When Seattle mayor-elect Mike McGinn was campaigning, he promised to place a measure before the voters to expand light rail service to more of Seattle within two years of being elected.
He talked about running a light rail line up the west side of the city, connecting neighborhoods like West Seattle, Ballard, Interbay, Belltown and maybe even Fremont.
He said the city could build light rail more efficiently than Sound Transit, using existing right-of-ways to reduce the cost of land acquisition.
Currently, McGinn is also soliciting ideas from residents about what to do when he becomes mayor. Extending light rail is one of the most popular ideas.
But how do you pay for it? Nothing is close to definite but McGinn did suggest a transportation benefit district that could raise as much as $100 per vehicle (although roughly $25 of that is currently slated for replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct).
In any case, what do you think of the idea of Seattle building its own extension of light rail within the city limits? Good idea or bad?
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