One hour between Seattle and Portland? It’s possible

The Pacific Northwest continues to grow rapidly – we’ve seen the impact on our roads and climate when people go to school, commute to work, and visit families. With up to 4 million more people expected to live in the Northwest by 2050, our growing pains will only get worse if we don’t act.

In one year, a commuter in our region can spend 78 hours in traffic – that’s more than three days of his time per year, according to the Urban Mobility Report 2019 from the Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University.

We must take bold steps to prepare for a sustainable future that allows us to travel freely, bypass traffic collapse and truly connect our region. For this reason we are calling for more government recognition and support for the Cascadia Ultra-High-Speed ​​Ground Transportation (UHSGT) project.

An ultra-high-speed system from Cascadia would connect Vancouver, BC, Seattle, and Portland (and more) with an integrated transportation network that enables safe, efficient, reliable, and affordable travel. Depending on the traffic slowdown, a drive between Seattle and Portland can take nearly four hours, and a flight, with boarding and security, can take at least three hours. With bullet trains or other emerging high-speed technologies, traveling at speeds up to 250 miles per hour would reliably take an hour.

Our elected representatives in Congress have the opportunity to help Cascadia consider the budget reconciliation process and make investments that would otherwise flow to other states.

Our region has not yet taken advantage of similar opportunities. Fifty years ago, King County’s Forward Thrust proposal to build a 47-mile 30-station cable car system was supported by a majority of voters, but the initiative’s 60% threshold was not reached. As a result, our region lost $ 1 billion in federal transportation to Atlanta.

The economic impact of this missed opportunity is weighing on countless people in the Puget Sound area today who rely on expensive vehicles for access to school, work, and other activities. Building an ultra-high-speed rail system backed by great local transport and affordable housing will make our region fairer by providing a faster, cleaner, and more convenient way to travel for all of the region’s residents.

We have already investigated the feasibility of an ultra-high-speed system in the Cascadia Corridor. A 2019 business case analysis showed economic growth potential of $ 355 billion, while a 2020 WSDOT study looked at how to move the project forward and fund an estimated $ 24 billion to $ 42 billion in planning and construction costs. Several strategies are available to pay for further planning and construction, and can include state, provincial, state, and private investment options.

At the same time, we’ve learned from the pitfalls of other high-speed rail projects in California and elsewhere. We know the importance of listening to the communities this project connects and relying on local input to guide design and construction.

We can reduce our dependence on fossil fuels while we’re at it. Because an ultra-high-speed system reduces our dependence on highways and cars, we were able to prevent 960 tons of harmful pollutants such as fine dust and carbon monoxide from entering our atmosphere in the first 40 years of operation.

We still have a lot of work to do, but people are already uniting around the promise to redesign our transportation system. More than 45 organizations have asked federal lawmakers from Washington and Oregon to stand up for the Cascadia Ultra-High-Speed ​​Ground Transportation project and ensure it is eligible for federal dollars.

It is clear why. According to a 2017 study by the Department of Transportation, this project would create 200,000 skilled jobs in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to direct jobs for construction, operation and maintenance, economic development will create employment opportunities in other sectors. For every direct job related to the ultra-high-speed rail line, four jobs in other industries will be supported, creating opportunities for more than 840,000 people, according to a 2020 whitepaper on bullet train by US MP Seth Moulton, D-Masse.

We must seize the moment to ensure that an ultra-high-speed system is featured in the next chapter in our region’s history, rather than millions more cars on our already congested highways.

Chris Gregor was Governor of Washington from 2005 to 2013. She is currently CEO of Challenge Seattle, an organization of CEOs from the state’s largest employers that addresses key public policy challenges.

Alex Hudson is the executive director of the Transportation Choices Coalition, where she ensures that the funding, policies, and systems of transportation do the best for the greatest number of people.

Mark Riker is the executive secretary of the Washington State Building and Construction Trades Council, acting on behalf of affiliated unions to improve working conditions for their members and all Washington workers.