My two amendments to secure better bus service for our neighborhoods passed in the Seattle Transportation Benefit District Committee! They are now part of the Seattle Transit Measure that will be on the ballot this November.

We need better transit now more than ever. With Ballard, Fremont, Green Lake, Greenwood, Phinney Ridge, and Magnolia all being zoned for more housing and more jobs, we need to make sure people have transit options they can rely on. As I continue to fight to ensure Ballard light rail gets built, we need better transit options to downtown and light rail right now.

That’s why I proposed and passed (in Select Committee) two amendments to the Seattle Transit Measure, which helps fund extra bus service in Seattle.

Amendment 10: More & faster buses connecting regional centers to light rail and downtown

This will prioritize new and faster transit service from regional centers, like Ballard, to downtown and light rail stations. Ballard is a newly designated regional center, which means it’s zoned for the highest level of housing and job growth. We can’t accommodate that growth responsibly without improving transit options to our neighborhoods.

It is unacceptable that it takes 45 minutes to an hour to get to downtown from Ballard on the bus. When we passed the last Seattle Transit Measure in 2020, Ballard had more direct bus service to downtown than it does today. Since then, the 15x and 18x bus lines were suspended and the 17x has been greatly reduced. This amendment will help us fight to get more direct bus service from Ballard to downtown and to light rail lines.

Amendment 29: Require at least 75% of the STM to be used for transit

The STM is supposed to be about Seattle buying extra transit service from King County. Unfortunately, over the years, some of the funding has been siphoned off for other projects. When that happens, it almost always means we get worse bus service. This amendment would create a safeguard and guarantee that at least 75% of every dollar raised from the STM goes toward transit service and guarantees more transit service for all of our neighborhoods. That’s 15% percent higher than the 60% requirement included in the Executive’s proposal.

Thank you to my Council colleagues and community members who supported making these important changes to the legislation. The Seattle Transit Measure renewal will go to a vote of the full Council on Tuesday. If approved, it will then head to the November ballot.