In an interview with Seattle Transit Blog, short-term County Executive Kurt Triplett said they have “3 years to make that decision” because the existing trolleys have that much service life remaining. Commenter “serial catowner” posted a skeptical reply:
Having seen some of this stuff go down in my previous life, I can tell you right now you’re in extreme danger of losing the electric trolleys–and getting them back wouldn’t be easy.
The process is disarmingly simple- first, when you ask, they tell you “Nobody’s thinking of that”. And then, suddenly, it’s all “Well, that decision was made long ago, there’s nothing to be done about it now”…
…If they weren’t quietly preparing to jettison the ETBs, Triplett’s answer would have been “No, of course not, we’re not going to lose the only buses we have that can keep running when oil prices go up”.
A follow-up comment from an anonymous “transit voter” struck home:
Serial Catowner has it correct. Just remember the George Benson Waterfront Streetcar Line, how it met its demise. The long knives were out, and they found their mark.
We don’t claim to have any inside knowledge on what Metro’s plans are for the trolleys, and anonymous commenters on a blog are not necessarily reliable, but it seems to us that if you like the electric trolleys that run on Beacon Hill and elsewhere in the city, it would certainly be a very good time to let someone know how you feel. You can email County Exec Triplett at kcexec@kingcounty.gov or use the mailing address and phone number on his website. You can also contact King County Council members Larry Gossett and Dow Constantine, who each serve part of Beacon Hill. Constantine is running for King County Executive, so contacting him with your concerns on this issue may be particularly important.
To be fair to Metro, they are just now finishing construction on a trolleybus wire extension on Rt. 36. With the September service change, the route will no longer stay only on Beacon Hill, with diesel service all the way to Rainier Beach. Rather the buses, both trolleys and diesels, will turn east on Myrtle and serve a new terminal next to the Othello Link light rail station. Thus folks in central Beacon Hill might find a better trip downtown by getting on the 36 southbound and transferring to the train at Othello. (South Beacon Hill, Beacon Ave. south of Myrtle) will be covered by the Rt. 106.)
I doubt Metro would be making this investment in trolleybus lines (and a similar and shorter addition to Rt. 14 to serve the Mt. Baker Station) if the death of trolleybus service was imminent. That said, it was good to note Transit Voter’s comments about the death of the Waterfront Streetcar — no public notice, no public hearing, no visible discussion anywhere. George Benson is turning in his grave.
Maybe a good question for the mayoral candidates — do you concur with the decision to kill the WFSC, or should it return as part of the new wide Alaskan Way boulevard (plenty of space for it, with no roadway redesign needed)?
“I doubt Metro would be making this investment in trolleybus lines (and a similar and shorter addition to Rt. 14 to serve the Mt. Baker Station) if the death of trolleybus service was imminent.”
This is a good point. Still, it never hurts to make it clear to Metro that people like the electric trolley buses and they don’t want to see them go away. And for that matter, people need to put some pressure on about the Waterfront Streetcar.