Introduction
The Sound Transit Citizen Oversight Panel (COP) is a 15-member volunteer body appointed by the Sound Transit Board to oversee and monitor the implementation of Sound Move, the voter approved regional transit plan. This is the Panel's fifteenth semi-annual report and covers Sound Transit's performance during the first half of the year 2004.
Summary of Sound Transit Performance
Accomplishments. During the first half of 2004, Sound Transit added to its recent record of significant accomplishments. Now that FTA approval and federal funding are in hand, the Central Link light rail program is advancing rapidly, with contracts being awarded and groundbreakings occurring almost every month. In central and south Seattle, over $700 million of construction is now underway in Downtown, along the E3 Busway, at the Operation and Maintenance Base at South Forest Street, on Beacon Hill and along Martin Luther King Jr. Way South. In the north, the Board adopted a North Link route that serves the densest parts of Seattle while achieving agreement with the University of Washington and most key neighborhood stakeholders. Together with the Port of Seattle, good progress is also being made on Airport Link, a key element of the regional system in the minds of most citizens.
The Bellevue Direct Access project, with reconstruction of three freeway interchanges the largest and most complex highway construction project in the region, is under budget and ahead of schedule. Despite the enormous potential impacts on downtown Bellevue, the project has successfully minimized disruptions to existing traffic flows.
Sounder commuter rail and Regional Express bus continue to add riders and fine-tune their service schedules to meet demand. With transit services being provided by bus, commuter rail and light rail now in five subareas, the agency has moved into a new era as an operating entity and created a new transportation services department.
After experiencing several years of lost credibility and disparaging media coverage, Sound Transit's reputation with the public and with opinion leaders and stakeholders is much improved. Board oversight and accountability are viewed as much stronger than in the past. The Sound Transit Finance Committee in particular is actively engaged in scrutinizing the multi-million dollar transactions that come before it on a regular basis now. The Board as a whole is much better at having open and substantive policy debates, as evidenced by the recent consideration of a joint ballot measure with the Regional Transportation Investment District.
Essential to grounding the policy and public communication levels are sound staff functions and systems. After evidence of problems and schedule delays in the real estate division last year, this critical path function is now back on track. Panel members noted continuing improvements in project management systems and monthly progress reporting by the agency. Sound Transit's outside auditors issued an unqualified opinion on the agency's financial statements. While they identified some minor errors this year in the subarea accounting and federal compliance monitoring functions, management acknowledged these issues and responded promptly with corrective action.
Concerns
While acknowledging these accomplishments, COP has a number of concerns this period. One relates to slipping project schedules in various Sounder and Regional Express capital projects. In REX, a number of projects are still struggling to reach scope and budget definition with local jurisdictions. It is also of concern that a number of recently opened bids on large construction contracts have come in well over the engineers' estimates, notably the Beacon Hill Tunnel (17% over estimate) and the Federal Way Transit Center (20% over estimate). The Board and COP have been briefed on volatile conditions in the world markets for steel and other building materials that have resulted in price increases and supply shortages. Also, as the economy generally is growing again, the bidding climate is likely becoming more competitive and less favorable to Sound Transit. Nevertheless, the overall light rail construction is within two percent of its estimates to date, a very encouraging sign. COP is actively monitoring the schedule and budget on all projects.
Another area of concern COP identified this period is the Phase 2 planning effort. Members felt that to succeed, this effort will need to do three things well: articulate a compelling regional vision of the future transportation system; engage and excite the public by telling the story of this vision; and explain how unfinished Phase 1 projects will be funded and incorporated into the Phase 2 efforts. None of these prerequisites has been met.
We know that it is still early in the process and the agency has begun by focusing on technical aspects of planning such as forecasting demand, analyzing corridors and preparing the environmental impact study that is required. However, the Panel wanted to state now that these products alone will not suffice to win a public vote. The agency must begin working soon to communicate to the public a compelling vision and rationale for Phase 2 of high capacity transit. Sound Transit must articulate not only how Phase 2 projects will help implement the region's adopted VISION 2020 and Destination 2030 plans but also how Phase 2 will be integrated with other local and countywide land use and transportation plans to achieve the thriving, livable region to which we aspire.
Management Accomplishments and Issues
This section provides additional depth and detail to some of the areas outlined in the performance summary above. Panel members noted with support and encouragement the announcement of the agency's reorganization effective June 1 of this period. This report is organized to address accomplishments and issues along the lines of the departmental structure that has existed for several years. However, Panel members were impressed with management's foresight in creating new departments for transportation services and project delivery support services and intend to watch as the effectiveness of the new structure unfolds over the course of the coming months.
COP noted that the agency had a successful legislative session this year, with passage of a number of agency-request bills and much less focus on fending off bills the agency did not support. Relations with most local jurisdictions and third party stakeholders, including the business, labor and environmental communities, WSDOT, PSRC, the UW and BNSF were generally cooperative and productive. A potential issue exists with the minority contracting community, which has expressed dissatisfaction with the level of M/WBE sub-contracting on several major Link construction contracts. Management appears to be proactive in working with the community at this time.
During the first half of 2004, Sound Transit emerged as an important regional participant in the efforts to create a joint transit and highway transportation package. Board and management were receptive to overtures from RTID members to consider a joint ballot. Despite differences of opinion among Sound Transit Board members and stakeholders, the debate on the issue was respectful and open and was conducted on the technical and policy merits of the case. The process reflected well on Sound Transit as a significant partner perceived as bringing both financial and public support to the process.
Link Light Rail
The Central Link Initial Segment has completed final design and is now well into the civil construction phase of the program. This is a huge step forward from the frustrating delays that characterized the past several years. The alignment from downtown Seattle to just north of Sea-Tac Airport is divided into six major construction contracts, of which five have now been awarded. Together, the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel Retrofit / Pine Street Stub Tunnel, the E3 Busway, the Operations and Maintenance Base, the Beacon Hill Tunnel, and the MLK corridor came in about two percent under the engineers' estimates, despite recent increases in the prices of building materials. Remaining to be awarded is the Tukwila segment.
This Panel previously expressed concern about the unresolved parking issue at the South 154th Street terminus in Tukwila. After several years of disagreement, the City commissioned an independent analysis that found the demand would be higher than Sound Transit was forecasting. Based on this finding, the parties were able to reach a compromise on the number of spaces needed. The City of Tukwila must grant Sound Transit its unclassified use permit before construction can begin. City Council approval of the UUP is slated for later this summer.
Among the major systems contracts, the procurement of the light rail vehicles was completed in January, and three remaining contracts for traction power, signal and communication systems are scheduled for award by year-end.
At this stage of the project, $128 million in project reserve funds and close to $100 million in unallocated contingency remain uncommitted and could be considered a potential down payment for going north and to the Airport. An additional $200 million in contingency is allocated to various contracts and could become available if unforeseen conditions do not arise. The project has gained one month of schedule "float" since it began. This could potentially mean opening for service up to seven months ahead of schedule if no future delays are encountered. This is a very healthy position for the project budget and schedule to be in at this stage. Link staff give every impression of having engineering, estimating, scheduling and project management firmly in hand.
The North Link segment LPA has been adopted by the Board, selecting the First Hill / Capitol Hill and Modified Montlake options. The Board did not choose a Roosevelt option yet, leaving the decision on whether to go north from the University District via 12th Avenue or 8th Avenue for further study. Capitol Hill residents and businesses expressed some dissatisfaction with a lack of communication from Sound Transit during the decision process, however, relations with the University of Washington appear to have improved considerably over previous years.
The Airport Link segment also advanced during the first half of 2004. The Port of Seattle's comprehensive development planning process for the airport identified the Link light rail alignment and Link station location and now preliminary engineering can begin. Notwithstanding the fact that all of the funds to complete the North Link and Airport Link segments are not yet identified, the development of these extensions is well underway.
Sounder
Sounder commuter rail service from Tacoma and Everett to Seattle continues to grow, increasing 20% from the first quarter of 2003 to the first quarter of 2004. In service just since December of last year, the Everett service is carrying about 300 riders per day on one morning and one afternoon train. In early June, schedule adjustments were put in place to accommodate rider demand and as a result ridership on the north corridor jumped almost 10% in the first weeks after the change.
On the Tacoma segment, Sounder has been operating out of a temporary station since it was discovered that the new Bay Street embankment had experienced soil settlement. While remedial pilings were driven into the soil, additional cracking and shifting has been occurring. There is no date yet for restoration of service at the Tacoma Dome station and Sound Transit may face a protracted dispute with its contractors to determine liability for the problems. Three trains a day continue in service on the Tacoma-to-Seattle corridor while the BNSF track and signal improvements are underway that will enable additional trains to be added to the service. The BNSF work is somewhat behind schedule due to delays in the City of Tacoma work on the D Street overpass. Work on this element is currently expected to be complete in October 2006.
On the Everett segment, in exchange for the right to operate its trains in perpetuity, Sound Transit agreed to be responsible for permitting and environmental compliance on easements associated with the second, third and fourth trains of future service. BNSF is responsible for required track and signal work. Close cooperation with BNSF will be essential in coordinating these efforts. A partnering session was held to facilitate the relationship and so far the program is on schedule. However, the progress on stations at Everett, Mukilteo and Edmonds continues to experience delays.
On the Lakewood segment, Sound Transit will own and operate an entire commuter rail corridor for the first time. Before it can begin operations, Sound Transit must build a new one-mile long D to M Street Connector and must incorporate track and signal improvements on the existing rails. Staff are advancing a joint design-build concept for both contracts in order to maintain the schedule. A new site north of Lakewood is being considered for the train layover yard after Camp Murray refused permission to use the preferred location due to security concerns.
Regional Express
The REX capital projects continue to make progress although, as noted in previous COP reports, a number of projects are behind schedule and others are significantly short of the required funds and will likely be delayed beyond 2006. In the Community Connections program, two projects are under construction and will be completed by year-end: the SR 900 Arterial Improvements in Issaquah and the Redondo Heights Park-and-Ride in Federal Way. On both of these projects Sound Transit's funding contribution is capped and will not be exceeded.
Four additional projects are due to begin construction in this year (Issaquah Highlands Park-and-Ride, Federal Way Transit Center at 317th, Woodinville Arterial Improvements and the Bellevue Rider Services Building). The Federal Way Transit Center project low bid was 21% over the engineers' estimate of $17 million and will use all of its unallocated contingency and contract contingency to meet this price.
Six remaining capital projects are behind schedule due to delays in reaching agreement with local jurisdictions about scope and budget. The Board has adopted a September 2004 deadline for these projects, all in East King County, or their budgets will be returned to the program reserve for reprogramming. COP is hopeful that all six will be able to achieve conceptual agreement by the deadline.
In the Direct Access program, major construction projects continue underway at Bellevue, Lynnwood and Ash Way. The first two are progressing well and are ahead of schedule. The Ash Way project encountered problems with its overpass, requiring redesign and re-bid of a portion of the contract, and resulting in schedule delay. Five other projects in this program have major challenges due to insufficient funding among the region's transportation partners. The I-90 Two-Way Transit project, South Everett Freeway Station, Renton HOV Improvements, Star Lake Freeway Station and Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station are in need of significant outside funding. With the failure of the RTID to be placed on the ballot this year, the future of these projects remains up in the air.
