The I-90 Light Rail: A Bold Investment or a Financial Gamble?
As the highly anticipated I-90 light rail is set to debut on March 28th, King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci recently had a firsthand experience with this ambitious project. She described the ride as incredibly smooth, reaching speeds of 55 miles per hour, and declared it to be functioning "very, very well." Balducci expressed confidence that as more people witness the light rail effortlessly bypassing traffic congestion, ridership will naturally surge. She envisions drivers stuck in their cars seeing the train glide by and thinking, "That's the kind of marketing we need to attract people to ride it!"
However, KIRO host John Curley raised a significant point: the train's operational costs will be covered by a mere 2% to 3% of current commuters. This led him to ponder the perspective of the drivers who are essentially footing the bill. "So the guy sitting in the car — who's basically paying for the entire thing — what you're hoping is that person goes 'Golly, I love the autonomy and the freedom I have being in my car, being able to go where I want to go, when I want to go. Darn it all, I'm just going to get out of this car and get on that train,'" Curley remarked.
Balducci, however, remains optimistic, predicting that the trains will be packed, with projections of 50,000 riders per day. She believes this target will be met very quickly, as people genuinely enjoy the experience of riding the train. "We get not just commuters — although we do get an awful lot of commuters, and by the way, those parking garages that we built are going to fill up as well — we get a lot of people who want to go to the Mariners game, to the football games, weekend travel. Seniors love to take the train so that they don't have to drive around downtown Seattle. It's going to be a popular means of travel," she elaborated.
Curley then delved into the substantial financial commitment, questioning the overall value for such a significant expenditure. "Overall, the price tag is so high, and you wonder, well, what are you getting for the gigantic bill that every single taxpayer will have to be paying?" he inquired.
Balducci's response focused on the core benefit of fixed-route transit: "With fixed route transit, you're getting transit that is out of traffic."
Curley, however, crunched the numbers, estimating the total taxpayer cost to be around $9.8 billion once principal and interest on a 30- or 40-year bond are paid off. He even excluded maintenance costs, noting the extensive inspections required for such an unprecedented engineering feat. "So I took the principal and interest bond paying on a 30-year or 40-year, and I ran the numbers through the total amount of money that the taxpayers will be asked to pay $9.8 billion by the time the whole thing is paid off," he stated. "So I took the 3.4, did all the math, worked through on 5% interest on the bonds, plus I didn't include in there the maintenance cost, because they're going to have to inspect this thing a lot, because this is an engineering feat that has never been done before."
Balducci admitted she hadn't performed that specific calculation, preferring to focus on the principal amount. She acknowledged that the project is coming in slightly over budget, but emphasized that given the groundbreaking nature of placing light rail on a floating bridge – a world first – being within 2% to 3% of the projected budget is quite remarkable.
But here's where it gets controversial... Curley's detailed financial breakdown suggests a substantial burden on taxpayers, even if the ride itself is pleasant. Is the convenience of avoiding traffic worth a nearly $10 billion price tag for the average taxpayer? And considering the unique engineering challenges, is the current budget variance truly a sign of success, or a precursor to further cost overruns? What are your thoughts on this massive investment in public transit? Do you agree with Councilmember Balducci's optimistic outlook, or do John Curley's financial concerns resonate more with you? Share your opinions in the comments below!
