Not unlike my three-year-old son, Ron Sims loves his railroad toys. Railroad Ron is at it again: "King County trying to buy rail corridor for new trail"
King County has entered into exclusive negotiations with BNSF Railway to buy a 47-mile rail corridor stretching from Renton to Snohomish County for use as a trail.As we learn in today's update, Railroad Ron resembles my three-year-old in that he's always asking the grown-ups to buy him train tracks, no matter how much they cost:
Sims wouldn't estimate how much the 47-mile route would cost, though he said the county has identified funding and that new taxes would not be involved.I'm confident my son will learn to understand the value of money. I'm not so sure about Railroad Ron. Posted by Stefan Sharkansky at May 17, 2005 10:41 AM | Email This
Keep it up, Ron. It just makes Irons' job that much easier.
Posted by: Michele on May 17, 2005 11:12 AMIt's a deliberate strategy...in general, no one will vote to raise taxes for boondoggles, but when we're put in the position of voting against emergency services or parks or schools, it's harder to mobilize the "nays".
Posted by: HT on May 17, 2005 11:19 AMFOR A TRAIL! A money trail...
It's a mental disease. But what do you call it when some one says "Great Idea"? (a Democrat)
By the way, Ron doesn't let simple things get in the way of his "vision" like how will he pay for something, who will be able to live in KingCo once Don Ron's vision has materialized etc. Certainly Don will not want to talk about what other possible priorities have been sacrificed for his Sims Trail.
I'll bet the Sims Trail is pretty crooked, huh?
Posted by: Mr. Cynical on May 17, 2005 11:50 AMSo KC thinks lack of money is responsible for the homeless?
Posted by: Fred on May 17, 2005 11:57 AMSound Transit has finally learned how to negotiate with RR owners, and perhaps they can make a deal. ST uses money from the East King County Subarea surplus(Money that cannot legally be spent anywhere else) to buy the part of the line in the East King County Subarea, and then work with the City of Tacoma to allow the Spirit of Washington access to the Tacoma Rail Mountain Division. King County gets to railbank the corridor, the Spirit of Washington gets new digs, and most people would be happy.
I wonder, do the people of the Eastside have a problem with these smoky diesels. I think the FP9s are exempt from Tier-II standards, because they are an endangered species. Our rugged terain in the old days made using the standard passenger locomotive of the day impractical up here, so GN and NP asked the GM to build a Freight locomotive that was regeared for passenger duties, and equiped with a steam generator for heating. The Spirit of Washington is a classic, and is a local institution.
I remember talking on Railfan boards awhile back about if bike trails and railroads can co-exist, and I was told it was possible.
Posted by: MASSTRANSITFAN on May 17, 2005 11:59 AMHe'll set up a dining car on the monorail to replace the Dinner Train. That will keep everyone happy.
Posted by: max on May 17, 2005 12:02 PMThat was somewhat tongue in cheek but I hope you see my point.
Pudster
Posted by: Puddybud on May 17, 2005 12:47 PMWhy spend millions just to duplicate an already existing trail alongside the lake!
Posted by: JustSumGuy on May 17, 2005 01:10 PMHowever, to the credit of the pioneers of that project, most of the land converted was already being used as a jogging/horse trail- the rest was pretty much sitting under a foot of water.
In the end it has thwarted a lot of illegal dumpsites and meth labs near Buckley and Orting. There is no way that project would have gone through though if it was at the expense of operating business.
Someone call a proctologist for Sims, by the sound of thigns, I think we've located his head.
Posted by: Andy on May 17, 2005 01:14 PMOh, but no...dear leader, Ron Sims, doesn't want it for transportation:
"In the past, this route has been recommended for bus rapid transit, light rail, single-engine uses," Sims said. "But I'm buying it to have as a trail. If future leaders want to add a use ... it will be added to the trail, it would not be instead of that."
So, lets get this straight...we have existing infrastructure in place that can be converted to a public transportation line for a system that Ron Sims prefers, and at way less than the cost of building the sytem from scratch. But instead of utilizing the benefits of the existing system, he wants to spend an undisclosed amount to buy the railway, at least a couple million to tear out the rail lines, pave it over as a trail, then spend another $4.6 - $6.2 to build a light rail system somewhere else.
Of course, in Sims' words, if a future leader wants to use the trail as a light rail corridor, they can tear out the pavement and relay the track. Also love how he says that "I'm buying it"...hmm, so am I to gather that this mean he's using his own money? My guess is no.
But seriously people, where is the logic in this plan and has this man never heard of the concept of efficiency!!???
(Obviously I know the answer to that question, so I'll return to banging my head against a wall in amazement at his obtuseness)
Posted by: Darth Dogbert on May 17, 2005 01:40 PMJust look at the Sound Transit report card if you need any more proof. $120 per round trip, per rider from Tacoma to Seattle. And the rider only pays $3. Only government could ever be responsible for creating such a colossal loss scheme. I'm surprised the Sound Transit administrators have the gall to continue to support this scam in light of such a total failure. I sure wouldn't want my name associated with that mess. I guess that might be good for a public sector resume though, where the more you fail, the better promotion you get. I'd bet one would probably be able to create a less lossy investment by just burning piles of cash to generate electricity.
That's the great thing about leftists, in the end, they are self defeating.
Posted by: Jeff B. on May 17, 2005 01:41 PMThe fact is the BNSF will be disposing of this land. If the BNSF disposes of the property to private land owners you can kiss the Dinner Train goodbye. The folks who work for the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train will only have an opportunity to keep their enterprise running only as long as the route is open. If King County doesn't buy the property from the BNSF, developers of another kind definitely will.
Posted by: Daniel K on May 17, 2005 01:41 PMUse it for Light rail or dedicated bus!! I can't believe we're running tracks down Rainer, and then abandoning any real mass transit on the East side.
Do you know how profoundly crazy this thing is? I don't care about wasting money on the parks, but you have this rare, amazing thing called a rail line, you could turn into commuter rail!!!!
I guess for Sims and all its too simple and straightforward.
(I for one still wish the Burke Gilman bike trail was a commuter train line!! (it was a train line until the 1980s)
Posted by: Righton on May 17, 2005 01:50 PMOn the cost side, we can assume whatever BNSF is selling for is an accurate estimate of the cost. If Spirit of Wash train was worth more, it would be willing to pay more to BNSF to use the tracks, and BNSF perhaps wouldn't be interested in selling the corridor.
The benefit side is harder - what is the net present value of all future trail (if that is what it became) usages? One could, for instance, say a family Saturday afternoon on the trail is worth the same as an alternate family afternoon outing, say a Mariner's game or a trip to the zoo. Multiply that by the usages per mile of say the Burke-Gilman and we'd have an estimate of the value, which could then be discounted into today's dollars.
Posted by: Peter Carlin on May 17, 2005 02:00 PMThat sounds great on the surface, but do you know of any study that has shown a north/south Eastside commute along this rail corridor as being the type of route needed vs. routes that connect the Eastside to Seattle? Maybe something that would eventually continue on from Renton to the airport would be useful, but in general it doesn't seem to me that Woodinville to Bellevue is going to service much of a ridership demand.
Posted by: Daniel K on May 17, 2005 02:00 PMLet's turn it into a homeless train. Stops a-plenty--in your neighborhood, too. Homeless "guests" can de-train, mill around, pee in the bushes and shop the local stores. A business boom.
Or, this can be a "moving polling place," serving as a voter registration center, temporary home, official voting address and other useful public service needs.
Ahhh...crank up the Johnny Cash and let's hear the clickety-clack of the rails. We can still call is "BNSF"--Big 'Nother Sims FUBAR.
Posted by: Jimmie-howya-doin on May 17, 2005 02:42 PMIs that who you think you are? Heh!
Posted by: headless lucy on May 17, 2005 03:39 PMPosted by: GS on May 17, 2005 03:51 PM
What ever he is smoking must be some good stuff, active rail line is pricey stuff. Maybe he can fire a few cops and add more folks to his office staff to study the issue.
Look out for the emergency property tax increase to buy the right of way.
Carlson just had the boss of the Dinner Train on he said the right of way is 100 feet wide more that enough room for the rail and a trail. Only in Sims world is 10 feet for a trail greater than a 100 foot right of way. He must have studied math in Seattle Public schools.
Posted by: JCM on May 17, 2005 03:58 PMA. I could care less about a study. That's the province of bureaucrats and Sound Transit.
B. Go drive it some day; jammed from Bellevue down to Boeing (737 factory).
c. Give me nearly free right of way (this sucker is cheap) and I'll make transit work. Insane to be spending heavily in Rainier valley while paving a nearly free right of way on the East Side.
d. Be a visionary; what if you had an Eastside fast train (this thing is a train and thus can go faster than a trolley)? Imagine Microsoft and High tech people getting to the airport? Imagine Boeing workers? Imagine Boeing co loving getting 405 cars off the road (they transport plane parts up to Everett via trucks on 405)
Eureka!
Please! Somebody send this message along to Simms and the folks at Sound Transit!
Posted by: alphabet soup on May 17, 2005 04:51 PMNot too long ago Ron was railroading cities and private groups to take over the costs for county pools (built under "Forward Thrust" funds). And also closing local parks to "get them where it hurts" because we passed I-601. Heck, when local citizens volunteered to keep the parks clean, they couldn't because of union labor agreements with county employees.
Talk about being railroaded yet again by Ron. He knows what to neglect to get funds to do what he wants. We just won't know what services will be cut till December.
Ron wants to highlight a "green" accomplishment for his upcoming election. Ron will find funds even if it means closing parks, pools, services, etc. to cause the most public pain. Railroading is just the method Ron (and the KC Council majority) are most comfortable with.
If King County does nothing the Dinner Train WILL be put out of business. The ONLY way the Dinner Train can continue to be in business is if King County, the only entity able to buy the entire corridor, does buy it and negotiates a means for the Dinner Train to share what would then be public land. At that point, being that the public owns the land, that private enterprise would be running its business on public land, and it would not be unreasonable for the public to prefer that it did not, or make requests as to the limitations of that business.
If King County does not buy the land, then BNSF will sell it in bits and pieces to private owners. What does the Dinner Train owners and employees say with respect to that alternative? Is that what they would prefer? Of course not.
So here is what happens: the Dinner Train folks make their appeal to the public that they believe they add value through their presence. Then politics and negotiating take over, perhaps even a vote is put to the citizens of King County, and a future plan for the use of the corridor is determined. That can only start if King County owns the land, otherwise the issue is moot and the land will be turned into one private development after another. Take your pick.
Posted by: Daniel K on May 17, 2005 04:57 PMLast time I checked, Rainier Valley is in "Seattle". Doesn't that answer one of the reasons why we are spending so much there? It's part of the long term "density" plans. All roads must lead to Seattle.
Posted by: Mike J on May 17, 2005 05:05 PMA light rail system that services city neighborhoods in Seattle is not the same as a rail line that goes from one suburb to another without passing though the city.
Every metro rail system in the world is made up of a network of lines that has a central crossing point at the heart of the central urban zone of the area. Even commuter rail systems service a central zone, while expending the reach of the transportation system into the suburbs, or outer urban reaches of a metropolis. However, you will not easily find a rail service that connects two suburban locations directly together without first going through that central hub. And for good reason - the traffic for such commutes just isn't high enough to justify it. That's what a Woodinville to Renton line would be trying to do.
While one can quite easily imagine the benefit of an Issaquah/Seattle line, or a Redmond/Seattle line, any north/south line that passes around Seattle, instead of through it will need to at least extend to the airport at the south, and to Lynnwood at the north, to be useful. Maybe one day that might happen, but until then you first need to own the corridor, and you might as well find a public use for the land until you did create the new line (which would surely be many many years down the road).
Posted by: Daniel K on May 17, 2005 05:16 PMI could use your suggested alternate east-west route of I-90 traffic patterns that feature no less than 4 (four) lanes/direction carrying a comparable (each approximately 132,000/day) number of vehicles as the 2 (two) lanes/direction that I-405 must bear as an indication of need.
I could further assert that this rail transit solution could attract riders traveling between the hubs of Renton, Bellevue, Kirkland, and Snohomish. Riders seeking respite from the deliberately under engineered Eastside highway system. I might add that this solution could easily coexist with the "Spirit of Washington" train.
I could close by making a comparison to either of the "mainstream" solutions that are offered by Sound Transit which could provide a plausible mass transit alternative for a minute fraction of the cost per user mile calculus that those two routes promise.
I could do that, but your mind is already closed, so why bother?
Oh yea.....Because now that Sims is found out, and the super-secret deal ain't so super-secret any longer, some of the rest of us might just possibly get to have a say in determining our futures.
If they buy this strip, watch your pocket books, because the dreams of what he can do with your money will be grand! And he and this Former Attorney TAXHIKER Gregoire will be down your throat reaching for more!
I have a feeling that name is going to stick!
Posted by: DeadManVoting (aka Iguana) on May 17, 2005 07:38 PMThis man has lost his mind and must be stopped by the Feds...now!
"Oh well,...that's 80 more votes for David Irons Jr.--the number of angry employees who will lose their jobs because of this."
Michele,
Add about 100,000 more votes for Irons! You forgot the patrons of the Dinner Train!
Let's recap what we have lost or are in jeopardy of losing:
*Freedom of speech
*Right to bear arms
*Freedom of religion (that's next)
*Right to own private property
*Right to vote . . . at least in fair elections
*Right to due process . . . fair and balanced court system
*Right to education (spoon fed mush is not education)
Come on . . . add to my list. Where are the two guys who occasionally post in Russian. I'm sure they've got a perfect phrase right about now. A politically correct "orange" phrase!
Posted by: lksimstrailgrammy on May 17, 2005 09:19 PMWhatever it is, he has supplied David Irons with more campaign material. Cascade County cannot occur too soon - hurry up with the petitions !
Posted by: KS on May 17, 2005 10:07 PM
First he talks about the right of was as trail, in his mind its a done deal.
Second, quote "We need to acquire the trail, then have the debate."
Ron, you are spending tax money. The debate comes before spending, with a plan in had. You don't just buy something, then come up with a plan for it.
Arrogance on display.
Posted by: JCM on May 19, 2005 10:48 AMA better use has been proposed to the council; which includes keeping the Dinner Train; and adding an operational railroad museum, which could also double as a starter public rail line.
Next, those 80 employees of the Dinner train; and then the BNSF employees, that operate trains on the line; and BNSF's maintenance workers, which stand to lose jobs. Add the tourist dollars that will be lost; and if the County buys the line for rail use, they would be receiving rent on the use of the line; instead of paying to upkeep it as a trail.
Sims says He's Buying It. Mr. Sims, Let me see that the money us in "your" bank account, before the deal is finalized. Don Kirk - Oregon & California Rail Road & Transportation Museum - http://osrm.org
Posted by: Don Kirk on July 19, 2005 10:05 PM