Ballardblog.com

If you wanted to go to the Rapid Ride Open House last Tuesday at Whittier Elementary School, but had other plans that night, here are some interesting tidbits I came across while there.

Currently the #15 bus has both an Express and a Local service.  Rapid Ride will actually add onto the distance of the former ‘express’ now ‘rapid’ service by having it travel through Queen Anne!  Currently,  this extra leg is what makes the Local slower than the Express service.  When I questioned a Metro official about the rationale as to why a Ballard bus has to service Queen Anne, when Queen Anne is already served by multiple other routes, the response I received was, “It’s because the council passed the ordinance.”   Finding that answer unsatisfactory, I asked why the ordinance was passed and received this response, “Because someone wanted it.”  I compared this to how annoying it is to be told by a parent, “Because I said so” except in this case as a Ballard citizen I don’t feel like my transportation choices should be dictated by such a vague illogical response.    I pointed out to several Metro officials that only getting public input on what happens with Rapid Ride once it reaches Ballard is not really due public process, Ballardites should have had a say in this extra jog to the route.   How many of us riders have not been denied boarding on an overcrowded #15 Local bus downtown to try to get home in Ballard, because many non regular riders or tourists jumped on the #15 just to go to an event at Seattle Center?  With the so called “Express” bus now traveling through Queen Anne every time, how much more often will those of us who want to get home be turned away?

The only public input Metro seemed interested in letting Ballardites have an opinion on was whether the Rapid Ride should travel up 15th Ave. NW or 24th Ave. NW.  In the brochure that Rapid Ride sent to my house, this wording appeared right on their literature, “Buses traveling on 15th Ave. NW carry more passengers than those on 24th Avenue NW, and the City of Seattle has designated 15th Ave. NW a transit priority corridor.”  So what is the supposed ‘debate’ about which route Rapid Ride should take upon entering Ballard?  When I questioned another Metro staffer about the fact that their brochure already indicated a decision, I was met with another blank stare.  I agree that the 15th Ave. NW corridor is in dire need of more service, but why if Metro’s own brochure states that is the 24th Ave. NW route even being considered?  Is this Metro’s way of acting as if they are giving Ballard due process in making decisions for the new service?  If that was the case, we would have been allowed to give our opinion about the Queen Anne leg.

The people I met on the Citizen Advisory Committee expressed a lot of the same concerns and questions I had, I was left with the impression that Metro was not listening closely to them or providing satisfactory answers to their concerns.

Poster boards around the cafeteria showed idyllic bus stops, stations and vehicles.  One made me outright chuckle with its bullet point promising ‘additional Metro Police patrols.’   When have we ever seen any police presence as is with the buses.  I have personally experienced many scary incidences on the bus with no one to control drunk or high riders – in one instance the bus driver pulled over and refused to move until the police that she had called arrived – this took 40 minutes.   Think about it, if the number of police increase to 50-75, considering the number of routes all over the region, will we feel that extra security at all?

The most interesting part of the evening were comments by Metro staffers that they were worried that they didn’t have the money to actually implement most of the changes illustrated on the colorful poster boards. If that is the case, why are we paying the increase in sales tax?

If you haven’t already turned it in, make sure to fill out and pop your questionnaire in the mail by Wednesday, February 25th.  Or email barbara.demichele@kingcounty.gov or leave a recorded comment at 206-684-1955.