Scaling down begins for I-405 fixes

In response to this month's Referendum 51 blood bath, local representatives in charge of shaping the future of Interstate 405 are slashing a long-planned expansion project by two-thirds.

The failed 9-cent gas tax has also left Eastside leaders ready to battle with Seattle for their piece of the drastically reduced transportation pie. The first translake clash could come over funding to rebuild the Highway 520 bridge.

The I-405 executive committee met yesterday and outlined a tentative plan of $3 billion to $3.5 billion, dramatically lower than the $9.1 billion to $10.9 billion design for I-405 that Referendum 51 would have partially funded.

The new design would put most resources toward the south end of I-405, possibly adding two lanes in each direction from south Bellevue to Highway 167 in Renton, said Craig Stone, project director with the state Department of Transportation. One new lane could be added north and south around the Kirkland area, and some funding would be earmarked for transit improvements.

A priority list, with a likely price tag in the range of $3.5 billion, should be ready by December to be considered for a regional tax package, along with other projects, leaders said.

The committee and state transportation planners had worked for years to craft a plan that eventually would have added at least two new lanes in each direction and transit improvements along the Lynnwood-to-Tukwila artery. Voters dealt a serious blow Nov. 5 when they rejected Referendum 51.

Anything but defeated, the I-405 planners are armed with lessons learned and some clear messages from citizens.

"We're in a heap of trouble," said George Kargianis, committee chairman, who characterized the aftermath of the Referendum 51 vote as from "bleak to suicidal."

"The underlying need has not gone away, and it's going to get worse," he said. "We just can't give up. It's up to us."

Now more than ever, the Eastside could find itself in a battle with Seattle over transportation dollars. A regional road-and-transit tax package that could be put before voters Sept. 16, 2003, will provide only a fraction of what forecasters say is needed in the region.

The competition is already on.

Rob McKenna, a committee member and King County councilman, told members he'd talked with Seattle leaders who don't want funding to rebuild the Highway 520 bridge in the regional tax package. "The Eastside cannot and will not fund 520 by itself," he said.

Seattle and the Eastside are coming to the regional tax table with some bad blood: During negotiations on a new bridge design, Seattle argued for an expansion from four lanes to six with no room to grow. In a contentious vote, the project committee instead opted for six lanes with the potential for a two-lane expansion.

"Seattle's unhappy with the translake plan that came out," said Dwight Pelz, a King County councilman from Seattle who sits on the regional board that would put a new gas tax to voters. "So they're not enthusiastic about funding 520 this time."

Yesterday's two-hour meeting — the planning group's first since the election — was meant to help scale down the 405 design, but it also served as a kind of transportation therapy session. Over coffee and doughnuts, representatives commiserated about the loss of dollars and tried to figure out where it all went wrong.

"I think this region has too many expensive projects," said Bellevue Mayor Connie Marshall. "We have very intelligent voters; I think they knew what they were doing."

Some committee members placed blame on the state Legislature for not enacting a tax increase to fund transportation.

None seemed to want to point fingers at voters.

"I don't sense a complacency (among voters)," said Redmond Mayor Rosemarie Ives. "This just wasn't the solution."

Despite the recent defeat, many representatives expressed a sense of urgency to do something quickly about traffic.

"If we wait five years to do one project, this economy will be dead," said Sonny Putter, a Newcastle councilman. "Without improvements, forget it. Boeing is gone. Microsoft ... has already moved into the hinterlands. They're going to be gone."

Other transportation dollars could come if the Legislature decides to enact a gas-tax increase on its own. Revenue collected by toll lanes along I-405, which are under consideration, could also help, said Kargianis.

If state lawmakers from other regions refuse to help the growing Puget Sound area secure much-needed transportation dollars, everyone will suffer, warned committee member Dave Gossett, Snohomish County councilman.

"If the Legislature cuts Puget Sound loose, I want all my money back," he said. "That means all the gas tax collected (here) comes back. Some of those people who don't think they have a dog in that fight better wake up, 'cause they do."

Natalie Singer: 206-464-2704 or nsinger@seattletimes.com.