Seattle pedestrians, light-rail plans pick up the pace

TWO easily overlooked announcements in the news this week are handy bench marks for progress toward keeping Seattle moving, now and in the future.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Sen. Patty Murray had dueling news releases about federal Recovery Act Funds coming to Sound Transit's University Link light-rail extension from downtown to the University District.

The federal government recently committed to covering $813 million of the $1.9 billion cost for a twin-bore tunnel that covers 3.15 miles and runs beneath Highway 520 and the Lake Washington Ship Canal. Local voters agreed to make up the balance.

The announcement represents an early, $44 million infusion of cash to maintain the momentum for the project, which will have an underground station on Capitol Hill and another at the University of Washington, near Husky Stadium.

A full block of completed demolition on Capitol Hill is the eventual home for the station, at Broadway and East John Street, but will also provide entry and exit points for tunnel-boring machines heading toward campus and downtown. A community meeting Thursday night was already focused on pedestrian safety in the area as work picks up.

Downtown, a contractor's sky-blue job shack popped up on a parking lot for work on a separate but related project, an Interstate 5 undercrossing, which is part of prep work for the twin tunnels. Passageways in I-5 reinforcing walls will be open temporarily to allow boring machines to pass through. On the surface, adjustments for drivers are coming, and begin with the closure of the Olive Way offramp from northbound I-5 later this month.

This is light-rail work in progress that will eventually move tens of thousands of passengers daily between two busy population and work centers, and lighten traffic on north-south routes.

Another giant step forward came Wednesday night with City Hall's release of a Pedestrian Master Plan. The goal is simple: make Seattle a safer place to walk and drive. The six-year plan calls for crosswalks, sidewalks, warning signs, traffic lights, education and enforcement.

Seattle voters committed themselves to the $60 million price tag, part of a property-tax levy six times that amount for transit, streets and bicycle improvements.

Spending on mobility — the ability to quickly get from here to there safely — is an investment in the future that pays dividends. Time is money for business, commuters and busy families. Seattle has moved beyond grumbling to a work in progress.