King County Metro has proposed an income-based fare program that would enable King County residents to pay transit cost on a sliding scale.
This plan responds to increasing concern over the escalating costs of metro fares, which currently exceed those of many other major cities. Although Metro recently rolled out its ORCA LIFT program, which allows qualifying participants to pay $1.50 per ride, the growing number of transit users who either cannot afford this rate or otherwise remain unassisted has prompted further strategizing.
(This article originally appeared in Real Change and has been republished with permission.)
Has your commute become more colorful? Those traveling via bus or light rail along Fifth Avenue South between Royal Brougham Way and South Spokane Street have recently been treated to a new sight: A continuous line of murals, known as SODO Track, turning an otherwise uninteresting route into a charming one.
Susan* is all business as she boards the 7, toting a cart with her that contains most of her belongings and expertly flipping up the front seats on the bus to nestle it securely in an out-of-the-way spot. She rides this route frequently.
The first one is free. After that, they’re still three dollars each. But transportation officials and advocates alike believe it’s a step in the right direction.
In a move to encourage more riders to enroll in ORCA card programs in the Puget Sound region, Sound Transit officials announced that they have made initial ORCA cards free for senior, disabled, and low-income riders when they join.
Mayor Jenny Durkan’s announcement that she wants the city to come up with a plan for “congestion pricing,” to toll surface streets in downtown and South Lake Union, is only the latest in a growing tradition of city policies that are meant to sound and feel good, but that are deeply delusional and throw Seattle’s working poor under the bus – in this case, literally. Continue reading Congestive Failure→
