Here are my views on the viaduct in the form of a letter to the editor of The Seattle Times newspaper:
Editor, The Times:
Your October 17 editorial about my candidacy for the King County Council says that a surface street in place of the viaduct would be impractical. What would prove impractical, however, is replacing the viaduct with a very costly tunnel or rebuilding the current structure. Neither a tunnel nor a replacement of the viaduct would lessen traffic congestion. A rebuilt viaduct would continue to wall off the downtown waterfront. Rather than resigning ourselves to the viaduct’s existing congested capacity, let’s redistribute that capacity in ways that create more sustainable communities.
By replacing the viaduct with a lower-cost, lower-speed surface throughway, we will open up the downtown waterfront. We would spread some of the existing viaduct traffic out onto other roads, with measures to help road freight move. We can remove the remainder of viaduct traffic by optimizing regional public transit and creating denser, more walkable neighborhoods. The Green Line elevated rapid transit line, if built as originally conceived with dual track along its entire length, and as part of an eventual system of monorail lines connecting Seattle neighborhoods, would help remove some of the existing viaduct capacity. We also need to prioritize our region’s transportation dollars towards the network of rapid transit (commuter and light rail) that Sound Transit is putting in place.
Let’s spend our tax dollars on transportation solutions that are rooted in the kind of sustainable region and City that we want them to be.
Sincerely,
Ed Pottharst
Independent candidate
King County Council
District 4
Comments