Transportation
Our entire transportation system is in crisis. Our state is experiencing dwindling gas tax revenues, which make up the bulk of our transportation budget, despite having one of the highest state gas taxes in the nation. The state ferry system, a critical part of our state’s highway system, is in dire straits with a shortage of boats, staff and, in all honesty, leadership. Going into the next budget cycle, the state transportation budget is expected to have as much as a $4 billion shortfall. That means roads left in disrepair, ferries left without staffing and more gridlock on our busiest roadways. Or, worse, it means more nickel and dime taxes on your car tabs, property taxes and even on deliveries to your home and business.
We can do better. While it’s hard to unravel a system like our transportation budgeting and projects, it must be done immediately upon the next governor taking office. What has worked in the past does not work today and the longer we continue to put duct tape on a seriously damaged system, the worse it will get and the harder it will be to solve.
Ferries: As the only candidate who has worked in the maritime industry, I am uniquely qualified to address this challenge. The vessel fleet is antiquated and in disrepair, and pandemic retirements greatly exacerbated our crew shortages. This led to 1,069 canceled sailings in Q1 of 2024. Ferry riders missed work, school, and more. This situation will only get worse unless the next administration takes decisive action. Despite funds to put new vessels into service, the electric or hybrid requirement has caused delays. We must work with naval architects to replicate ferry design and commit to a yard with a sequential build program, lowering construction costs. Our procurement processes must be streamlined to be competitive. My first step would be to allow diesel-electric vessels to be built and put into service using existing plans. Next, I know from all my years in business that providing competitive compensation packages to harness the best talent is absolutely essential. We must aggressively grow the apprenticeship program, provide scholarships for the next generation to enter the maritime workforce, and take a look at what other states are doing (and paying) to get the best workforce.
Transit and multi-model transportation options: The transportation sector is our state’s largest source of carbon emissions. Sound Transit, which is billions over budget with no measurement of how the projects lessen congestion, and Seattle voters will be offered a $1.55 billion transportation levy this fall. I am a proponent of transportation options: transit, rail, carpool and ridesharing. But despite the billions spent to move people and goods around the central Puget Sound region, we are only seeing more traffic and more stale ideas like “HOT lanes” that are pricing out low- and middle-income drivers. Like a business, our transportation entities, like Sound Transit and others, should be held accountable for achieving their ridership goals, even if that means retooling their plans ahead of the Sound Transit 3 expansion to meet those goals. We must look at where transit – bus and other high-capacity modes of transportation – are located to meet the needs of more drivers with convenient hubs and more frequent trains and buses.
Carbon reduction in the transportation sector: We are on the heels of a major jump in gas taxes on Washington residents due to the passage of the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) by the Legislature. The CCA was put in place with the promise of lowering carbon emissions while collecting billions in carbon market payments ($2 billion or so to-date). A repeal of the CCA is on the ballot this fall. If voters choose to keep the taxes in place, there should be some concerted effort to realign the tax revenue with our goal of lowering transportation emissions and addressing accountability with the allocation of the funds to reach the goals set forward in the CCA.
We’ve got a lot of money on the table for transportation infrastructure of all kinds, but the one thing lacking is accountability for results. Before we continue down the road of doing what we always have with transportation budgeting, we need to set goals and make a plan to reach them to lessen congestion, create convenient options for Washingtonians to get where they need to be, and make a real dent in our carbon reduction goals.