Transit

Yakima, Boise, Missoula, and Pocatello could see Amtrak service again under a new federal plan that adds a daily route from Seattle to Denver and another running to Chicago on a modified alignment from Amtrak's Empire Builder.

"To put the city on track to meeting its mobility, safety, equity, maintenance, and sustainability goals," the coalition of mobility and climate groups wrote, "Seattle must invest just over $3 billion over the next 8 years" in building 60 miles of dedicated transit corridors, 331 miles of new sidewalks, and 154 miles of new bike facilities, among other goals.

A 10am ribbon-cutting ceremony at Downtown Bellevue Station will inaugurate Eastside light rail service on April 27. 2 Line trains will run between Bellevue and Redmond in advance of full service into Seattle expected in 2025.

After three years of construction to upgrade a water main, rebuild Eastlake Avenue, and install new bus shelters and protected bike lanes, the J Line will open in 2027, replacing Route 70.

Shoreline and North Seattle's evening and weekend transit will see a big boost as Metro restructures its bus network to pair with the soon-to-open Lynnwood Link light rail extension. However, Route 20 and Route 73 with get cut with no replacement service in some sections.

With the launch of RapidRide G service later this year, a whole slate of changes to nearby routes are planned pending adoption by the King County Council. Nearby routes see frequency reductions, with the boosted Route 60 an exception.

A vocal critic of highway expansion, Mello's urbanist vision includes "parks and open space trails, a good transportation network, safe places to walk and bike." He's running for County Executive to seek to implement that vision.

Sound Transit is weighing parking rate structures as it works to expand its fledgling paid parking program to a projected 21 facilities along Link and Sounder lines by 2026.