Ron Sims. Seriously. Ron Sims. WTF? Everyone is now quite familiar with Sims' opinion piece which ran in the Times on Sept 27th during the lead up to the RTID vote. A lot of people praised Sims for political courage, but how could you?

He's been a member of the Sound Transit board for a decade and perhaps has had more say about ST2's Light Rail expansion than anyone - only to come out at the last hour to call the plan "lackluster" and "inadequate". And the courage he exhibited? Where was it when he voted for the plan while he was on the ST Board?

Sims' environmental stance on voting against RTID was certainly understandable and commendable. But his decision to oppose RTID on the grounds of cost and time was hypocritical and a "Judas" moment that few have seen since Dylan went electric. The man who once said, "We're going to dig and dig and dig and dig, until the light-rail project gets to Bellevue, gets to Everett, gets to Tacoma" was now saying:

If approved, we will see the largest tax increase in state history... I look at this package with the knowledge that in 50 years, my oldest son will be 80 when it's paid off. My granddaughter will be 55. Their ability to make public investments relevant to their lives and times will be severely limited by this package... The benefits of this package are far from immediate... Even if on schedule, 60 percent of new light rail won't open until 2027. Light rail across Lake Washington is at least 14 years away. The Northgate extension is 11 years away.

On what planet does this guy live? Building an entire network of light rail to cover 50 miles is not only expensive but will take time. What cost and time frame was he thinking of when he made his now infamous "dig" quote? It was a total back stabbing moment against Sound Transit. An urging to vote no because of the environmental concerns would have kept ST in the clear, but bringing up concerns on cost and timetable only reinforce the false-concept that light rail is invariably too expensive and doesn't move enough people.

But Ron's got a solution for you. The man that worried that Light Rail would take too long, not move enough people and would be too expensive wants you to pay for 5 new Ferry routes.

Yes, they are relatively inexpensive (financed by a property tax of 5.5 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation or $22 for a $400,000 house) but for a region which is wondering what the public was telling them about taxes, long term planning and transit after the election, is this where Sims wants to take us? Ferries? Moving the relatively wealthy from waterfront properties to other waterfront properties.

I think it's worth it, personally, and I would be happy to pay for it if it actually moves people and decreases single-occupant car trips into the city. But I am concerned about what message this sends to voters. Mainly, "We don't know what we're doing, no one is running the show so let's throw out a million ideas to see what works". (Oh, and you have to pay for them all)

Nice job, Judas.

Related Links:
Seattle Times : The roads-and-transit plan: so much cost to do so little (Ron Sims Op-Ed)
Crosscut : Two cheers for Ron Sims
Seattle Times : Dreams of expansion mark light-rail groundbreaking ceremony
Seattle Times : Sims outlines county plan for 5 new foot-ferry routes