Tagged: Pierce Transit

Bus riders all over the Puget Sound region are coping with cuts in service, but Pierce County is facing something much more drastic.

If you don’t have a car in Pierce County, you may be homebound on the weekends and after 7 pm. That’s because voters have now – for the second time – rejected a sales tax increase. Pierce Transit will likely have to cut service in half.

Bus riders in Pierce County face dramatic cuts to service if voters reject a ballot proposition to hike the sales tax. Opponents are fighting hard against the measure, saying it would make Pierce County’s sales tax the highest on the West Coast.

If you ask people in downtown Tacoma how they feel about paying more in sales tax, you hear a common refrain.

"The sales tax is pretty high as it is, and I think it will be hard for people to swallow," said Michele Anderson.

More people who work in downtown Seattle are riding mass transit than driving to the office. That’s according to a survey just released by Commute Seattle, a non-profit that tries to reduce the number of people who drive alone. 

Update: On Monday, May 9, the Pierce Transit Board of Commissioners approved a 20% permanent service reduction scheduled to start June 12. But the board rejected the proposed plan for the final 15% reduction scheduled for October, and instead directed staff to develop a modified plan that focuses on maximizing ridership.

The next time you're stuck in traffic, frustrated by the length of your commute time, take a moment to consider how long your trip would be if you couldn't drive to your workplace, your doctors office, or your church. 

Making headlines around the Northwest this morning:

• Heavy Rains Coming Wednesday Trigger Flood Watch
• Pierce Transit Makes Some Deep Service Cuts Permanent
• King County Project Likely Culprit of Massive Sinkhole

Flood Watch Tomorrow for Western Washington

Heavy rains over the next few days have triggered a flood watch beginning tomorrow afternoon for many western Washington counties. The National Weather Service office in Seattle forecasts warmer temperatures as a very wet frontal system stalls over the region tonight and tomorrow, dumping rain and raising mountain freezing levels from 7,000 to 9,000 feet. 

Updated 9:07 p.m.

Several explosions rocked a Pierce Transit facility in Lakewood late this afternoon, and officials say they suspect natural gas ignited at a compressor, burning tanks that fuel buses. There were no reports of injuries, and the fire has been extinguished.

Making headlines around the Northwest this morning:

• Thousands Mourn Slain Guard as Investigations Continue
• Pierce Transit Ballot Defeated
• School Votes Mixed

Guard's Memorial Draws Huge Crowds