Charged with adding over 8,500 stalls, Sound Transit is facing rampant costs that call its park and ride strategy into question.
Park and ride can be convenient, but at what point does the investment become simply too costly? The Seattle region faces that question as it constructs new parking garages to fulfill its Sound Transit 3 plan. Mike Lindblom writes, "The voter-approved Sound Transit 3 plan, featuring eight light-rail extensions, bus-rapid transit and more Sounder service, calls for 8,560 more parking stalls across three counties."
Costs for a garage in Kent have soared, due in part to steep land prices and a contractor-friendly market. Says Lindblom, "The new figures average out to $118,000 a space, though the project includes $3 million for improvements unrelated to parking, such as passenger drop-off areas, new bus shelters, walk and bike paths, and illumination."
FULL STORY: $100,000 per parking space? Costs soar for Sound Transit’s Kent park-and-ride garage
West Seattle Link Expansion Could Cost $7 Billion
Sound Transit is moving forward with a proposed route despite severe cost overruns, throwing other major rail projects into question.
Checking in on the Progress of the Sound Transit 3 Plan
The Seattle area's $53.8 billion transit expansion plan is moving along in fits and starts.
The Northgate Link Extension Is Great, But Voters Want More
A recent survey of Seattle voters finds widespread support for the continued expansion of the Link light rail system in Seattle.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association