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Weighing in on the Viaduct

January 19, 2007

I know hearing about the replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct is getting really old around these parts. I'm not sure if anyone outside of Seattle keeps tabs on my site, but if so, they can read more about the Viaduct over on Wikipedia to catch up on the topic. The lack of action on the local government's part (and by action, I mean doing something other than talking about it), and more importantly, the lack of forethought, is quite disappointing.

I'm not going to argue statistics showing how many cars rely on the Viaduct during an average day, or how much it will cost to fix. In my opinion, that's missing the big picture. I use the Viaduct on a daily basis, via my usual bus route or weekend excursions. If I'm leaving my neighborhood and headed towards downtown, I'm using the Viaduct. I understand it's necessity, and I understand that if it were entirely gone, traffic would be royally screwed (as if it isn't bad enough already).

Let's consider a few points about the Viaduct, which is actually a relatively small section of Highway (the) 99. For starters, it's ugly. Granted, other than Highway 1 along the California coastline, I don't think I've driven on a stretch of highway with more spectacular views. Which brings me to the next point, the fact that it inhibits an otherwise beautiful part of our city. I can't imagine what it must've been like to walk along the shores of Elliott Bay when the Viaduct wasn't looming above it. That thing is so damn loud, the only people foolish enough to spend time down there are unwitting tourists. Take a stroll down Alaskan Way, and the slew of souvenir shops and horrible restaurants will confirm this. What if you could gaze out over the bay from the Pike Place Market, and not have it ruined by the roar of traffic below? Let's not forget one other important factor; studies show that in the event of another major earthquake, this sucker's going down. I lived in Southern California during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, and I felt it, 505 miles away. I remember the horrible footage of the crushed cars underneath the Viaduct of I-880, and it would be a damn shame to have the same thing happen 17 years later in this city. In the first few years I lived here, I saw the Kingdome imploded, and a new football stadium rise from it's rubble in a matter of a few years. I've heard stories about voters rejecting the construction of SafeCo Field, and it was built regardless. Apparently, beer, jocks, and Paul Allen are the only factors of influence around here. There's also the rather bizarre fact that the entire Viaduct is a ghost town late at night, but I'm not really sure how that comes into play.

So if you've been following the news on this topic, you probably assume that I favor a tunnel to replace the double decker structure. Actually, I don't care that much what they replace it with. As sweet as I think a tunnel would be, it sounds like a nightmare to build (like a 9 year project) and it's insanely expensive. I'm used to a highway being there, so if it's still there 5 years from now, so be it. Let's just make it safe. The larger issue I have, is the city's solutions for congestion on streets and highways. I linked to an article on Dubai recently, and the main problem that growing city faces is it's "nearly total automobile dependence". I would have to say that Seattle also falls into this category. We have no form of mass transit, and we don't really have any room to build more (or expand) interstates and highways, yet that's our plan. Have you been to Los Angeles or San Diego? Have you seen the sprawl of freeways? Did the increase in freeways solve their problems with traffic congestion? It sure as hell didn't. Portland and Tacoma have light rail systems up and running. Sure, I doubt they compare to the NYC Subway system, but it's something. Meanwhile in Seattle, our Magic Kingdom fantasy of a monorail system is shut down, Sound Transit is building light rail here and there (which is great, by the way), and Paul Allen is having a street car system installed in his South Lake Union Bio-Mecca to shlep the suits from their new, eco-friendly condos, to Whole Foods, the office, and back. At some point, all of these people commuting in their single occupancy vehicles need to wake up and realize that they have no one to blame for their time wasted in traffic but themselves. Unfortunately, our infrastructure doesn't leave them much of an option.

The focus of my frustration is that we're spending a lot of money on systems that are temporary fixes, things that are proven to fail. We need to look farther than 10 years down the road, and make some adjustments. Want to live in Issaquah and work downtown? Guess what, you take a train (if one existed). Want to live in a loft in Belltown (are there lofts in Belltown?) and work in Redmond? You too, will take a train. I realize not everyone can live where it's most convenient, and I realize not everyone lands a job close to home, but if we had a proper transportation plan, these things would be less of an issue. The indecisiveness of our elected officials is getting to be ridiculous.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Posted by Aaron on January 19, 2007 04:03 PM| Permalink