srsly

lately i’ve been reading about what seattle plans to do about the apparently crumbling Alaskan Way Viaduct. the two options presented to us are a: replace the viaduct with something that can actually withstand a reasonable earthquake, or b: get rid of the viaduct and build an underground solution. i haven’t actually been able to find many articles on the subject outside of “here’s what’s going on” or editorials. so if you have something please post it in the comments. but here’s how i understand the situation so far.

new viaduct

pro

• cheaper
• faster to build
• we’ve built these before, estimates for completion should be pretty accurate

cons

• flow is not improved
• tax increases to pay for it

tunnel

pro

• improved traffic flow
• waterfront improvements
• initial plans look to provide for more bike access on new surface road
• unobstructed waterfront views from downtown (though this could actually be a con, we’ll deal with this in a minute)

con

• costs a hell of a lot more than a new raised structure
• urban restructuring plans are notorious for overspending. i’m not talking about just the Big Dig; the higher the cost and complexity of the project means higher spending if plans get changed or delayed
• middle class people will find it harder to live in seattle proper because of higher taxes required to pay for this, and the newly unobstructed waterfront views drive up housing prices downtown
• horrible traffic incoming to the city, see above

i’m certainly not the most well informed person about this sort of thing, but this is the information i’ve been able to gather from reading the news and various other things i can find. personally i’m in favor of replacing the elevated structure. the same amount of traffic that costs less is worth more to me than paying more to allow a higher volume of people sit in one place for and just letting rich people have a better view from their already horrendously expensive downtown condos. yes having a nicer waterfront would be nice. but the expense would lie largely with people just like me who already can barely afford to live in the city.

here are some links i’ve read about the project.- like i said, basic informational and editorial, as well as a link to the WSDOT project site.- if you have anything you’d like to share about the subject to better educate by all means post up.

Seattle PI: Taxpayers may be forced to “Big Dig-Deep”

Seattle Weekly: Seattle’s Little Dig

WSDOT Proposals: Viaduct Proposals