Salmo g.,


We will agree to disagree. Wish I was fishing. I'm passionate about this issue, because I used mass transit frequently for five years. IT SUCKS! Crammed into a cattle car with a bunch of other life-less drones... most of whom are coughing or wheezing....

By your own admission, most people only take a train or bus if it's cheaper, faster, and more convenient, right? Lets look at that:

Faster - Mass transit can only be faster if there is complete gridlock. Think of all the stops and transfers you need on mass transit.

Convenient - What is more convenient than jumping in your car and driving straight to where you want to go?

Cheaper - Roads are cheaper now and we have plenty of room if we'd look at it seriously. Our WA population really isn't growing that fast and may actually be declining with this economic slowdown. At some point, mass transit(bus and rail) will be a necessary evil, but thankfully we are nowhere near the population density required to make it feasible. We are not New York, Chicago, or Tokyo, yet. We should make long-range plans(30+ years) to decide where we are going to put the light rail, etc. I concur with your idea of right down the middle of I-5. Best spot for it, just 30 years to soon.

So again mass transit fails at least two of your three requirements. And you still haven't answered my question. Who is going to ride on it? Not me. Not anyone I know. You?Anyone on this board? Who are we building this for?

The people who support more taxes for mass transit do so because they believe the false pretense that it will alleviate the gridlock by forcing OTHER PEOPLE to ride it and then they will be able to commute more easily in their cars. WRONG. We will be sitting in our cars as the empty trains and buses go by. Ever take your boat on the train? How about your suitcases? Work material? Tools?

Supporting higher taxes for mass transit is saying "I accept gridlock."