Staff Editorial: The pervasive problem of transportation: part I

There's no doubt that driving in Seattle has become a headache. Even after growing problems that placed Seattle's I-5/I-90 interchange in the top three worst traffic bottlenecks in the nation in 1999 by to the American Highway Users Association, there has been no successful effort on the part of the citizens or government to remedy the problem.

Aside from the improbable proposition of convincing everyone who travels in and around Seattle to use Metro or to carpool, solving any one of three problems could easily lead to life in the fast lane for Seattle.

First of all, the lack of leadership by the Sound Transit Board of Directors has led to a wishy-washy stance on solutions for public transportation. A firmer stance, whether for a light rail, monorail or even a heavy rail, is almost completely lacking. The fact is that no matter what the final project is, not everyone will be happy, but that doesn't mean that something shouldn't be done .

Secondly, Seattle is one of the wealthiest cities in the United States, but no one seems to want to spend the money necessary to maintain our roads and bridges or create new modes of transportation, when it becomes evident that roads and buses just aren't enough.

Finally, urban sprawl in Seattle is severely limited. Because the entire Puget Sound area is supported by essentially three very centralized commercial centers, huge numbers of people conglomerate in a few square miles every day. Expanding zones for development would surely alleviate the problem of daily mass convergence.

Over the next three days, we will explore options to help wake Seattle from its gridlock nightmare -- a nightmare that if unchecked, looks to become a permanent reality.