CHOKE CHAINS FOR LEGISLATURE

(Guest Writer: TIMMY!!!)


(here is a brief mailversation between Timmy and I:)

Hi Tim,
Ever Try to explain an HOV lane to someone from Moses Lake?
They still like the training leash and inner spiked choke chains for legislators...
-Dexter.

hah! tell 'em that I-985 is better than the alternative: which is higher taxes!!
-Tim

August 18, 2008To: Our thousands of supporters throughout the state (cc'd to all media outlets -- reporters, columnists, editorial writers, and others in newspapers, radio, and TV)
From: Tim Eyman, Jack Fagan, and Mike Fagan, Fighting for Taxpayers for Ten Years, co-sponsors of the Reduce Traffic Congestion Initiative of 2008, ph: 425-493-9127, email: (go to our website to do a secure donation by VISA/Mastercard/PayPal tim_eyman@comcast.net, http://www.voterswantmorechoices.com/

RE: What's not to love about this recent column by the Seattle PI's Joel Connelly? Who amongst our thousands of supporters don't believe this: "public officials must be put on a tight leash with a choke collar". Without voter-approved limits on government's power, we'd have to rely on politicians own sense of self-restraint -- and guess what -- they don't have any. I think you'll enjoy reading this recent column about I-985 by the Seattle PI's Joel Connelly (do you get the sense that even he recognizes the need for I-985 with the crazy cast of characters running things here in our state?):
EYMAN'S LATEST DESERVES A LOOK By JOEL CONNELLY, SEATTLE P-I COLUMNIST Wednesday, August 6,2008
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/373721_Joel06.html
IN THE POLITICAL worldview of Tim Eyman, public officials must be put on a tight leash with a choke collar, an approach his Initiative 985 would apply to transportation and congestion.On various heavily traveled Puget Sound-area highways, however, critics argue that such an approach would turn choke points into strangulation for rush-hour commuters.I-985 is flying under the radar screen.When it qualified for the ballot, The Associated Press sent out a one-sided story - it reported Eyman's side - that was printed by both Seattle daily newspapers."This cycle, we're definitely not going to be the one sucking the oxygen," Eyman reflected in a long conversation Monday.I-985 would do all sorts of stuff. It would require cities and counties to synchronize traffic lights on "heavily traveled streets and arterials," something already done in many areas.It would open high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) lanes to all motorists aside from the hours of 6-9 a.m. and 3-6 p.m. on weekdays. A Reduced Traffic Congestion Fund would be created, tapping money that currently goes into the state general fund.
Oh, yes, it would require that tolls on a bridge or freeway be used ONLY for that project. The initiative would halt plans to put a toll on both the state Route 520 and Interstate 90 bridges over Lake Washington to pay for badly needed repairs and upgrades on 520."It really boils down to the expectation 'I'm paying for this project and nothing else,' " Eyman said.What's right with his approach? What's wrong?"FIX THIS STREET" read the signs used to promote Seattle's $365 million street repair measure in 2006, the largest levy in city history. The city also socked a head tax on workers and a new tax on commercial parking.But early this year, the City Council voted to use a big chunk of the "repair" money to realize Mayor Greg Nickels' pricey plan for a new, boulevard-style two-way Mercer Street."The approach of politicians is: 'Give us the money. We'll decide where to spend it.' The only time we can ever expect them to do the right thing is with everybody looking over their shoulders," Eyman argued.Given what's happened with the street repair money - or gas tax dollars allocated to rebuild the Alaskan Way Viaduct - can anybody dispute him?Eyman is suspicious that Seattle is using a touted "safety" measure - red-light cameras at busy intersections - to fill its coffers. He notes that most tickets are issued for "California turns," where motorists turn right without coming to a full stop.Once more, much as I hate to admit it, he's on to something.The city hammers motorists, but it has not lifted a pinkie to regulate or penalize hazardous construction sites.Call it the "Seattle swerve" or "the Fourth Avenue Veer": Drivers round a corner. They come on a sudden lane closure. They find themselves vying for space with a bus filled with tourists.Elsewhere, however, Eyman jumps the shark.I'll tell you exactly where: the stretch of state Route 520 between Interstate 405 and the Evergreen Point Bridge.At 6 p.m., under I-985, an HOV lane used largely by van pools and buses would be thrown open to all traffic.The problem is, rush hour doesn't end at 6 p.m.Traveling Route 520 at 6:20 Friday, I found stop-and-go traffic from 84th Avenue Northeast to the bridge. The state Transportation Department's rush-hour map shows even greater congestion much of the time.By throwing open the express lanes, I-985 would expand stop-and-go traffic from two lanes to three and defeat the whole purpose of getting people into buses and van pools.Andrew Villeneuve, director of the Northwest Progressive Institute, cites Sound Transit's route 545 express bus, which links downtown Redmond with downtown Seattle and serves Microsoft's Overlake campus.Route 545 whizzed by my crawling car Friday. What would be the effect of throwing that right lane open?"You'd paralyze it," Villeneuve said. "Sound Transit's new flyers will be mired in the infamous Lake Washington Line, stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic for two miles or more."I-985 would impose a one-size-fits-all rush-hour policy on the state.Consider, too, what would happen if you slap a toll on Route 520, with motorists still being able to cross Lake Washington for free on I-90.Isn't this an invitation to congestion that would stretch back into Seattle going east, back up traffic in Bellevue, and make Mercer Island hard to get to for hours each day?What does Eyman say to this? "They want to call it a toll when it is really a tax," he said. "They want to impose a tax to support 520. It's the camel's nose under the tent."One more point: The whole state would set down iron rules for how the Puget Sound region acts to ease congestion crossing Lake Washington and how Vancouver deals with an antiquated, jammed bridge across the Columbia River.I don't presume to know the ins and outs of Spokane's north-south freeway. It's their pigeon.Likewise, folks in Pasco and Walla Walla know best how U.S. 12 needs to be upgraded.Why put the state in a straitjacket ... unless you see this as the only way "they" can be controlled?I-985 deserves a place on the state's radar screen.P-I columnist Joel Connelly can be reached at 206-448-8160 or joelconnelly@seattlepi.com.. Follow politics on the P-I's blog at blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics.-- END --

I-985 is a well-thought-out, professional, comprehensive transportation reform proposal; it offers immediate, cost-effective solutions with built-in accountability and oversight by Washington's most trusted elected official. And rather than raising taxes, I-985 instead funds its common sense policies with transportation-related taxes and charges that we, the citizens, are already paying. Jack, Mike, and I are extremely grateful for the folks who have contributed to our compensation fund. We ask that you continue that support.
If you like and appreciate our past, current, and future efforts on behalf of taxpayers, please send us a donation for $10, $25, $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000 or more (there are no limits on how much can be given). Please consider a monthly pledge from now through December for our fund. We ask you to please help us help taxpayers. You can go to our website -- and make a secure PayPal or VISA or MasterCard contribution -- OR, you can print out the form below, fill it out, and return it with a check or credit card information. Your voluntary contribution to our compensation fund will be divided between the three of us and compensate us for our political work. Congratulations again on getting I-985 on the ballot - we look forward to working with all of you to get it approved by voters. As for our compensation fund, we would be extremely grateful for any financial assistance you can offer. Thanks.

Best Regards, Tim Eyman, Jack Fagan, & Mike Fagan, Fighting for Taxpayers for Ten Years, co-sponsors of the Reduce Traffic Congestion Initiative of 2008, ph: 425-493-9127,