Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTrans 2011-11-21 Item 3A - SCATBd - 10/18/11 Meeting SummarySOUTH COUNTY AREA TRANSPORTATION BOARD (SCATBd) October 18, 2011 Members Councilmember Wayne Snoey Mayor Dave Hill Councilmember Ralph Shape Carolyn Robertson MEETING SUMMARY Councilmember Joan Hernandez Chris Arkills Councilmember Marcie Palmer Councilmember Jeanne Burbidge Grant Fredricks Councilmember Les Thomas Stacy Trussler Geri Poor Mayor Bart Taylor Steve Roemer Emiko Atherton City of Covington (Chair) City of Algona (Vice Chair) City of SeaTac City of Auburn (Alternate) City of Tukwila King County Executive (Alternate) City of Renton City of Federal Way City of Des Moines (Alternate) City of Kent WSDOT Port of Seattle (Alternate) City of Milton City of Burien (Alternate) King County Council (Alternate) I. Introduction, Comments, September 20 Meeting Summary After introductions Chair Snoey recognized Karen Goroski from the Suburban Cities Association and noted that this would be Karen's last meeting because she will be soon retiring. He thanked her for doing a wonderful job with the Suburban Cities Association and said that they would all miss her. Ms. Goroski thanked the Board, adding that she had learned a lot from the Boardmembers and from staff. The September 20 SCATBd meeting summary was adopted by the Board. II. Connecting Washington Task Force Update Seattle City Councilman Tom Rasmussen Because of meeting conflicts Chair Snoey switched the agenda items and asked Seattle Councilmember Tom Rasmussen to update the Board as a member of Governor Gregoire's Connecting Washington Task Force. Chair Snoey said he was pleased to see the Task Force talking about the preservation and maintenance issues and noted that there needs to be a regional conversation and approach on this issue when the Task Force reports back to the Legislature next year. Mr. Rasmussen began the discussion by saying that he believed he brought a regional perspective to the Task Force discussion because of this role as Chair of Seattle's transportation committee and the various other transportation committees that he has served on in the past. He said the challenge for the Task Force is how to provide 157 SCATBd Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Page 2 mobility for all the people who live in our various communities. He acknowledged the different needs of the people who lived in our rural communities and those who lived in the urban areas and said we have to find a better way to fund transit and transportation needs throughout the region. Mr. Rasmussen said the Governor asked the Task Force to focus on jobs and the economy; he said the challenge to the Task Force is how to craft transportation policies that will help improve our State's economy and get people to and from work. Mr. Rasmussen noted that the SR 167 and SR 509 corridors were listed as priority corridors in Task Force issue papers. He also noted that there were lots of comments from stakeholders in the State's ferry system. He said Seattle welcomes commuters from Kitsap County, but noted the reality of driving on congested Seattle streets, and said there needs to be strong advocacy for transit and street car solutions in Seattle. He also wanted eastern Washington farmers to be able to get their crops to the ports and was concerned about the condition of the "last mile" to the ports. Mr. Rasmussen said that if trucks are continuously stuck in local commuter traffic, they will go elsewhere to move their products out of the state Mr. Rasmussen asked the Board if there were any messages that he could bring back to the Task Force. Councilmember Les Thomas noted that the City of Kent built the 228 Street Corridor with plans to connect with the SR 509 extension. He said one message Mr. Rasmussen could bring back is to complete missing link projects. A competed SR 509/228 Street corridor would bring a lot of freight traffic into the Kent Valley area and would reduce freight traffic on I -5. Chair Snoey also noted there was a missing link issue with the SR 167 corridor and the need to complete the connection to the Port of Tacoma. Mayor Hill cautioned about delivering more traffic to SR 167 while there still was a choke point between the Sumner area and Auburn area on SR 167. Councilmember Burbidge also mentioned the Triangle project at 1 -5 and SR 516, and the need to fund the remaining phases on the project. The Triangle projects would bring benefits to commuter and freight traffic as well as safety benefits. Councilmember Burbidge also talked about the need to complete the light rail to South 272nd Street. Councilmember Ralph Shape noted that SeaTac supported light rail into the South County area and its eventual link to the Tacoma light rail system. Wayne Snoey noted that freight mobility is important to the region and said the public needs to be educated on the role it plays in our region's economy. Mr. Rasmussen said that one way to take pressure off from existing roads is to use transit and light rail. Getting more commuter traffic off the roads will allow freer movement of freight traffic on existing arterials. Chair Snoey discussed the need to improve the Stampede Pass line and the need to crown the tunnel to allow double stacked trains. Carolyn Robertson noted that Auburn's M Street overpass was fully funded and the project should be completed in 2013. She said that his project will help pave the way for the region to use the Stampede Pass line. Geri Poor from the Port of Seattle underscored the need to 158 SCATBd Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Page 3 complete SR 509 corridor, and noted that funding preservation and maintenance projects was critical for the region. Ms. Poor said that the Stampede Pass improvement project might be a good candidate for a public /private partnership project arrangement. III. Reports, Communications and Citizen Requests to Comment Chair Snoey reported that he attended October's Regional Access Mobility Project (RAMP) meeting where Paula Hammond updated the group on state projects and reported on state needs and the revenue short falls the state is now experiencing. He said that the SR 167 and Cross Base Highway projects were Pierce County's high priority projects. He reported that these projects are at the forefront of the discussions now going on at the state level. He said that Eastern Washington Legislators are aware and understand the need for these projects. Councilmember Burbidge briefed the Board on the Transportation Policy Board (TPB) meeting that was held on October 13. She said that TPB was briefed on the progress on the project prioritization process. She reported that the PSRC will go ahead on the project selection process for possible 2012 Federal grant funds, and a task force will be formed to discuss the project selection criteria. Councilmember Shape announced the ribbon cutting of a new electric charging station in front of the SeaTac City Hall. Councilmember Palmer said that Renton is also getting charging stations in front of their city hall, and reported on the opening of a new parking garage in downtown and at the Landing. Councilmember Hernandez reported that the City of Tukwila's urban access center is now open for business and congratulated Tukwila Public Works director Bob Giberson for job well down. IV. Sound Transit Update Brian Stout, from Sound Transit (ST), began the briefing with an update of Sound Transit's revenue forecasts. Mr. Stout explained the differences between the existing revenue forecasts and the forecast that was done prior to the ST 2 vote in 2008. He said that in ST's earlier forecast it anticipated a slowdown in the economy but not the recession that occurred in 2009. There was a 15% drop in sales tax forecasts between the 2008 forecast and the 2011 forecast. Mr. Stout said that about 90% of ST's revenues come from sales tax. The 2008 forecast estimated that it would collect about $15.7 billion in sales taxes between 2009 through 2013; current ST forecast now calls for about $11.7 billion to be collected in same time period. The South King County subarea is down about $894 million, or 32% less than what was originally forecasted. Mr. Stout also said that compared to actual sales tax revenues received to date in 2011, ST is slightly ahead of last year's receipts. Revenue is up about 2.5% over last year. Chair Snoey said that he did not see the 34% drop in sales tax revenues based on city revenue reports. Mr. Stout said the 34% difference was a comparison between forecasts not actual numbers. He said that they were comfortable with their 2011 forecast, they are 159 SCATBd Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Page 4 currently off by 0.7% of their forecast. ST has determined that even if the forecast were off by 5% they could still be able to complete light rail down to Kent/Des Moines Road area. Rachel Smith gave a brief update on the Tukwila Sounder Station. She said that ST was currently in the process of building a permanent station at the current temporary Tukwila Station location in Long Acres. The design of the station will be completed in 2012 and construction is planned to start in August- September of 2012 and will be completed in December 2013. Ms. Smith noted that there were design changes to the parking and platform area to accommodate Strander Boulevard. Chair Snoey asked Tom Gut to give a brief update on the SR 509 technical advisory meeting that was held on October 5 Mr. Gut reported that WSDOT was looking a three tolling alternatives and what can be constructed in the initial phases of the project. WSDOT is currently looking at the traffic and tolling numbers of the three alternatives. Action: Mr. Snoey asked for a motion from the Board to approve a support letter for Sound Transit's TIGER III application to extend light rail to S. 200th Street in the City of SeaTac. The motion was made, seconded and approved to send a SCATBd letter of support for ST's TIGER III grant application. II. King County's Strategic Plan for Roads Services (SPRS) Briefing Doug Hodson, King County Road Services Division, briefed the Board on King County Road Services Strategic Plan. He said the main theme of the strategic plan is to focus on a smaller set of priorities because of the Division's declining revenues. Mr. Hodson noted that while the unincorporated area was getting smaller, traffic from cities still played a big role in the County's transportation system. He said that 65% of the Division's revenues come from property taxes and 12% come from gas tax, both of which have been declining in recent years. Reimbursable fees also provide some funding, and includes maintenance work that the County does for cities. The top three priorities for the Division are meeting its regulatory needs, meeting its core safety needs, and maintaining the existing road network. Addressing mobility needs and capacity needs are lower priorities Mr. Hodson said the County does not have enough revenues to fulfill its top three priorities. He said that the County needed $170 $180 million annually, to maximize the life cycle of its existing transportation system. The County's Strategic Plan calls for about $120 $130 million annually which would allow a moderate decline in the County's transportation assets. Mr. Hodson, however, said the County currently has a $20 to $30 million shortfall -it has a little over half of what it needs to maintain the current condition is transportation assets. 160 SCATBd Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Page 5 This shortfall has caused King County to propose a tiered service level approach on how it will maintain its assets and to make the most of its limited revenues. The County is proposing to designate all of the County's roadway into one of five tiers: Tier 1 Most vital roads in the network will receive the highest level of storm response, including the first roads to receive snow removal. Users of Tier 1 roads should expect good road and bridge condition and well maintained drainage. These roads will receive the highest level of maintenance and preservation Tier 2 Heavily traveled roads will receive a lower level of storm and snow response. Will receive maintenance to keep them in good condition. In general, preservation efforts will be more reactive and prioritized based on level of risk and availability of funding. Tier 3 Highly used local roads will receive little to no storm and snow response, especially during significant storms. Maintenance and preservation will focus on slowing deterioration, but users should expect to see wear and tear to roadways, possible load limits, lower posted speed limits, and long -term partial closures. Tier 4 Local roads with a single access point will receive virtually no storm and snow response. Maintenance will be limited to activities that preserve access. Users may expect to see a number of one -lane roads with some downgraded to a gravel surface, depending on the level of deterioration and availability of funding. Tier 5 Local roads that have alternative routes available for travel in case of road closures will receive virtually no storm and snow response. Maintenance will be limited and based on factors such as life safety and risk, resulting in a growing number of deteriorating roads. Users can expect to see some closures, which may result in longer detours and difficulty accessing property. These roads may also be downgraded to a gravel surface, restricted to one lane, and have load limits and lower speed limits. Mr. Hodson said that this approach is now before the King County Council for consideration and that they are currently meeting with stakeholders to explain this asset management proposal. Mr. Hodson said that they are also taking the opportunity to work with the Governor's Connecting Washington Task Force and their outreach with cities to talk about possible new revenue sources that would make up some of the revenue shortfalls. Mr. Arkills pointed out that despite the recent annexations of unincorporated areas into cities; King County still has to pay for the debt service on the roads it built in the past. He mentioned the South Park Bridge as an example and noted that even if Seattle annexes the bridge, King County will still have to pay off the bonds. Chair Snoey asked Ms. Atherton about what the Council thought about this proposal. Ms. Atherton said that Council staff is currently reviewing the proposal, and it is a high priority topic at the Council. Chair Snoey ask Mr. Hodson how the County will address those arterials that straddle city /county line. Mr. Hodson said that this is part of the discussions that they are having with the public work directors of those cities. 161 SCATBd Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Page 6 Chair Snoey reminded the Board that Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive, was going to attend the next meeting, and that he was looking for volunteers for a nominating Committee for next year's Chair and Vice Chair. Other Attendees: Cathy Mooney, City of Kent Jim Seitz, City of Renton Doug Hodson, King County Dennis Dowdy, City of Auburn Brian Stout, Sound Transit Rick Perez, City of Federal Way Tom Rasmussen, City of Seattle Councilmember Bob Giberson, City of Tukwila Rachel Smith, Sound Transit Paul Takamine, King County DOT Monica Whitman, SCA Karen Goroski, SCA Cathal Ridge, Sound Transit Doug Levy 162