September 2003
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| Table of Contents |
Regional Council Seeks Public Comment on Transit Funds The Regional Council is seeking public comment on a recommended distribution of $162 million in federal transit funds to 20 projects in King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties. The funds are available through the estimated 2004 - 2005 appropriations of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funds. Representatives from regional transit agencies and the Washington State Ferry system prepared the recommendation. Public comments are encouraged and will be presented to the Regional Council's Transportation Policy Board on October 9, when the Policy Board will craft a recommendation to the Executive Board. A final decision is expected from the Executive Board on October 23. All written comments should be received by October 15. You may also comment in person at the Transportation Policy Board meeting on October 9, 9:30-11:30 a.m., or at the Executive Board meeting on October 23, 10-11:30 am. Both meetings will be held in the Regional Council's Boardroom. How to Comment or Find Out More
| Make a comment online | .......... | www.psrc.org |
| Phone | .......... | 206-464-6343 |
| Fax | .......... | 206-587-4825 |
| .......... | krichter@psrc.org | |
| Web | .......... | http://www.psrc.org/projects/tip/ |
| Address | .......... | Puget Sound Regional Council 1101 Western Avenue, Suite 500 Seattle, WA 98104-1035 |
| Information Center | .......... | 206-464-7532 infoctr@psrc.org |
The 20 Proposed Projects Are (details are on psrc.org):
| Community Transit | |
| ADA Paratransit Operations - Dial A Ride Service | $5.5 million |
| Preventive Maintenance | $6.5 million |
| Bus Purchase | $900,000 |
| Rideshare Van Purchase - Vanpool Program | $403,178 |
| Everett Transit | |
| Paratransit Operations | $553,325 |
| Vehicle Preventive Maintenance | $440,000 |
| King County Metro | |
| Vehicle Maintenance Overhaul | $39.4 million |
| Bus Purchases | $60 million |
| Kitsap Transit | |
| Purchase of 15 Small Buses | $3.3 million |
| Pierce County | |
| Ferry Boat Purchase to serve Anderson and Ketron Islands | $1.5 million |
| Pierce Transit | |
| Preventative Maintenance | $5.35 million |
| Expansion Buses - purchase nine Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses | $2.96 million |
| Replacement Buses - replaces five CNG buses | $1.54 million |
| Seattle Monorail (Existing System) | |
| Seattle Monorail Car Restoration - Alweg System | $1 million |
| Sound Transit | |
| Sounder Commuter Rail - Tacoma/Lakewood | $3.6 million |
| Sounder Commuter Rail - Tacoma/Seattle | $4 million |
| Federal Way Transit Center and Park and Ride | $7 million |
| Regional Express Program - purchase three hybrid diesel/electric buses | $1.29 million |
| Washington State Ferries | |
| Revenue Collection System Replacement - Smart Card | $2 million |
| System-Wide Vessel Preservation | $14.75 million |
This article will satisfy the program of project requirements for these funds as established by the Federal Transit Administration.
EDD Board Reviewing Economic Development Projects
The Regional Council and Economic Development District are coordinating participation in the federal Public Works Program, which provide competitive grants for infrastructure-type projects. The EDD Board will review and select applications at its September 24th meeting. The EDD has participated in the federal program annually, with local jurisdictions and eligible non-profit agencies submitting projects. After the EDD Board selects the top project(s), it is then submitted to the federal Economic Development Administration to compete with projects across an eight-state region. The goals of the Public Works Program are to support long-term economic development in areas experiencing substantial economic distress, through the creation, expansion, or retention of permanent jobs that help raise income levels. This is done through investments that support the construction or rehabilitation of essential public infrastructure and development facilities necessary to generate private investments that provide higher-skill, higher-wage jobs. For additional information, please contact Ivan Miller at (206) 464-7549 email imiller@psrc.org, or Richard Berndt at (206) 587-5061 email rberndt@psrc.org, or visit the Regional Council's website at psrc.org.
Executive Board Adopts Concurrency Assessment Final Report
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| Growth in Vehicle Miles Traveled Still Comparable to Population and Employment Growth |
For more than a decade, automobile travel in the central Puget Sound region, measured by total vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the Urbanized Area, has grown at the same rate as population and employment. This is much different than the explosive growth in automobile travel in the 1980s, but the growth continues to add up.
From 1992 to 2002, population of the Puget Sound region increased 16.4 percent and the number of employed persons increased 17.3 percent, and VMT increased a comparable 19.6 percent. This is modest when compared to the eleven years from 1981 to 1992, when the population increased 25.1 percent, the number of employed persons increased 40.9 percent, and the amount of automobile travel increased 85.5 percent!
In the 1980s the rate of employment growth outstripped the rate of population growth, as more households became two-worker households. The overall number of workers rose from four out of every ten people in 1976 to five out of every ten people in 1988. Commute to work distances became longer, and the number of registered vehicles also grew faster than the population.
Figure 1: Five-Year Average Annual Growth Rates, 1958 - 2002
Starting in 1992, the average annual rate of growth in employment has been 1.6%, in population 1.5%, and in VMT 1.8%. The long-term rates of growth of population, employment and VMT are forecast to remain just below 2%. The regional population is expected to exceed four and a half million before 2030, a 33 percent increase over 2002. If VMT continues to grow at the same rate as population and employment, as is now the trend, then total VMT also will increase over 30 percent by the year 2030.
Table 1: Growth in Population, Employed Persons, and Vehicle Miles Traveled
| Population1 |
Employed Persons2 |
Average Weekday Vehicle Miles Traveled (Urbanized Area)3 |
Average Weekday Vehicle Miles Traveled (Regionwide)4 | |
| 1981 | 2,309,400 | 1,021,200 | 30,337,000 | 39,431,000 |
| 1985 | 2,436,200 | 1,115,800 | 39,222,000 | 46,082,000 |
| 4- year ave. annual growth rate (1981-1985) | 1.3% | 2.2% | 6.6% | 4.0% |
| 1990 | 2,748,800 | 1,434,500 | 52,612,000 | 62,145,000 |
| 5-year ave. annual growth rate (1985-1990) | 2.4% | 5.2% | 6.1% | 6.2% |
| 1995 | 3,020,000 | 1,523,900 | 60,125,000 | 71,701,000 |
| 5-year ave. annual growth rate (1990-1995) | 1.9% | 1.2% | 2.7% | 2.9% |
| 2000 | 3,275,800 | 1,721,700 | 65,843,000 | 78,411,000 |
| 5-year ave. annual growth rate (1995-2000) | 1.6% | 2.5% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| 2001 | 3,323,700 | 1,673,700 | 65,925,000 | 78,222,000 |
| 5-year ave. annual growth rate (1996-2001) | 1.7% | 1.3% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| 2002 | 3,362,000 | 1,687,700 | 67,330,000 | 79,924,918 |
| 5-year ave. annual growth rate (1997-2002) | 1.6% | 0.2% | 1.4% | 1.4% |
| 1Sources: (non-Census years) Estimate, Office of Financial Management, Washington State. (1990, 2000) U.S. Census. Coverage: King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. | ||||
| 2Source: Estimate, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. Coverage: King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. | ||||
| 3Source: Highway Performance Monitoring System, Department of Transportation, Washington State. Coverage: Seattle-Everett and Tacoma Urbanized Areas (basically Everett to Tacoma, Puget Sound to Lake Sammamish) | ||||
| 4Source: Highway Performance Monitoring System, Department of Transportation, Washington State. Coverage: King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. | ||||
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| 206-464-7532 - FAX 206-587-4825 - infoctr@psrc.org |
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