Seattle Politics and Urbanism Daily
Seattle’s Transit Buildout Meets the Accountability Test
Monday, May 4, 2026 · 4 min
Seattle’s reform agenda is running into the hard part: proving projects and policies work. New ridership, bike-network, busway, Sound Transit budget, and PayUp wage data show where delivery is improving—and where accountability is overdue.
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Seattle’s reform agenda is running into the hard part: proving projects and policies work. New ridership, bike-network, busway, Sound Transit budget, and PayUp wage data show where delivery is improving—and where accountability is overdue.
In this episode
- Friday Roundtable: 2025 Ridership Data – Seattle Transit Blog — Michael Smith
Friday Roundtable: 2025 Ridership Data – Seattle Transit Blog Sound Transit Route 550 crossing Lake Washington. Route 550 is the most searched for route on the Seattle Transit Ridership dashboard. The Seattle Transit Ridership dashboard has been updated to include 2025 ridership data for King County Metro routes and Sound Transit routes operated by Metro. In March 2025, Metro only updated a few…
- SDOT Advances Upgrades for SoDo's Fourth Avenue To Handle Busway Closure — The Urbanist
SDOT Advances Upgrades for SoDo's Fourth Avenue To Handle Busway Closure 📰 Support nonprofit journalism Donate # SDOT Advances Upgrades for SoDo's Fourth Avenue To Handle Busway Closure By Ryan Packer- May 01, 2026 Share Fourth Avenue in SoDo is set to need to accommodate much more bus traffic, and transit riders. A first phase of upgrades will add new signals and extend sidewalks to help…
- Seattle’s newest bike lane closes final gap on ‘City Center’ map! Well, kind of... - SDOT Blog — Amy Abdelsayed
# Seattle’s newest bike lane closes final gap on ‘City Center’ map! Well, kind of... - SDOT Blog Published: 2026-05-01T01:38:28+00:00 Author: Amy Abdelsayed ## Summary Seattle's newest protected bike lane will connect Belltown to Seattle Center's southeast corner, near the Space Needle and the Museum of Pop Culture. The City Center Bike Network map will be fully green for the first time since…
- Sound Transit shouldn’t saddle taxpayers with decadeslong bonds — Thenewstribune
# Sound Transit shouldn’t saddle Puget Sound with decbonds | Tacoma News Tribune Published: 2026-05-01T12:00:00+00:00 Type: Opinion ## Summary Sound Transit's rail program is short of $35 billion, equating to $10,294 per person in every district in the Puget Sound, according to the agency. The news has raised concerns among communities about potential projects being eliminated and future…
- Despite Dire Warnings, Delivery Worker Wages Increased Under PayUp Law; Council Plans Data Center Moratorium - PubliCola — PubliCola
Despite Dire Warnings, Delivery Worker Wages Increased Under PayUp Law; Council Plans Data Center Moratorium - PubliCola By Erica C. Barnett 1. Former city councilmember Sara Nelson’s effort to repeal a law that increased the way “gig” workers’ salaries are calculated, which would have reduced their pay substantially and increased profits for companies like Uber and Doordash, died that…