Road vs. rail: Nickels, Freeman spar over Proposition 1

The city of Seattle was once called "New York Alki," but when it comes to transit demand, we're no Big Apple.

That's the argument from developer and Sound Transit Proposition 1 opponent Kemper Freeman, who argued in a debate Wednesday that residents will never tolerate the population density that makes rail commuting attractive in New York.

Because of our relatively spread-out communities, Sound Transit's proposed light-rail extensions, on the Nov. 4 ballot, will not reduce road congestion, Freeman said.

"Our leaders have led us on a wild-goose chase on this issue. We can't solve this problem with transit," said Freeman, who favors more road lanes, van pools and buses instead.

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, a longtime rail backer, countered that the region has already made the collective decision to shift from sprawl to density, especially at proposed rail destinations such as downtown Bellevue.

"We will have a more dense and vibrant urban area, and be able to concentrate growth around the stations," said Nickels, who is chairman of Sound Transit's governing board. About 80 people, mostly students, attended the low-key debate at the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Affairs.

"My vision for the transportation system is not one that is shaped entirely, or even mostly, by the automobile," Nickels said. In his vision, "the most difficult choice someone would have is what color shoes to wear, to either walk to work or walk to transit."

Proposition 1 projects would cost $17.9 billion through 2023. Most of the money would pay for 34 miles of new light-rail track reaching Lynnwood, north Federal Way, and the Overlake Transit Center, near Microsoft. A First Hill streetcar in Seattle, a two-thirds increase in south-end commuter-train capacity and an express-bus-service increase are also in the plan.

Sales taxes in urban King, Pierce and Snohomish counties would increase by a nickel per $10 purchase, on top of existing sales and car-tab taxes, for three decades if projects stay on budget.

Light rail's first phase, from downtown Seattle to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, is scheduled to open next year.

Both Nickels and Freeman used a few wobbly statistics.

Nickels said the rail system "will create capacity for up to 1 million people a day to take light rail rather than a freeway." While that's theoretically possible, trains would need to be crammed full in all directions, around the clock, to carry that many at any given point. Sound Transit officially forecasts 286,000 one-way boardings systemwide on light rail per weekday in 2030.

Freeman argued that electric trains aren't really green. He said that nationally, about 80 percent of energy comes from fossil fuels. In fact, the Northwest's electricity comes predominantly from emission-free hydroelectric dams.

Only about one-fifth of car trips are by commuters, observed Freeman, the developer of Bellevue Square Mall. So fixed-rail transit serves only a fraction of a fraction of all trips, he said. Therefore, it wouldn't reduce congestion.

Nickels replied that it's precisely the rush hour when a rail option would pay off.

"We have plenty of concrete out there for our nonwork trips," he said. "The problem is we're all trying to get to work, or to the university, at the same time."

Mike Lindblom: 206-515-5631 or mlindblom@seattletimes.com