Transportation Expert: NO on I-912

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Here's some excellent advice worth your consideration, fellow Washingtonians:

A local transportation official issued a warning Wednesday that the Alaskan Way Viaduct could be "our version of the New Orleans levee," causing a disaster in Seattle if it collapsed in an earthquake.

Mark Hallenbeck, the director of the Washington State Transportation Center, said he hopes voters will uphold a state gas tax increase that provides $2 billion in funding to replace the viaduct.

"How'd you like to go to New Orleans right now and say, 'If I gave you the choice, pay me a hundred dollars, and we'll turn back the clock, and that extra hundred dollars you owe me will fix the levees so they don't break,' would you take it?"

He urged voters in Washington not to repeal the new 9 1/2-cent gas tax in November, saying the lesson of New Orleans is to pay for protection now, or you might pay for a disaster later.

And he's exactly right. It's the point we've been making every Thursday with our Disaster Picture of thr Week. Our infrastructure is crumbling. If we don't fix it, we risk being unprepared for a disaster in which there will be death and massive destruction.

Hallenback added:

"And we'll hope it won't kill people in the process, that it just develops a giant crack, and we can't use it any more. I mean that's, like, the best available alternative if we don't fix it."

That's right. Cast your vote for safer and less congested roadways - VOTE NO on Initiative 912. Kudos to KIRO Television for running this excellent story. This is exactly what voters need to hear about: the consequences of failing to invest in a well-maintained, safe transportation system.