Seattle voters will decide this November whether or not to increase the city’s transit sales tax to pay for expanded bus service.
Proposition 1 would replace the expiring transit measure passed by Seattle voters in 2020. It would double the expiring sales tax from .15% to .3%, raising about $138 million annually.
Most of the money would be used to buy an additional 100,000 bus trips a year from King County Metro, expanding late-night, midday and weekend bus service. It would also fund street car service and double the number of free ORCA cards distributed to low-income riders. Some of the money would also support infrastructure improvements and planning and engineering for future light rail stations at Graham Street and in West Seattle and Ballard.
“Seattle voters are hungry for better transit service, so they can live their life without being tied to a car,” said Kirk Hovenkotter, executive director of the Transportation Choices Coalition, which is backing the measure. “This is essential to our growth and keeping our city affordable.”
Seattle has gained 80,000 new residents since 2017, but only about more 3,000 cars, Hovenkotter said, adding that higher bus frequency would be especially impactful for shift workers who work off-hours.
The transit measure is a sales tax that Seattle pays for additional bus service on top of what King County Metro already provides. Seattle is unique among large cities in buying additional bus services from its transit agency, Hovenkotter said, but he thinks it is a “visionary and smart thing to do.”
The measure has been endorsed by local elected officials like Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and King County Executive Girmay Zahilay.
Critics like Charles Prestrud, director of transportation policy at the Washington Policy Center, a conservative think tank, argue that King County Metro’s ridership numbers do not justify the higher tax. He also pointed to rising operating costs and high fare-evasion rates as a sign that the agency has failed to deliver, and said the money would be better spent on street improvements.
“The reality is that the city has an obligation to maintain its infrastructure,” Prestrud said. “Instead, they want to give more than $100 million a year to another agency that’s already well-funded and already has a dedicated revenue source.”
When voting to approve the measure for the November ballot, Seattle Councilmember Maritza Rivera raised concerns about impact of a sales tax — one of the most regressive types of taxes — on low-income residents. Hovenkotter said that, while he would like to see more progressive revenue sources, a sales tax is one of the only options the state Legislature makes available.
“The only thing that is more regressive than a sales tax is not having the bus service to get people to their jobs, or get education, or to see their friends and family,” Hovenkotter said.
Despite his concerns, Prestrud said he expects Proposition 1 to pass. The previous 2020 Seattle transit measure passed in a landslide with 80% of the vote.
Hovenkotter also expects the new measure to pass, but he said 2020 was a uniquely high-turnout election, and that he doesn’t expect the margins to be quite as high this time around.
“As much as I’d love for this to pass with 80%, I think it’s going to be a tougher road,” he said.
