SEPTEMBER 2001
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FAST Corridor Delivers First Project
Traffic is moving tons better around the Port of Tacoma.
The first of 15 FAST projects, the Port of Tacoma Road overpass, opened to traffic August 16 -- ahead of schedule.
FAST stands for Freight Action STrategy. It's a corridor plan focused initially on eliminating bottlenecks where ever busier train tracks meet clogged roads from Everett to Tacoma. All the projects are designed to make local rail and road traffic better and maintain the state's competitive edge.
The $33 million Port of Tacoma overpass faced funding uncertainties. With a healthy state match virtually assured, FAST successfully competed for special federal freight funds from TEA-21 in 1999. And when passage of Initiative 695 eliminated the state match, $12 million for the project was restored through the Puget Sound Regional Council in February 2000.
"This project was in jeopardy when money was lost due to I-695. We were grateful that the PSRC stepped in," says Cliff Benson of the state's Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board.
FAST has succeeded in demonstrating benefits locally, regionally, statewide and nationally -- attracting local, regional, state, federal and private funding when many other ready-to-go projects haven't budged from blueprints. It's proving to be a model for results-oriented planning based on broad-based partnerships including government and business. Yet FAST remains a glass half full, $200 million short of what's needed to complete a $470 million investment in all 15 Phase I projects.
More federal help is on the way. FAST will be $24 million richer with passage of the U.S. Senate's version of 2002 federal transportation funding, lifted by the state's congressional delegation led by Senator Patty Murray, newly installed Chair of the Transportation Appropriations subcommittee. The status of additional state funding is uncertain and depends on action by the state legislature.
Eight FAST projects are underway or ready to move. They are: Third Street SW in Auburn, South 277th in Kent/Auburn, South 180th in Tukwila, California Street, 41st/Riverfront Parkway and East Marine View Drive in Everett, SR-519 Phase I in Seattle, and 8th Street in Pierce County.
Six FAST projects needing additional state support are: "D" Street rail overcrossing in Tacoma (enabling faster train movements on the related railroad track), the Royal Brougham South (SR-519) Phase II railroad crossing, Spokane Street and East Marginal Way in Seattle, and in Pierce County the SR-167 corridor, the North Canyon Road, and the Shaw Road Extension.
FAST projects are a key to the freight component of Destination 2030, the region's comprehensive long-range transportation plan. FAST Corridor Phase II planning is well underway. It will address truck needs throughout the four-county region. Selected project-level studies will soon begin under the remainder of a federal grant secured through the Regional Council.
For more information, contact either Pete Beaulieu, 206-464-7537, pbeaulieu@psrc.org or Dan Pike at 206-389-3224, piked@wsdot.wa.gov.
| Northwest Freight Conference/Moving our Economy October 7-9 Seattle Airport Hilton and Conference Center
Conference sponsors: Federal Highway Administration, Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board, Port of Seattle, Port of Tacoma, Port of Everett, Puget Sound Regional Council, Whatcom Council of Governments, Cascadia Project/Discovery Institute and Transportation Northwest (Trans Now).
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Washington state's efforts to elevate the importance of freight mobility is being described as a model for the nation. While other areas have focused on single projects or corridors, Washington has created a statewide emphasis through the efforts of the Freight Mobility Board, the Freight Mobility Roundtable, the International Mobility Trade Corridor looking at border issues and the "Bridge the Valley" committee in Spokane to name a few. The conference will focus on the successful programs and provide an opportunity to advise the federal government, prior to the next TEA 21, about what is working and where improvements will help keep freight corridors open and keep our economy moving. For more information check out 
Affordable Housing Conference Set for October
People interested in enhancing the quality and availability of affordable housing are invited to attend the Housing Washington conference October 15-17 in Tacoma. Conference themes include: preserving existing housing; providing defensible, safe living spaces; exploring rural and farm worker housing; and systemic and holistic approaches to making housing affordable and possible, including infrastructure, jobs, child care and transportation. For more information, see the Housing Washington Web site, www.wshfc.org/conf, call 1-800-767-HOME, or e-mail conf@wshfc.org.
The rebound in population growth over the last year has been attributed to more people moving into, and fewer people moving out of, the region--a trend supported by state data on driver licenses forfeited by individuals moving into and out of Washington.1
The region's cities and towns together increased in real population by 26,3002 or 1.22 percent over the last year. Real population growth excludes growth due to the incorporation or annexation of existing population. The table below identifies those cities that experienced real population growth rates greater than 5 percent during the last year. The cities of DuPont and Sultan grew in real population at the extraordinary rates of 16.4 percent and 12.9 percent, respectively. The city of Issaquah increased by 8.4 percent due to real population growth, and an additional 7.1 percent due to population annexation.
Additional information about 2001 population changes in the region's cities and towns is described in the September issue of Puget Sound Trends, available on the Web at psrc.org, or by calling the Regional Council's Information Center at (206) 464-7532. For questions about data presented in this article, contact Carol Naito at (206) 464-7535 or cnaito@psrc.org.
Year 2001 population estimates for all cities, towns, and counties in Washington state are available from the Washington State Office of Financial Management Web site at www.ofm.wa.gov or by calling (360) 902-0599.
Back Issues
Region's Population Growth is on the Rise Again
Population growth in the central Puget Sound region increased slightly during the last year after two years of decline. The region was home to an estimated 3,323,700 people in April 2001, an increase of 1.46 percent since the previous year, and up 20.9 percent since the 1990 federal census.
Figure 1.
Annual Population Change in the Central Puget Sound
Sources: 1990 and 2000 U.S. Census, Washington State Office of Financial Management
TABLE 2
Cities with Real Population Growth Rates Greater Than 5%: 2000-2001MUNICIPALITY POPULATION CHANGE
DUE TO REAL GROWTHPOPULATION CHANGE
DUE TO ANNEXATIONAll Cities and Towns 1.22% 0.26% DuPont 16.44% 0.00% Sultan 12.89% 0.00% Issaquah 8.40% 7.10% Granite Falls 8.22% 0.00% Orting 6.78% 0.00% Arlington 6.73% 0.34% Duvall 5.29% 0.00% Marysville 5.15% 0.60% Sources: 2000 US Census, Washington State Office of Financial Management NOTES: Estimates of real population change assume fluid jurisdictional boundaries over time. For jurisdictions that annexed population during 2000-01, the estimates account only for the portion of real population change that occurred in such areas subsequent to the date of annexation. The table excludes municipalities that established their 2001 population via a State Certified Special Census. In such cases, estimates of 2000-01 population change may have been inflated due to an undercount in the 2000 base year population. It should be noted that the city of Snoqualmie (excluded from the table for this reason) established its 2001 population via a State Certified Special Census at 3,416-an increase of approximately 1,400 persons or 72.5 percent over just a two-year period since 1999.
1Washington State Office of Financial Management.
2Rounded to the nearest hundred.
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