DESTINATION 2030
Regional, Local Personal
We can make traffic better in the region. Even with 1.5 million more people in the next 30 years. But we'll need a very bold plan of action to succeed.
A new comprehensive transportation road map to the year 2030 is a few months away from being finalized. Right now there's an opportunity for everyone to influence the future and secure a transportation plan based on our shared vision of what we want and need.
The elected leaders of the Puget Sound Regional Council, with the help of involved business and community interests, are offering three broad alternatives that produce results that range from unbearably lousy traffic to real traffic relief. They've projected our growth, identified fixes to today's critical problems, and assessed what we'll need to keep up and do better.
Now they're asking all of us to let them know what we want, when we want it, and what we're willing to do to succeed.
Destination 2030 is the name of the regional transportation plan now encouraging a lively dialogue. When it's finished, it will be a regional plan, based on local needs and personal choices. It asks things like: What if we do nothing more? What if we build more roads and bridges and provide more buses, ferries and trains? What if we change the way we pay for transportation? How can we make the most of the land we've already developed, make every dollar count, and keep what we value most?
The object is to arm the region with the best information available to make the best choices.
A draft environmental impact statement contains information that shows how three future alternatives perform in terms congestion relief, air quality and other measures. The alternatives range from completing a minimal number of projects that are funded to doing significantly more: more roads, more transit, better traffic management, better linkages between land use and transportation, more money.
It's about getting where we need to go by the time today's kids go to work, and their kids are off to school. And it includes near term steps designed to make each of the next 30 years far better. A new Action Strategy will be drawn from the plan and presented to the state legislature early next year.
Tell the region's leaders what you think.
Inside you'll find information to help you make informed choices. And there's information about how to find out more about specifics you care about.
The people guiding this work want to hear from you. They have some tough choices to make to get from three broad alternatives to a single affordable plan that works. To get there, five principles have emerged:
Vision: Our collective vision for the region's future should dictate the plan, not the other way around.
Priorities and Coordination: The final plan will state our priorities clearly and emphasize coordination among cities, towns, counties, ports, the state and transit agencies.
No more Roads versus Transit: The plan will be about the needs of families and individual people - not roads versus transit. It will help people move more quickly and safely with all the tools at our disposal.
Think regionally, act locally: Each of us impacts our regional quality of life by the personal transportation choices we make. It's time to consider the impact that all of these individual choices have on the place we call home.
It's all about time, money and ease of use: The plan won't dictate the choices, but reflect the reality that for most, cars are the most practical choice. The final plan will work with this reality, not against it, and make the most of every tax dollar.
Check out what's inside. Learn more on the Web. Call, e-mail, write, fax. Show up at a meeting. Get armed with information. And speak your mind. The region will be better for it.
There are lots of opportunities in the coming months to learn more and help shape Destination 2030, the regional transportation plan. Please comment in writing to assure your voice is heard. The deadline is October 20th.
For more information and to get copies of the draft EIS, call the Regional Council's Information Center, (206) 464-7532, infoctr@psrc.org.
| Inside you'll find maps and information describing options for the 2030 regional transportation plan, a schedule for the plan update, and notices of upcoming public meetings in September and October. |
DESTINATION 2030
Regional Leaders Want Your Advice on What Works Best for You
It's likely that the region's final transportation plan will ultimately represent a composite of all three alternatives now being evaluated: the Updated 1995 MTP, the Current Law (No Action) Plan and MTP Plus.
Update Existing Plan (1995 MTP)
 
| Traffic in the most congested area of the region - northwest King County - is reduced by 22 percent. Even with an additional 1.5 million people and 800,000 jobs, congestion throughout the region goes up only slightly. |
| The alternative adds 290 lane miles to freeways and 950 to arterials, completes the nearly 300-mile core HOV system, preserves bus and ferry service at about the same levels as today, and includes full build-out of the Sound Transit Sound Move Plan. |
| Performance Indicator | Today | Updated 1995 MTP |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled on Arterial/Freeway Network |
| Total Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled | 77,165,545 | 111,677,502 |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled Per Capita | 25 | 24 |
| Percent Mode Choice for Total Daily Trips |
| SOV | 62% | 56% |
| Carpool | 35% | 39% |
| Transit | 3% | 5% |
| Total Daily Person Trips |
| SOV | 6,391,095 | 9,108,530 |
| Carpool | 3,554,548 | 6,452,176 |
| Transit | 283,429 | 826,315 |
| All Motorized Modes | 10,229,072 | 16,387,021 |
| Much of the region cannot currently be served by transit. Over the next 30 years parts of the region will become transit accessible as land use patterns continue to evolve under local plans. Other parts of the region will not support transit service, even by 2030. these areas of the region must have adequate roads, being careful not to induce growth where it isn't planned and can't be efficiently supported with public investments in infrastructure. |
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Current Law Revenue (Within Existing Funding)
| This is a "no action" alternative -- only projects that can be paid for under the current financing system are included. It's what's possible after $9 billion in revenue was lost to I-695. |
| Ferry service is largely discontinued after 2010 under this scenario because long term funding has not been identified. Local transit service is cut by 25 percent. This alternative adds about 83 lane miles to freeways, 83 lane miles to arterials, and 72 to HOV lanes over the next 30 years. |
| Carbon monoxide emissions go up 30 percent over the amount we have today under the Current Law Revenue alternative. |
| Congestion throughout the region goes up nearly 50 percent. Conditions are especially bad in some places: freeways in Northwest King County are 82 percent contested, and Pierce County freeways are 70 percent congested during the afternoon rush hours. |
| Performance Indicator | Today | Current Law Revenue |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled on Arterial/Freeway Network |
| Total Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled | 77,165,545 | 117,146,136 |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled Per Capita | 25 | 25 |
| Percent Mode Choice for Total Daily Trips |
| SOV | 62% | 57% |
| Carpool | 35% | 39% |
| Transit | 3% | 5% |
| Total Daily Person Trips |
| SOV | 6,391,095 | 9,244,296 |
| Carpool | 3,554,548 | 6,331,287 |
| Transit | 283,429 | 773,625 |
| All Motorized Modes | 10,229,072 | 16,349,208 |
| Auto travel will remain centrally important to this region under all plan alternatives. Many people don't have access to autos. A successful transportation plan will require meeting the needs of all the people in the region and providing choices that make sense and recognize diverse needs - including folks traditionally under served. |
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MTP Plus (Additions to Existing Plan)
| Transit service is up by 50 percent over today's levels, and ferry service is substantially expanded. This alternative also includes "smart growth" tools to help local governments attract housing and jobs to centers that can be efficiently served by transportation. |
| MTP Plus does a significantly better job reducing congestion than the other two alternatives, bringing freeway congestion levels down to below what they are today in most parts of the region. |
| All of the investments in the 1995 Metropolitan Transportation Plan alternative are included, plus up to 392 more freeway, 1,146 more arterial and 157 more HOV lane miles over what's included in the 1995 MTP alternative. The HOV system would be completed, as would fixes to SR520 and I-405. |
| Performance Indicator | Today | MTP Plus |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled on Arterial/Freeway Network |
| Total Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled | 77,165,545 | 108,556,728- 113,564,276 |
| Daily Vehicle Miles Traveled Per Capita | 25 | 23 - 24 |
| Percent Mode Choice for Total Daily Trips |
| SOV | 62% | 54 - 55.4% |
| Carpool | 35% | 39% |
| Transit | 3% | 5 - 6% |
| Total Daily Person Trips |
| SOV | 6,391,095 | 8,881,607 - 9,078,246 |
| Carpool | 3,554,548 | 6,486,617 - 6,544,371 |
| Transit | 283,429 | 822,156 - 955,725 |
| All Motorized Modes | 10,229,072 | 16,381,703 - 16,387,019 |
| About 10 percent of the region's population is 65 or older today. By 2030 about 18 percent of us will be 65 or older. With our growth, there will be about three times as many seniors living here in 30 years. An aging population will have different transportation needs. |
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| THE PER PERSON PRICE TAG |
| $35/month | .............................. | Current Law
(What we pay today) |
| $54/month | .............................. | MTP Update |
| $68/month | .............................. | MTP Plus |
| This projects what each alternative would cost us by 2030. Road, transit, ferry and other costs are added up. |
| Financial Summary of Alternatives (Billions of Dollars) |
| Program Area | Updated 1995 MTP | Current Law Revenue | MTP Plus |
| System Expansion | $38.4 | $18.1 | $52.4-55.7 |
| Basic Needs | $40.8 | $34.0 | $42.0-46.1 |
| Total Planned Investments | $79.1 | $51.2 | $97.6-98.5 |
| Current Law Revenue, 2001-2003 | $51.2 | $51.2 | $51.2 |
| Funding Shortfall | $27.9 | -- | $46.4-47.3 |
FREEWAY CONGESTION RESULTS
This projects stop and go traffic on the region's freeways -- including I-5, I-90, I-405, SR167, SR16 and SR520 by 2030 under each alternative.
| Percent of Freeway Network Experiencing Congestion (stop and go) During the Afternoon Commute |
| Sub-Region | 1998 Baseline | Updated 1995 MTP | Current Law Revenue |
MTP Plus |
| Region | 32% | 37% | 62% | 28-32% |
| Northwest King County | 59% | 37% | 82% | 26-29% |
| East King County | 40% | 38% | 58% | 28-29% |
| South King County | 36 | 43% | 63% | 31-40% |
| King County | 43% | 40% | 65% | 29-33% |
| Snohomish | 32% | 43% | 55% | 29-34% |
| Pierce | 26% | 43% | 70% | 32-38% |
| Kitsap | 0% | 9% | 40% | 5% |
AIR QUALITY
The transportation investment choices the region makes over the next several years will influence the region's air quality in the long term. Federal funding for transportation projects is linked to our ability to show that carbon monoxide standards will be maintained through 2030. Effects on air quality will be an important consideration as the region prepares Destination 2030. Click here for new information on how the Destination 2030 options meet clean air standards.
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YOUR CHOICES: DESTINATION 2030
Community Meetings
The elected leaders of the Puget Sound Regional Council invite you to attend a community meeting in late September to help shape Destination 2030, our regional transportation plan. Your personal opinions and suggestions are essential building blocks for the final plan.
In reality, our "transportation system" of roads and bridges, buses, trains and ferries is a region-wide response to all the personal, family and business transportation choices we make. It is up to each of us to choose a preferred mix of transportation services and a method to pay for them. These community meetings will be a good opportunity to let your elected leaders know how you feel.
King County
- September 21 - Bellevue
7 - 10 p.m.
Tillicum Middle School
16020 Southeast 16th Street, Bellevue
- September 26th - Seattle
7 - 10 p.m.
Miller Community Center
301 20th Avenue East
Kitsap County
- September 26 - Bremerton
7 - 10 p.m.
Mountain View Middle School
2400 Perry Avenue, Bremerton
Pierce County
- September 28 - Tacoma
7 - 10 p.m.
Gault Middle School
1115 East Division Lane
Snohomish County
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September 25th
7 - 10 p.m. - Everett
Evergreen Middle School
7621 Beverly Lane
For maps and directions to any of the meeting places, please call Sylvia Nelson, (206) 464-7518.
Presentations and Group Discussions
In addition to the community meetings, we can schedule a speaker to attend a meeting your group is holding in September and October to review the choices under consideration for DESTINATION 2030. To make arrangements, please call Anne Avery, (206) 587-4818, aavery@psrc.org.
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