Sound Transit receives about 37,000 responses on ST3 draft plan

Throughout the public comment period that ended April 28, the Sound Transit Board executive committee received nearly 35,000 responses to the Sound Transit 3 draft plan.

May 17, 2016 9:00 am

Throughout the public comment period that ended April 28, the Sound Transit Board executive committee received nearly 35,000 responses to the Sound Transit 3 draft plan.

The board said that public input received following the March 29 start of the comment period included an online survey that generated 34,706 responses. Approximately 1,250 people attended seven open houses that were held across the region, and Sound Transit presented to more than 50 local jurisdictions and organizations. The agency received a total of 2,320 written comments from individuals and more than 90 letters from jurisdictions and organizations.

In all, 90 percent of the self-selected respondents who took the non-scientific online survey stated they strongly (80 percent) or somewhat (10 percent) supported continued expansion of Sound Transit’s system of light rail, commuter rail and express buses. Light rail expansion was the most highly supported transit mode, with 80 percent of respondents deeming it urgent (65 percent) or somewhat urgent (15 percent).

Alongside the public input, staff also commissioned a scientific phone survey to help guide development of the final ST3 plan. The survey of 1,000 voters in the Sound Transit District, which was conducted by EMC Research April 20-April 30 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percent, indicated that 76 percent of voters strongly (58 percent) or somewhat (18 percent) support expanding mass transit.

A presentation summarizing both the online and phone survey results is available in the document library at soundtransit3.org.

The phone survey also sought reactions to specifics of the $50 billion ST3 Draft Package that the board released for public input in March. Sixty-five percent of respondents reflected they strongly (30 percent) or somewhat (36 percent) supported the draft package in a question that described the associated tax increases. Following further questions about the costs and timelines for completing projects, 59 percent of respondents strongly (24 percent) or somewhat (35 percent) supported the draft package.