New Post: Seattle Rallies to Save Ballard Rail seattletransitblog.com/2026/04/20/s...

Seattle Rallies to Save Ballard Rail People walk past the planned site for the Ballard Link station. On Sunday, hundreds of Seattleites and transit advocates walked from Ballard to Interbay and Smith Cove, roughly following the planne…

In response to Sound Transit considering a truncated Ballard Link extension, hundreds of Seattleites marched from Ballard to Smith Cove. “Save Ballard rail, don’t stop short” they shouted along the walk.

Full story: seattletransitblog.com/2026/04/20/s...

fremont bridge when?

Friday Roundtable: Incorrect Signs, Part 2 In December, we took a look at a few incorrect signs in the Puget Sound transit network. Many of these signs have since been fixed, but the region’s quickly growing transit system has resulte…

Incorrect wayfinding signs are a growing pain for Seattle’s transit system and should be corrected as soon as possible. Incorrect signs are, at best, confusing and, at worst, a barrier to using transit.

seattletransitblog.com/2026/04/17/f...

Guerrilla urbanism!

Seattle might actually leading the pack when it comes to planning transportation for World Cup attendees.

I like that photos like this show that population growth does not automatically equal traffic-geddon

100 days in, Harrell says assessing the city's needs is 'first order of business'

The Seattle Times forgot to give Katie Wilson an intensely flattering front page retrospective on her first 100 days, I wonder what is different about this administration.

Social housing coming to Seattle this year

In-depth, detailed interview with Interim CEO @tiffanimc.bsky.social about where SSHD is at — “Despite all of the interest in Vienna’s social housing, there’s really only one American city that is seriously seeking to copy this model whole cloth.” www.remappingdebate.org/article/soci...

The Mayor's Office just confirmed with me that the plan is for Bicycle Weekend closures to start around 7pm Friday night and extend through Monday morning. The days of one sunset ride along an open Lake Washington Boulevard per weekend look to be in the past.

7 floor apartment building in Redmond.

Pedestrian street between two apartment buildings next to the downtown Redmond Link station.

Numerous apartment buildings overlooking Redmond’s Downtown Park.

More apartment buildings in Redmond.

Redmond is a model for suburban development near a Link station.

Friday Roundtable: Intercity Bus Routes Map of intercity routes in the United States (University of Illinois) The Urban Traffic & Economics Lab at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has created GFTS (General Transit Feed Specifi…

Intercity bus routes are an often overlooked part of our transit system. In WA, most routes are run by private operators. WSDOT subsides a few essential routes, including a new route opening this Spring between Spokane and Pasco, via Moses Lake.

seattletransitblog.com/2026/04/10/f...

Empty northbound lane on MLK Way.

Northbound MLK Way is down to one lane near Dawson St. During rush hour, this causes a traffic jam that can be measured in miles.

0.0 miles, to be exact.

This is so, so well-articulated.

I believe Michael is being sarcastic

It has to be demoralizing to be preparing your testimony for Monday, asking for your neighborhood to be downzoned, and then read the Mayor is set to quadruple the plan you oppose.

Seattle’s first unicycle lane ?

Sound Transit CEO Dow Constantine just announced that 205,000 riders boarded trains on the opening day of the Crosslake Connection, a number that's second only to the Super Bowl Parade.

Finally, a Sound Transit station naming scheme that gives the proper respect due to the dozens of downtowns and city centers served by Link light rail's 2 lines.

I can't shake the feeling they forgot one but... Nah must be my imagination. I think that's all of them.

Orange sculture spelling out ARTS

Please consider DONH-COA 01979 cumulatively with other board-approved changes that undermine the purpose of S.M.C.23.66.100. Much of the ordinance, rules, and incorporated federal standards are not being implemented in this proposal, but of greatest concern to the National Park Service is the proliferation of non-historic material and elements intended to alter the cumulative character of the District. We are concerned about the subsequent harm to the National Park Service’s ability to perform its role as a national park vested in the preservation and interpretation of the King Street Station, its Plaza, and Pioneer Square, and to the NPS’s role as a non-regulatory technical advisor regarding the incorporated federal standards to maintain the integrity of the National Historical District. These are the Secretary of the Interior Standards for Rehabilitation (SOI Standards) and the National Park Service Preservation (NPS) Briefs. Specifically, “Restoration of the District will preserve the environment that was characteristic of an important era of Seattle’s history” (23.66.100.C.5). The Park maintains that the Pioneer Square Preservation Board did not apply S.M.C. 23.66.100 for its purpose, nor the Pioneer Square Rules for Preservation and incorporated federal standards.

Oh my god. The Klondike Gold Rush park is appealing the Pioneer Square Preservation Board's decision to allow a piece of artwork in front of King Street Station, intended to highlight the art gallery on the third floor.

They actually want "other board approved changes" made recently looked at too.

It is so wild for a Governor to continue to pretend county and city bridges don't exist, even though the inability to fund maintenance on those facilities is baked into state policy. WA has WAY more than 80 bridges that are more than 80 years old.

Just got off a standing-room-only eastbound 2-Line train which remained standing-room-only heading to Bellevue. Impressively fast adoption.

How it started: The Atlanta steamboat (1908) carried passengers between Leschi Park and Mercer Island.

How it went: Map of Metro’s Route 226. The route traveled between downtown Seattle and Bellevue until 1999.

How it soon will have had went: Sound Transit Route 550, set to be retired in August. How it’s going: A Link 2 Line train crossing Lake Washington (and passing the Route 550 bus).

How it started vs how it went vs how it soon will have had gone vs how it’s going

Text from a Rick Steves post on Facebook: "A Millionaires Tax? Let’s Try Shared Prosperity! A new tax on fat paychecks like mine was just signed into law in my home state — and I like it. In 2029, Washington state will start collecting a 9.9% tax on income over $1 million. The 8,000,000 Washingtonians whose households make less than a million dollars a year will pay zero under this new tax and enjoy all the benefits of a better-funded state. And for the wealthy (like me and an estimated 30,000 others), every million dollars in taxable income that our households earn after the first million will cost us about $100,000. It takes a lot of money to run a state that’s as livable as ours. Yet Washington is one of only nine states that don’t currently levy a traditional income tax. Our state is still funded by consumption taxes, such as sales and excise taxes, giving us the second-most regressive tax code in the country. (Only Florida has us beat.) And it’s time for Washington millionaires to pay our fair share. Right about now, Republicans reading this are queuing up in the comments to holler their well-worn excuses: A state income tax will penalize, and therefore demoralize, Washington state’s job creators! Letting the rich get richer results in more wealth trickling down! Wealthy people will flee your state for those with more regressive taxation! (Since California and Oregon already have a comparable tax, that would be distant lands like Texas, Tennessee, and Nevada.) As a wealthy person myself, I see this tax as essentially free money for all Washingtonians. Everybody in my state gains. And speaking from personal experience, I know that anyone who earns enough to be subject to this tax is beyond the point where consuming more adds to their security, their well-being, or even, arguably, their happiness — meaning there will be basically zero human cost."

Text from Rick Steves Facebook post: "If you disagree, consider the minuscule impact this tax will have on my state’s millionaires. Now, contrast that with the value of close to $4 billion a year in tax revenue once it’s smartly invested in programs that will help the roughly one-third of Washington households living paycheck to paycheck. For those who still aren’t convinced, here’s a lesson I’ve learned in my travels: Even if you’re motivated only by greed, if you know what’s good for you, you don’t want to be filthy rich in a society with a huge gap between rich and poor. It’s just not a nice place to raise your kids. And remember: Shrouds have no pockets…especially if you’re a multimillionaire with no heart for your neighbors. Plus, helping build a better community for you and your neighbors just…feels good. I learned this firsthand back in 2011, when — after years of receiving a Bush-era tax break for the wealthy that I didn’t need — I noticed that to pay for that tax cut, public funding for community programs and institutions was being decimated. Recognizing the practical value of investing my tax savings in my community, I’ve donated $100,000 a year to our local arts center and symphony ever since, covering concert hall rental costs for our volunteer orchestra and much more. Paying a “self-imposed wealth tax” and knowing I’m helping my entire community has brought me great joy for 15 years and counting. It’s far from heroic…but it is a little lonely."

Text from Rick Steves Facebook post: "The “millionaires tax” that Governor Bob Ferguson signed into law today will make our state better than ever — not just for the working class and poor, but for everyone who values a healthy and sustainable future. And for us millionaires who are enlightened enough to realize that we’ve reached a point where consuming more won’t make us genuinely happier, it just feels right to pay a little extra. For me, it’s biblical (“To whom much is given, much will be required”)… It’s European (after all, societies that are equitably funded are much more “content” than ours)… And — for those of us with a heart for the public good — it’s simply common sense. Sign me up!"

Travel writer Rick Steves on Washington's newly signed "Millionaires Tax"

The new Yesler Way protected bike lane is OPEN.

This is a new protected connection for people biking and scooting between the Waterfront and Seattle Ferry Terminal to Seattle's downtown bike network.

Our crews sent us some photos.

Info: www.seattle.gov/transportati...

TCC Light Rail Town Halls BY TRANSPORTATION CHOICES COALITION As many of you all learned last week, Sound Transit is facing significant cost projections for its Sound Transit 3 projects. Over the next few months, the Sound …

New Post: TCC Light Rail Town Halls

Screenshot of Pantograph showing Route 570.

Sound Transit’s first ever overnight ST Express route is underway!

No Kings only trains

New Post: Crosslake Link Starts! seattletransitblog.com/2026/03/27/c...

New Post: A sneak peek at the Crosslake Connection seattletransitblog.com/2026/03/27/a...