transportation

As much as any other major topic, news of transportation planning (or lack thereof) has filled this paper the last few years. The viaduct vote, the monorail proposal, Proposition 1, the water taxi, the bicycle master plan - living in West Seattle, with the Duwamish between us and the city, transportation is no doubt a major issue.

Now too, we have the issue of climate change to address, and the real likelihood that oil will become so expensive in the coming decade that the automobile will be a very serious drain on the pocket books of the lower and middle class wage-earners. It is a fact that the amount of oil exported by oil-exporting countries has actually fallen the last few years. This is because the worlds largest oil fields are 40 or more years old and slowly drying up - our new sources of fuel include poor quality tar sands in Canada, difficult to extract deepwater oil, and the dubious project that is corn-ethanol. It turns out that in most cases these new sources of fuel are actually worse for climate change. It is also unfortunately true that it will be difficult to impossible for these poorer quality sources of oil to keep pace with growing demand in the next few decades.

There are solutions so that Seattlites do not become stranded in our cars. A new generation of transportation: an expanded bus system, street cars, an extended light rail system, expanded use of bicycles, smarter urban development, more walking trails, more telecommuting, a new generation of plug-in and electric cars, and more local food can all alleviate our dependence on foreign oil.

To boot, we will be more fit, our country in less debt, and our soldiers able to spend more time at home near their families.

All this will take time, and it will take all communities being focused together on these problems. It will take people being engaged in the democratic process.

This coming weekend, on Sunday May 4, at Alaska Junction between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., a year-old group called Sustainable West Seattle will have a festival to engage participants on all these topics and more - in ways both educational and entertaining. Join us and find out more in the On The Go section of this paper and at www.sustainablewestseattle.org

Bill Reiswig

Sustainable West Seattle