The Seattle City Council Tuesday approved a new 20-year transportation plan for transit, street, sidewalk, and bridge projects across Seattle that will serve as the framework for the planned $1.35 billion transportation levy renewal vote this fall.
While still massive in scale and the result of a two-year process of outreach, bureaucracy, and budgeting, Mayor Bruce Harrell and council leadership are emphasizing the plan’s focus on day to day issues like potholes, sidewalks, and costly infrastructure repairs over the ambitious new initiatives and projects it might eventually spawn.
“It’s time for us to prioritize the bold basics of local government. From filling potholes to expanding access to public transit, this 20-year vision for the future of Seattle’s roads does just that,” District 3 Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth, vice chair of the council’s Transportation Committee, said in a statement. “Local government can’t solve every problem on its own, but when we put our mind to it, we can build world-class transportation infrastructure.”
The Harrell administration plan was little changed by the council and some of the few additions underlined what is being positioned as a more neighborhood-focused approach. Continue reading