Transportation agencies in the Puget Sound region are embracing a multimodal, holistic approach as billions of dollars worth of design and construction continue to move forward. While the area’s development historically has focused on highways, “the urgent challenge is to accommodate different modes,” Christine Alar, Seattle Dept. of Transportation senior transportation planner for transit and mobility told the Infraday Northwest conference held in the city on Aug. 19.
David Ison, aviation planner for the Washington State Dept. of Transportation, noted a need to “remove silos of modes” and consider more connectivity, such as rail traveling along Interstate-5 and connecting to airports. “What if Portland Airport could serve as a reliever to [Seattle-Tacoma International Airport] with high-speed rail?” he said.
Dylan Jones, design firm Gensler’s mobility and transportation leader for cities said that emerging travel modes require planning for sharing in limited space. “We have to think equitably about land” for people who can’t or don’t want to drive, he added.
Stephen Antupit, an urban designer for the City of Tacoma, added that geofencing is critical to accommodate various modes in that limited space. Existing spots of available land, such as no-parking zones or freeway spurs, might be used for scooters and bikes. Also, 20 acres near I-5 and the University of Washington could be reclaimed for the community once ramps are reconfigured.
Alar said Seattle has a multimodal plan that requires a “holistic look at right of way” to determine locations of bus lanes, crossings and other transportation infrastructure. Specific streets might be designated for specific modes,” she noted.
Agencies are also looking to improve project planning, funding, and delivery. Greg Spotts, Arcadis west coast client support leader, noted that while he worked for the Washington Dept. of Transportation, “we couldn’t always deliver as planned” because there were “30 different buckets of funding with specific regulations” for projects. For a Seattle transportation ballot measure last year, the focus was “more outcome-based than on widgets,” he said, to allow for “more flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.” The measure passed with 66% voter approval, he said.
Fellow panelists concurred on the need to simplify design and review expectations. Traci Rogstad, associate vice president for facilities at Western Washington University, said that “predesign tends to be overdesigned,” with designers trying to look 10 years forward. “I challenge them not to,” she said. Rather, they should design for the shorter term with room to build out eventually—“good enough” versus “great.”
The Port of Seattle seeks to partner with private developers who could build on land it owns after remediation, said Lyra Lise, its director of real estate development. The port is also collaborating with Seattle City Light to explore new technologies related to electrification. “A 21st-century electric investment is needed,” she said.
The port is using progressive design-build for the Uplands Development Project, which will add 400,000 sq ft of industrial building space for maritime and fishing industries, Lise added, because three previous attempts were foiled by difficult soil conditions. “Progressive design-build is an iterative process,” she said. “With [subject matter experts] and construction people in the same room, we can build in risk evaluations and we’re hoping for better cost guarantees.”
With uncertainties in supply chain costs and looming tariffs, panelists discussed buying lead items for projects in advance and storing them. Ryan Krueger, senior project manager for Washington County in Oregon, noted a trail project that ended up waiting for light poles to arrive. But if the county had ordered them in advance, storing them would be a challenge. “Sometimes the owner needs to order [components] early,” rather than leaving purchases to the contractor, he added.
“Agencies can develop cost indices for materials, labor and other
construction risks over five years or so, identify supply chain storage
options and invest in skill development programs,” said Christopher Wilhelm, economics and finance consultant at Jacobs.
Sound Opportunities
As Sound Transit prepares for its third major capital program, estimated at $60 billion, it plans to use of progressive design-build and multiple award task order contracts, said Michael Morgan, agency executive director of capital delivery. The latter approach has helped recruit five prime contractors and 65 subcontractors for transit agency work, he said.
The planned 16-mile, six-station Everett Link light rail extension will include its first progressive design-build job to build two maintenance facilities, now in the RFP phase, Morgan said.
The capital program will add 62 miles of light rail. The 4-mile, four-station West Seattle Link extension’s environmental process is complete, while the 8-mile, nine-station Ballard Link extension that includes a tunnel in downtown Seattle, is still in environmental review, he said.
Sound Transit has a procurement tracker for industry to check bid opportunities and also aims to use artificial intelligence to manage project risk and scheduling based on data from previous projects, he said.
Contractor PCL has begun construction on a $228-million, 365,125-sq-ft maintenance facility in Bothell, Wash., for the Stride bus rapid transit program that will use battery-electric buses for the first time, Morgan said. “More [contract] opportunities are coming.”
