It's about time! I lived in Seattle and then in Boston and couldn't believe the billions that are being spent on the Big Dig when Seattle, a modern city and very environmentally conscious one, had no solution on the table to improve the traffic conditions. I hope this will be completed by the time I move back.
Keep in mind that one difference between Seattle and Austin is that half of the population is connected to the other half of the population and the CBD by six bridges, four of which are drawbridges a mere four lanes wide. The backup at the Montlake bridge is atrocious most afternoons, and the ride from the U District isn't much better. The light rail should funnel a lot of Capitol Hill single-occupant traffic off of Montlake/23rd.
The bad news is that our neighborhood, which was supposed to have the original terminal station, won't be getting light rail until they can get another bond issue going... sometime after the first rail section opens in 2009.
We have largely the same geographic condition - for us it would be the number of bridges crossing Town Lake and Lake Austin. For us, though, the CBD is on the same side as the majority of the population. However, Austin also has a couple of advantages to make up for that deficit - the University of Texas and the Capitol. UT is even more land-locked and urban than UW is, and the Capitol itself is a huge attractor you don't have. Both of those, being public employers, don't provide free or even cheap parking, which means there's a built-in market for transit beyond the office tower crowd (who generally DO have parking, and thus must be wooed on non-financial terms).
It's about time! I lived in Seattle and then in Boston and couldn't believe the billions that are being spent on the Big Dig when Seattle, a modern city and very environmentally conscious one, had no solution on the table to improve the traffic conditions. I hope this will be completed by the time I move back.
Posted by: Jeremy | November 19, 2005 03:33 PM
Keep in mind that one difference between Seattle and Austin is that half of the population is connected to the other half of the population and the CBD by six bridges, four of which are drawbridges a mere four lanes wide. The backup at the Montlake bridge is atrocious most afternoons, and the ride from the U District isn't much better. The light rail should funnel a lot of Capitol Hill single-occupant traffic off of Montlake/23rd.
The bad news is that our neighborhood, which was supposed to have the original terminal station, won't be getting light rail until they can get another bond issue going... sometime after the first rail section opens in 2009.
Posted by: dw | November 20, 2005 08:49 PM
We have largely the same geographic condition - for us it would be the number of bridges crossing Town Lake and Lake Austin. For us, though, the CBD is on the same side as the majority of the population. However, Austin also has a couple of advantages to make up for that deficit - the University of Texas and the Capitol. UT is even more land-locked and urban than UW is, and the Capitol itself is a huge attractor you don't have. Both of those, being public employers, don't provide free or even cheap parking, which means there's a built-in market for transit beyond the office tower crowd (who generally DO have parking, and thus must be wooed on non-financial terms).
Posted by: M1EK | November 21, 2005 09:59 AM