03/12/2008

By DAVID AMMONS  / Associated Press

The Washington Senate on Tuesday approved a bare-bones highway budget with strong bipartisan support after majority Democrats yielded to GOP demands for more money for safety projects on a so-called "killer highway," U.S. Highway 2.

The plan also earmarks money for new ferries and major road and bridge projects across the state, including early work on replacements for the Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle and a new State Highway 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington.

The budget is a compromise struck by negotiators from the House and Senate. The new plan passed the Senate 45-4 and is expected to pass the House.

The budget trims the current $7.5 billion two-year highway budget by about $129 million. Lawmakers said they're having to cut projects and overhead by nearly $1.5 billion over the next 16 years to make up for rising costs and a falloff in both state and federal tax support.

It's a largely noncontroversial document, but debate had flared on earlier drafts in both chambers, when minority Republicans heatedly accused the Democrats of ignoring what they called the state's most dangerous road, U.S. 2. Nearly 50 motorists have died on the stretch of two-lane road between Sultan and Monroe.

At one point, Sen. Val Stevens, R-Arlington, had accused the transportation chairwoman, Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, of earmarking a project for her own district while shortchanging efforts to fix a deadly highway.

But after negotiators found an additional $5 million, for a total of $14 million, for the project, the opposition evaporated. During Tuesday's brief debate, Stevens thanked Haugen publicly for listening to the Republicans and urged approval. The ranking Republican transportation leader, Sen. Dan Swecker of Rochester, also commended the budget.

The plan includes $5 million to add a westbound passing lane west of Sultan, $5 million for safety improvements between Monroe and Gold Bar and $4 million for striping and rumble strips to help avert crossover head-on collisions. The budget also directs the State Patrol to assign six new troopers to the corridor.

The budget also includes:

_$85 million for a new small ferry and two medium-sized ones to replace Steel Electric class boats that were pulled from the Port Townsend run last November. Another $15 million is earmarked for refurbishment of the ferry Hyak. The ferry budget also includes $283 million for three new 144-car vessels. The plan includes $357,000 to add two daily sailings on the Port Townsend-Keystone run.

_The ferry system is directed to freeze hiring in its construction program, review ferry accidents, allow multiple cars in a family to use frequent-traveler discounts, and to "consider the desirability of reasonable fares for frequent users" when setting new fares.

_$915 million in early work on the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

_$2.4 million for completion of the Riverside Avenue project in Spokane.

_$100,000 for an east King County-Snohomish commuter rail study.

_$18 million to pay for higher fuel costs for ferries, the State Patrol and the Department of Transportation.

_$74 million for continued work on the Highway 519 connections from the Port of Seattle to Interstate 90.

_$3.2 million for snow and ice removal.

_$27 million for concrete median barriers on Interstate 5 near Marysville.

_Over $294 million is added to cover higher costs for the Tacoma HOV lanes, Interstate 405, I-90 in the Snoqualmie Pass area, I-5 in the Tacoma area, and other projects around the state.

_$12 million to help the city of Tacoma restore or demolish the Murray Morgan Bridge.

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The transportation budget is House Bill 2878.

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On the Net:

Legislature: http://www.leg.wa.gov

DOT: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov