https://ckarnes.com/tags/transit/ Recent content in Transit on Chris Karnes | Tacoma, WA Hugo en-us Tue, 02 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/sound-transit-to-overhaul-st3-program-what-it-could-mean-for-pierce-county/ Tue, 02 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/sound-transit-to-overhaul-st3-program-what-it-could-mean-for-pierce-county/ It was a mixed bag of news from Sound Transit last week, with an announcement that light rail to Downtown Federal Way connecting to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Downtown Seattle would open on December 6th, 2025. This is good news for transit riders and urbanists in the South Puget Sound as light rail comes closer to fully serving South King County and Pierce County. However, as Ryan Packer at the Urbanist writes, the Sound Transit Board approved Motion M2025-36, otherwise known as the “Enterprise Initiative” which seeks to conduct a major overhaul of the voter-approved ST3 program as well as Sound Transit’s Long Range Plan, as it faces the twin constraints of inflation in construction costs and diminished projected tax revenues. https://ckarnes.com/post/transit-riders-may-get-a-seat-on-the-pierce-transit-board/ Fri, 30 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/transit-riders-may-get-a-seat-on-the-pierce-transit-board/ For those of us who don’t drive, riding transit isn’t just about getting from point A to point B – it’s a lifeline to independence. Transit means the freedom to connect with our community, to pursue opportunities, and to live full lives, even without a car. But that freedom comes at a cost. It means sometimes carefully timing a sprint across a busy street to catch a bus that runs only once an hour, bracing against the wind and rain without a bus shelter, or feeling the weight of groceries digging into your hands as you walk a mile home. https://ckarnes.com/post/moving-beyond-parking-minimums/ Tue, 06 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/moving-beyond-parking-minimums/ Senate Bill 5184 (The Parking Reform and Modernization Act), originally proposed by Jessica Bateman (D-Olympia), is due to be signed into law later tomorrow by Washington’s Governor Bob Ferguson. The bill, seeks to reform the practice of requiring excessive vehicle parking at businesses and homes throughout the state, which the Legislature finds “needlessly drive up development costs, especially for housing”, as well as has negative impacts like furthering automobile dependence, harming public health, and contributing to climate change. https://ckarnes.com/post/towards-transit-oriented-devleopment/ Fri, 01 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/towards-transit-oriented-devleopment/ A primary focus of Home in Tacoma has been to identify just how to absorb new growth into areas outside of the regional growth centers and mixed use centers. The largest change by land area is the conversion of single family zoning to an inclusive zoning framework that enables more housing types citywide: duplexes, triplexes, accessory dwelling units, and clusters of townhouses or cottage housing. Housing Types considered for Home in Tacoma Another significant change is the addition of mid-scale residential along walkable corridors, which should enable a bridge between development in the higher intensity mixed-use centers with lower scale predominantly residential neighborhoods. https://ckarnes.com/post/mapping-transit-equity/ Sat, 05 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/mapping-transit-equity/ How far can a traveler on public transit at 8AM on a Monday go in an hour in the Puget Sound region? The answer depends on where you start. If a rider lives near a major transit hub in a central city, Seattle, per se, you can get just about all areas of the city as well as everywhere in the region - Bellevue, Lynnwood, Federal Way, Everett and Tacoma. Enormous opportunities for access to employment, cultural institutions, and education are possible without the use of a private vehicle. https://ckarnes.com/post/adressing-transit-inequity-in-tacoma/ Sun, 07 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/adressing-transit-inequity-in-tacoma/ As it stands Tacoma, the second largest city in the Puget Sound region after Seattle, has a dearth of local transit service. The most frequent bus route in Tacoma on weekdays, Route 1 - 6th Ave - Pacific Ave, will operate once every half hour due to a lack of bus operators. While other local transit services in the Puget Sound region have continued a steady expansion from Kitsap Transit’s fast ferries to Intercity Transit’s fareless service to King County Metro’s Rapidride lines, to Sound Transit’s regional light rail expansion in King County, Pierce Transit has struggled to keep even hourly service on some routes. https://ckarnes.com/post/on-transit-and-housing/ Fri, 12 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000 https://ckarnes.com/post/on-transit-and-housing/ For Tacoma to continue to be a welcoming city to people who make less than the regional median income, we must plan to build more housing in such a way that all people will be able to afford it, regardless of their income level or family size. Access to affordable housing and access to transportation options like buses, light rail, bike lanes and sidewalks are deeply related. The old school of thought in real estate was to “drive until you qualify” in order to buy or rent a home, but people who go that route sometimes find that they get more than they bargained for by unwittingly exchanging housing costs for transportation costs.