Call to Action: Urge State Senators to Fund High Speed Rail Study

Last week, the Washington State House came through with $900,000 to partially fund a business case study of high-speed rail connecting Vancouver, Seattle, and...
Recreation of the Seattle flag. Cent sign on a blue back ground with text "Penny Wise Pound Foolish"

Op-Ed: Seattle is the Capital of Toxic Frugality

Next week is standardized testing at the kiddos’ school. The normal seven-class-a-day schedule will be reorganized to allow morning and afternoon blocks long enough...
Youth climate activists organized the first Fridays for the Future rally on March 22, 2019. District 4 City Council candidate Shaun Scott attended and gave a brief talk encouraging activists. (Photo by author)

It’s Well Past Time We Ditch Fossil Fuels

Yesterday, Mayor Jenny Durkan announced executive action ending the use of fracked gas infrastructure in City buildings. It represents a small step toward decoupling...

The Unfinished Promise of the Center City Connector

Pioneer Square has the most to potentially lose--but also gain--from the connection of Seattle’s downtown streetcar lines. During her daily commute into Pioneer Square...

Why Seattle Needs Inclusionary Zoning, Explained By The Bid-Rent Curve

“Barriers to spatial mobility are barriers to social mobility.” - American Apartheid Every morning Sandy McKay gets in her Volvo hatchback and joins the flow...
A public mural from the New Deal arts program. (William Gropper / Public Domain)

Should The Government Invest in High-Speed Rail to Boost a Post-Pandemic Economic Recovery?

As we live through the current moment, it is difficult to understate the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on the world. While...

Sunday Video: Tourists Love ‘Live Like A Local’ Travel. Do Locals?

https://youtu.be/8BGABFTKHpM Touristification on Lisbon has been swift, leaving many locals to wonder how they fit in with the city. With the global rise of tourism,...
A BNSF freight train heads north along the Puget Sound coast, passing under the pedestrian bridge at Carkeek Park. A tree-covered ridge is on the left.

Op-Ed: PCC Provides Model for State Rail Ownership in Washington State

Railroad giants like BNSF have often deferred maintenance on their tracks and pressured government to pay for it. This had led some officials to consider taking over ownership, like Washington State did with the Palouse River & Coulee City (PCC) Railroad. Collin Reid lays out the case for greater government intervention in freight rail.