Washington

Seattle Needs Walk-Up Testing for People Without Access to Cars
Disability rights advocates and people who rely on public transit put pressure on Mayor Jenny Durkan to develop a plan for pedestrian access to coronavirus testing centers in Seattle.

All Sound Transit Routes Get New, Alphanumeric Names
The "Red Line" didn't fly with people living in neighborhoods historically redlined by discriminatory real estate and land use practices.

Part II: The New Regionalism of the Coronavirus Pandemic
Part I was shutting down the economy on a multi-state basis in the absence of federal leadership. Part II will be opening them up in spite of federal assertiveness.

Another State (Ohio) Gets It Right
Washington and California have been praised for early efforts to mitigate community spread of the novel coronavirus, resulting in relatively low rates of infection, hospitalization, and ultimately, death. Add Ohio to the bunch.

Questioning Washington State's Commitment to Greenhouse Gas Reductions
Lawmakers in Washington state fell short of passing comprehensive legislation this year to meet long-term goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Project For Public Spaces Launches Initiative to Improve Marketplaces Worldwide
Project for Public Spaces' Market Cities Initiative seeks to understand and addresses challenges faced by the public marketplaces to improve market infrastructure and promote healthy food systems in local communities.

Seattle Interbay Industrial Plan Is Dead
Many elements of the plan for the Ballard-Interbay were never implemented, and its relevance as a planning document is over.

Digital Design Review Approved in Seattle
Emergency legislation has cleared the way for a virtual design review process to keep the wheels of the development industry moving in one of the nation's fastest growing cities.

Learning from Seattle
The original epicenter of coronavirus outbreak was also the first region in the nation to implement social distancing measures, serving as a national model of behaviors that lessen the spread of the deadly virus.

Counties in Louisiana, Georgia Lead Nation in COVID Death Rate
All eyes are fixed on New York City, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak with its skyrocketing deaths, but the six counties with the highest number of coronavirus deaths per capita are in two Southern states as of April 1. Manhattan is #7.

Straight Talk from White House Public Health Experts on What to Expect
The public got to view the models that caused the president on Monday to extend the White House Coronavirus Guideline for 30 days. Dr. Deborah Birx, who led the presentation, emphasized that success will come down to behavior to reduce fatalities.

As Coronavirus Spreads, Air Pollution Plummets
More people are driving less and staying at home. The result is significant improvements in air quality in cities across the country.

King County Postpones August Target for Transit Sales Tax Initiative
King County, home to Seattle, will wait to ask voters to approve a 0.2% sales tax for funding transit until a time both when transit use is higher, and people aren’t facing waves of sudden unemployment.

$10 Billion Approved for Highway Funding in Washington State
Despite the drastic funding limitation imposed by Washington's voter-approved Initiative 976, the state found a way to fund $10.4 billion in (mostly highway) transportation projects.

Density in the Pandemic Era
High population density is viewed as an environmental benefit in terms of decreasing emissions, particularly from transportation, but from the public health perspective of containing the spread of COVID-19, it might be a significant negative.

Bikes Gain Popularity as People Ditch Subways and Buses
Bike counts and bike share rides are increasing in two of the country's largest cities as commuters look for transportation modes that allow for physical distancing.

Mountain Coal States vs. West Coast Cities
A legal battle is being waged between the coal-exporting states of Utah, Wyoming, and Montana and coastal cities in California, Oregon, and Washington that pits the power of local land-use authority against the protection of interstate commerce.

Dispute Over Siting of Coronavirus Quarantine Facility in Washington State
The Seattle area is ground zero for the coronavirus in the U.S., where 10 of the 11 deaths as of March 5 have occurred. King County's decision to purchase a motel in Kent for use as a quarantine facility is being met with protests by city officials.

NIMBY Politics Sway the Fight to Contain Coronavirus
A week after the Orange County city of Costa Mesa filed a restraining order against the federal government and the state of California over the use of a state-owned facility as an isolation site for coronavirus patients, the feds dropped the plan.

Utah Officials Want to Replace the State Gas Tax
The state auditor and the transportation chief argue that the gas tax is an unsustainable funding source caused by a projected increase in electric vehicle adoption and an increase in fuel efficiency of gas-powered vehicles.
Pagination
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