The Executive Board adopted PSRC's 2007 transportation recommendations to the Legislature. Below is a summary of the transportation recommendations. The full text is attached and is also online at psrc.org. The recommendations are based on the 2007 Action Strategy.

1. RTID/ST Ballot - Success of the 2007 RTID/ST ballot measure is the region's most urgent and top priority. The region will seek or support legislation needed to enable a successful joint ballot measure at the 2007 general election. As Sound Transit and the Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID) prepare for a joint ballot in November 2007, statutory changes may be determined to be necessary to ease the way toward success, including but not limited to ballot, boundary, and annexation requirements. PSRC supports efforts to create a "single poll" vote for the 2007 RTID/ST2 ballot measure.
2. Protect and Sustain Existing Transportation Funding - Existing state and federal funding sources are critical to the region, and will be the basis for major regional funding commitments, including the RTID and ST-2 programs.
3. City and County Transportation Funding - The 2005 Transportation Partnership Act provided the first new state funding for city and county transportation since 1990. While this funding is extremely helpful, and local jurisdictions are stepping up with additional local funding (witness the City of Seattle's recent successful campaign for transportation funding - Bridging the Gap), more funds are needed to cover the growing transportation investment backlog to preserve and maintain city and county transportation systems.
4. Transportation Governance - The Regional Council recommends the Legislature consider the following as they contemplate actions on transportation governance:
   • Changes in regional transportation governance should not delay progress in delivering regional transportation projects and should not interfere with the 2007 RTID/ST ballot.
   • The Regional Council supports, and is actively investing in, prioritization and programming processes for transportation improvements that recognize the importance of linking transportation and land use. Land use planning should precede transportation planning efforts.
   • PSRC emphasizes the importance of meeting the federal requirements regarding maintaining a properly designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). Changes in transportation governance should not affect the region's MPO status in order to protect the flow of federal transportation funds to the region.
   • As the Legislature reviews the findings and recommendations of the Regional Transportation Commission, they should provide for regional input to future legislative actions, and continue to consult with RTPOs and public transit agencies to ensure reforms are appropriately implemented.
5. Passenger-Only Ferry Service - The region has two primary objectives: (1) assure the continuation of existing passenger-only ferry service during the legislatively mandated transition from operation by WSF to new local operators; and (2) address remaining issues to assure the state and region can meet long-range goals for passenger-only ferry service.
6. Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) - The region has new state mandates to enhance our existing CTR programs. We support additional funding to assure that local governments can successfully implement the new program and deliver needed services to employers.

For more information, contact Charlie Howard at 206- 464-7122 or choward@psrc.org or Rick Olson 206-587-5060 or rolson@psrc.org.

The Executive Board approved the 2007 Action Strategy.

The 2007 Action Strategy is PSRC's biennial report on the region's progress implementing Destination 2030. The Strategy provides a status report on major transportation programs and outlines the region's action agenda for the coming years. PSRC's transportation recommendations to the Legislature are based on the Action Strategy.

For more information, contact Stephen Kiehl at 206-464-6175 or skiehl@psrc.org.

The Executive Board recommended adoption of the 2007 Destination 2030 Update.

The six primary areas strengthened in the update are special needs transportation, safety, security, operations management, environmental mitigation and commute trip reduction. The changes reflect a limited scope update to satisfy new requirements and set the stage for a more extensive plan update in 2010. Recognizing that project costs have increased and revenue sources have changed since the plan's adoption in 2001 and review in 2004, new costs, estimates, and strategies have been included in the updated plan. The financial strategy assumes passage of the roads and transit ballot and will make use of an un-programmed or illustrative list, which names projects and programs not explicitly covered by the financial strategy. The General Assembly will take final action on the update at its April 5, 2007 meeting.

For more information, contact Charlie Howard at 206 464-7122 or choward@psrc.org.

The Executive Board adopted PSRC's Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan.

PSRC's Coordinated Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan is a joint effort between private and non-profit transportation providers, human service agencies, transit, and local planning coalitions. The plan identifies existing services and priorities for future investments, and will be used to direct funds from three sources, including PSRC's Job Access and Reverse Commute program. A call for projects for funding will be issued next month.

For more information, contact Ben Brackett at 206-389-2162, bbrackett@psrc.org.

The Executive Board approved a regionally prioritized list of rural and special needs transportation projects for the 2007-2008 Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) state and federal consolidated grant program.

The prioritized list will be used by WSDOT in their final technical evaluations for their grant program. PSRC evaluated the projects using the criteria based on the Coordinated Transit-Human Services Transportation Plan. The list includes 13 projects, two regional Sound Transit projects and 11 county-based projects.

For more information, contact Ben Brackett at 206-389-2162, bbrackett@psrc.org.

In Other Business, the Executive Board: