In a report released today,
the Washington Public Interest Research Group (WashPIRG) called on Washington's
gubernatorial candidates to tell voters how each plans to solve the state's
transportation problems. The report, entitled "Breaking
the Political Gridlock," shows that Washington residents' health
and safety continue to be threatened by pollution from vehicles and inattention
to crumbling infrastructure, like the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
"Transportation continues
to be one of the top issues voters care about," stated WashPIRG Transportation
Advocate and report author Jessyn Schor. "With the election nearing, voters
deserve to know how each candidate plans to tackle congestion, air quality,
and the replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct. After years of political gridlock
at the state and local level our next governor must take the lead on transportation
issues."
The report points out that
though air quality complies with state and federal clean air laws, air pollution
continues to make many people—especially children and seniors—sick:
- In King County 1 in 10
children suffer from asthma.
- Over the last 10 years, childhood hospitalization rates for asthma have increased
by 53% (from 505 children a year to 772), even as overall childhood hospitalization
rates have decreased.
- King County was given an F in the American Lung Association's 2004 "State
of the Air" report for the amount of particulate matter in the air.
The report also notes that
the strategy used to maintain air quality in many Washington metropolitan areas,
including Seattle, Vancouver, and Spokane, is to aggressively increase transit
ridership. For example, the Puget Sound Regional Council's projections (an 80%
increase in transit ridership over the next 20-30 years) grossly exceed current
capacity and funding commitments for future capacity. Without a major policy
shift, this strategy is not viable.
Also highlighted in the
report is continuing threat to public safety posed by the Alaskan Way Viaduct
and supporting seawall, damaged in the 2001 Nisqually earthquake. The Washington
State Department of Transportation predicts that the viaduct will not withstand
another earthquake the magnitude of the Nisqually, and yet, while 110,000 vehicles
use the viaduct daily, there is no plan in place to finance the replacement.
"The governor, as
the state's highest elected official, is in a unique position to create consensus
on the problems that continue to plague us - the viaduct, poor air quality,
congestion," said Schor. "Surely if Governor Locke could broker a
$3.2 billion dollar deal to keep Boeing's 7E7 production in Washington, our
next governor should be able to bring opposing parties together to come up with
the funds to fix or replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct and to get rapid transit
built in Puget Sound."
WashPIRG is a statewide
nonprofit, nonpartisan public interest organization dedicated to environmental
protection, consumer rights, and good government. For a copy of the report,
visit www.washpirg.org
