Sound Transit faces calls for firings over $35bn deficit and project delays
Updated
Updated · MyNorthwest · May 10
Sound Transit faces calls for firings over $35bn deficit and project delays
1 articles · Updated · MyNorthwest · May 10
KIRO host Jake Skorheim said someone should be fired after board discussions on delaying the Ballard Link Extension and pushing South Kirkland-Issaquah Link to 2050.
Planned Sounder North service discontinuation in 2033 and cancelled or deferred park-and-ride upgrades in Tacoma, Everett, Sammamish and Renton were also highlighted.
Skorheim said taxpayers were promised a roughly $53bn ST3 programme but now face far higher long-term costs, while co-host Spike O'Neill said current leaders are largely cleaning up predecessors' decisions.
As Sound Transit cuts projects while ridership hits records, who will be held accountable for the $35 billion budget shortfall?
With project costs soaring and timelines pushed to 2050, is Seattle's grand transit vision now an impossible dream for taxpayers?