure additional savings or financial capacity and must wait for existing revenues to accumulate, Link service to Smith Cove, Interbay, and Market Street could be delayed until around 2060." www.soundtransit.org/blog/platfor...

@skubly.bsky.social · 2w ago

Regulatory creep is real. If your job is to draft regulations you have a structural disincentive to say “Cool. We’re done”. This doesn’t mean regulations is bad. Or new regulations aren’t sometimes needed.

Derek Young@derekmyoung.bsky.social · 2w ago

Smart deregulation can be left-coded too. For people to trust government, it can’t be unnecessarily burdensome. A good rule is to constantly monitor the tradeoffs. For example, some well-intended environmental regs actually cause more degradation by pushing development into greenfields.

@skubly.bsky.social · last mo.

Prediction: West Seattle won’t compete well for federal funds. At some point money will get shifted from Ballard to WS to backfill fed funds. Making Ballard even less likely.

Ryan Packer@typewriteralley.bsky.social · last mo.

Incredible: Sound Transit's monthly system expansion status report (out today) now states that the Ballard Link DEIS is not expected until *QUARTER FOUR* of this year. There was a time not that long ago when Sound Transit had hoped to get a record of decision by that time.

Cost: The new target publication date for the Draft EIS is Q4 2026 (previously Q2 2026). Based on cost trends, comparative cost estimates are expected to exceed the financial plan value. The project team is applying cost savings opportunities identified through the Cost Opportunity Workplan and continuing to identify additional opportunities. Current estimates are reflected in the Enterprise Initiative scenarios that the Board is considering. Schedule: Project is advancing design and preparing to publish a Draft EIS pending final FTA guidance regarding executive orders and legal review. Board action to confirm/modify Preferred Alternative will follow Draft EIS publication. Overall project schedule is under review. A Board update is planned following publication of the Draft EIS.
Trevor Reed@transportreform.bsky.social · last mo.

Great op-ed by @nondriver.bsky.social "In the context of Sound Transit, this would mean asking why, with the ability to appoint 10 of the 18 board members, the King County Executive wasn’t able to negotiate more for King County access in the recent re-alignment" open.substack.com/pub/ericacba...

How Do We Get Transit Champions on Transit Boards?

Sound Transit's board is dominated by elected officials who don't use the system they oversee. But it doesn't have to be that way.

open.substack.com

@skubly.bsky.social · last mo.

The US transit industry refuses to learn and advocates (to often) refuse to push for better outcomes. It’s almost as if spending is the goal and excellent transit is a happy accident.

Stephen Jacob Smith@stephenjacobsmith.com · last mo.

I wrote this article 12 years ago. Nothing has changed. Horodniceanu and Prendergast are gone, but new transit leaders across the US and Canada are still playing dumb (or actually are??) about this. It’s very depressing if you care about transit! nextcity.org/urbanist-new...

@skubly.bsky.social · 2mo ago

My coauthor pulled their name because they couldn't risk losing funding from the project delivery industry. That is politics, but it should also raise big red flags. We need to start saying the quiet part out loud and we should be able to say it without fear www.seattletimes.com/opinion/soun...

Sound Transit needs a massive reset. Here's how that could work | Op-Ed

The governor and Legislature should stop treating Sound Transit as a normal agency with a temporary budget problem.

seattletimes.com

@skubly.bsky.social · 2mo ago

This is great and something to be proud of. But the US doesn’t build much rail and the rail that it does build is too expensive. If we could build at the same cost as Europe and Asia we could have 2x to 3x the rail and 2x to 3x the ridership. We should celebrate but not be satisfied.

The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 2mo ago

With the boost from the expanded 2 Line, Seattle's Link rail system is humming along at 160,000 daily riders, according to new April data. That makes it the busiest light rail system in the U.S. Story: www.theurbanist.org/sound-transi...

Alkinoos@alkinooskanaris.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Have you seen how cheap Spanish metros are to build? Well actually, I have and I will tell you all about it! I had the chance to visit the extension of line 11 in Madrid, where I learned a lot about their construction methods, peculiarities and processes. Let me take you along! A thread 🧵 (1/11)

Map of the extension I found online (not official, not the best, gets the job done regardless)Construction site of Comillas station, featuring the cross section of the tunnel as an exhibit overground.
@skubly.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Food for thought when contemplating Boeing Access. WMATA built the Potomac Yard infill station for $370M in 2023. A larger more complicated project than Being access. For $100m less We are cutting scope because ST can sharpen its pencil and learn from others. dcist.com/story/23/05/...

Metro’s Potomac Yard Station Is Open: Here’s What You Need To Know | DCist

The new station currently sits among lots of building construction, but officials say the station will spur growth in the quickly developing neighborhood.

dcist.com

The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 2mo ago

👀 “I really do think it’s time to start talking about governance. If we’re in this constant cycle of crisis, recovery, crisis, recovery, crisis, recovery, maybe a board full of people who are expert at transit running a transit agency and delivering transit projects would be more attuned.”

Erica C. Barnett@ericacbarnett.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Sound Transit Sacrifices Light Rail to Ballard, Moves Long-Deferred Graham Station Forward, in Latest "Realignment" Claudia Balducci, the longest-serving board member, told PubliCola the latest crisis has made her rethink the transit agency's governance by a changing roster of elected officials.