Assessment of Current Status, Plans, and Preliminary Alternatives for High Capacity Transportation in the I-5 Corridor
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CONNECTING THURSTON COUNTY AND THE CENTRAL PUGET SOUND Alternatives to Meet Transportation Needs in the I-5 Corridor Working Paper #1 June 2011 Assessment of Current Status, Plans, and Preliminary Alternatives for High Capacity Transportation in the I-5 Corridor Issue Statement The continued growth in the Central and South Puget Sound and ongoing development of military facilities including Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) have increased transportation demand and congestion and decreased travel time reliability in the I-5 corridor. Travel options are limited in the corridor due to natural barriers, sensitive environmental areas and access limitations related to JBLM. There is inadequate capacity today and demand for travel and freight movement continues to increase in this corridor. The challenge facing us is accommodating the travel demand in this corridor in a way that: • Preserves the environment • Provides adequate capacity for people and freight movement • Is cost-effective • Is financially feasible • Is politically feasible • Accommodates future growth at military facilities including JBLM • Accommodates growth in travel between Thurston County and the central Puget Sound region. Current Status: Highway Infrastructure Highway infrastructure connecting the Central Puget Sound and the South Sound is extremely limited. Interstate 5 (I-5) provides the only direct link between these areas. For the purposes of this working paper, the portion of the I-5 corridor being considered begins at the I-5 and SR-512 interchange (Lakewood) and ends at the I-5 and SR-101 interchange just south of downtown Olympia. I-5 experiences significant congestion throughout the day with uncertain travel time being the rule rather than the exception. Existing plans call for expanding HOV lanes from the King County/Pierce County border to the SR-512 interchange. Funding currently exists to extend the lanes only as far south as the 38th St/SR- 16 interchange in Tacoma. There are currently no plans to add HOV lanes or expand roadway capacity south of SR-512. There are significant technical and financial challenges to accomplishing an expansion of capacity this portion of I-5. I-5 travels through JBLM and the Nisqually Delta, crosses the Nisqually River and traverses the main line of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad. The widening of I-5 to add an HOV lane or general capacity would be extremely expensive and could not be completed until 2030 or later. Working Paper #1 1 June 2011 Current Status: Freight and Passenger Rail Service There are three separate types of rail service in this corridor and they each have unique characteristics and challenges. The rail line connecting the Central Puget Sound and Thurston County is the BNSF mainline. The BNSF mainline follows an indirect path between downtown Tacoma and Lacey, following the Puget Sound shoreline and crossing the I-5 corridor just northeast of the Nisqually Delta and the Thurston/Pierce County line. Due to significant elevation changes and other factors, the line travels to the east and south of the northern urban area (Lacey, Olympia and Tumwater) and then turns south and travels through Tenino and Bucoda before entering Lewis County. The line serves Centennial Station at Yelm Highway where the BNSF line crosses under the highway. Up to 60 trains per day operate on the main line through Thurston County and this is expected to grow to 120 trains per day by 2025. Two branch lines connect to the BNSF main line in Thurston County – the BNSF St. Clair Branch and the Union Pacific East Olympia Branch. The St. Clair Branch is a short section running from the main line to the Union Mills Road area (Lacey). The alignment west of this point has been converted to the Woodland Trail. The East Olympia Branch meets the main line near 83rd and Rich Rd. and travels through Tumwater and Olympia to the Port of Olympia facilities north of downtown Olympia. The Tacoma Municipal Belt Line operates a small amount of service on this line that connects the Port of Tacoma and the Port of Olympia. Top speed on the East Olympia Branch line is currently limited to 10 miles per hour. Intercity Passenger Rail Service – Amtrak operates 5 trips per day in each direction between Olympia and Seattle. The first morning trip leaves Olympia at 10:20 a.m. with the last trip at 8:22 p.m. The first morning trip leaves Seattle at 7:30 a.m. with the last trip at 5:30 p.m. The one-way travel time is approximately one hour and forty minutes northbound and one hour and twenty minutes southbound. Amtrak service currently uses the BNSF main line between Olympia, Tacoma and Seattle. Amtrak is expected to begin to using the Sound Transit line between the Thurston/Pierce county border and downtown Tacoma in 2016. This is more direct route and will reduce travel time. There are also plans to increase the number of Amtrak trains per day operating in the corridor. Washington State has received a significant level of funding to improve the passenger rail corridor between Oregon and the Canadian border. It is unclear how this will affect the portion of the line in Thurston, Pierce and King Counties. The nature of Intercity Passenger Rail service is that stations are widely spaced and that other modes (private vehicles, taxi, and public transportation) are required to carry passengers to their ultimate destination. A challenge in Thurston County is that the Amtrak station is located 8 miles from downtown Olympia and the Capitol Campus and is on the fringe of the Urban Growth Area. Working Paper #1 2 June 2011 The Tacoma and Seattle locations are on the edge of the downtown areas and also require access to and use of other modes. Commuter Rail Service – Commuter rail service generally operates between suburban cities and the major Central Business District in a region. Sound Transit operates the Sounder Commuter Rail service centered on the Seattle Central Business District. The current northern service operates between Everett and Seattle and also serves the cities of Mukilteo and Edmonds. The southern service operates between Tacoma and Seattle and also serves stations in Tukwila, Kent, Auburn, Sumner and Puyallup. The southern line is scheduled to be extended further south from Tacoma to Lakewood in late-2012. Eighteen trains per day (9 in each direction) will start or end in Lakewood. Four morning peak period southbound trips are operated on the service between Everett and Seattle. Four afternoon peak period trips are operated northbound. On the section between Tacoma and Seattle, seven a.m. and two p.m. trips are operated northbound and two a.m. and seven p.m. trips are operated southbound. A Sound Transit express bus route (599) connected the Lakewood Station and the Tacoma Dome station. This route was discontinued in June 2011. Freight Rail Service – The BNSF rail line is a very heavily used freight corridor and demand and use are expected to grow. Generally, freight is limited to a maximum speed of 50 mph in the corridor. The level of freight traffic greatly limits the ability to add additional commuter rail service in the corridor. It also makes it very costly to lease track time for use by commuter rail trains. Current Status – Public Transportation Public transportation systems (Sound Transit, Pierce Transit and Intercity Transit) cooperate to provide service connecting the central Puget Sound area and Thurston County. This includes express bus service and vanpool service. When Sounder commuter rail service is extended to Lakewood in 2012, connections to this service will also be important. Express Bus Service – Intercity Transit and Pierce Transit both provide service in the I-5 corridor connecting downtown Tacoma, Lakewood (the Lakewood Station and the Lakewood/SR512 park- and-ride facilities) with the Martin Way park-and-ride facility and the Olympia Transit Center in Thurston County. Prior to June 12, 2011, twenty-four (24) trips in each direction were provided each weekday. Intercity Transit provided 16 roundtrips while Pierce Transit provided 8 peak-hour roundtrips. Intercity Transit provides Saturday and Sunday service in the corridor with nine roundtrips each day. Pierce Transit reduced the number of trips provided from eight to four in June 2011. Intercity Transit added two roundtrips in June 2011 to address the most significant service gaps created with the elimination of the Pierce Transit trips. Pierce Transit has also announced it is considering the elimination of the remaining 4 trips it provides between Tacoma and Olympia. This service may be eliminated in October 2011. Intercity Transit is not in a position to provide significant additional service in this corridor at this time. Working Paper #1 3 June 2011 The Intercity Transit trips also provide service connections to local and regional transit service in Lakewood, downtown Tacoma and the Tacoma Dome Station park-and-ride facility. Connections are made to the Sounder commuter rail service at the Tacoma Dome facility. The Pierce Transit express service connects Lakewood, the Tacoma Community College Transit Center, The Narrows park-and-ride facility and the Kimball Drive park-and-ride facility in Gig Harbor. This service is scheduled for elimination in October 2011. The Lakewood Station and the Lakewood/SR 512 park-and-ride facilities are major connection points with Sound Transit and service connecting to Thurston County. Currently, Sound Transit operates the following service to Lakewood: Route 592/594 – Approximately 53 roundtrips are operated on weekdays between Lakewood and downtown Seattle. Eight a.m. peak and seven p.m. peak trips also serve the DuPont park-and-ride facility. Thirty-four (34) roundtrips are provided between Lakewood and Seattle on weekends. Route 574 – Approximately 38 roundtrips are provided on weekdays connecting Lakewood and the SeaTac International Airport.