Impacts for All? Tim Eyman’s I-976 Would Devastate Our Transportation System, and Leave No Community Untouched

by | Sep 18, 2019 | Advocacy

Traffic on Steward Street, by Sounder Bruce, used with a creative commons license.

At Transportation Choices, we work every day to improve access to transit and transportation choices for all people, because we know that reliable and affordable transportation is integral to living a healthy, connected and productive life.

Tim Eyman’s I-976 initiative does precisely the opposite of all we stand for, and will deliver devastating impacts for all Washingtonians, no matter who you are or where you live, whether you are a daily transit user or rely on safe roads to drive your car.

Here are just a few of the hits we’ll take if we don’t stop I-976 from passing at the ballot this November: 

  • 60% of Spokane’s annual road maintenance budget. Eastern Washington winters show no mercy to our roads, which is why Spokane’s $2.5M annual road maintenance budget is so critical. From filling cracks to potholes, this funding is essential to keeping Spokane’s transportation system functioning. The City fills more than 4,500 potholes per year! 
  • $240 Million for special needs transportation grants. Thirty transit agencies across the state rely on Formula Grants to keep their special needs transit programs running. These life-giving services ensure people living with disabilities have access to doctor’s appointments, schools, jobs and connections to family and friends. This initiative threatens up to a quarter billion dollars over 10 years of this critical funding. 
  • 175,000 annual bus service hours in Seattle. Seattle is one of the only major cities in the country with growing transit ridership, and also boasts one of the country’s top-rated bus operators, King County Metro. And though voters approved funding to add extra bus service in 2014, Tim Eyman’s initiative threatens that funding source, and could cut up to 175,000 bus service hours, leaving people with less transportation choices. 
  • 90% of Garfield County Transportation Authority’s Budget. This small but mighty transportation provider in Garfield County offers commuter, medical and fully accessible transit — and also receives most of its funding from the State. If I-976 passes, it’s possible that this rural transit agency will lose up to 90% of its funding, essentially shutting it down and leaving riders out of luck in an area with no other public transit options.  
  • $7 Billion $20 Billion hit to Sound Transit light rail projects. Initial estimates put the hit to Puget Sound’s regional agency around $7 billion, but further analysis showed the real hits over the next 20 years will be in the neighborhood of $20 billion. Considering this is close to 40% of the entire ST3 package, major Link Light Rail projects could be delayed or cut altogether. 

We’re spreading the word about these and other potential cuts to our transportation system. The No on I-976 campaign has put together these helpful fact sheets showing how counties and communities across the state could be hurt:

Don’t see your community represented here? Get involved and make sure your neighbors understand the cuts that could be coming to you if we don’t defeat I-976 in November.

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