It is simultaneously exciting and trying times for transit in Seattle. Over the next few years, dozens of new stops will open in Bellevue, Lynnwood, and Federal Way. At the same time, future extensions are facing dual headwinds of being overly complex and lightly understood, even by elected officials tasked with deciding their locations. On Thursday, the Sound Transit executive board heard testimony from the community about where to identify as preferred station locations in the Chinatown International District and downtown. The meeting was long.
Co-hosts Natalie Argerious and Ray Dubicki talk with The Urbanist’s senior reporter Stephen Fesler about the comings and goings of light rail in the city, what exciting things are coming and the difficult issues facing future development of the system.
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As always, we love to hear from you. Tell us your expectations for the future of light rail in Seattle, and what you want to see from new stations. Reach out to us at podcast [at] theurbanist.org.
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Ray Dubicki is a stay-at-home dad and parent-on-call for taking care of general school and neighborhood tasks around Ballard. This lets him see how urbanism works (or doesn’t) during the hours most people are locked in their office. He is an attorney and urbanist by training, with soup-to-nuts planning experience from code enforcement to university development to writing zoning ordinances. He enjoys using PowerPoint, but only because it’s no longer a weekly obligation.