Amazon’s New Transit Investment in Seattle
A King County Metro RapidRide bus in downtown Seattle. Shutterstock
STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Utah cities eye small modular nuclear reactors … Minnesota’s AAA bond rating … and leaking garbage trucks in Honolulu.
Good morning, it’s Thursday, July 26, 2018. Transportation leads Route Fifty’s roundup of state and local government news from across the United States, but scroll down for more, including stories on budget and finance, energy and public health ...
TRANSPORTATION | Just as Amazon looks to build a second headquarters campus in a yet-to-be-determined city, the company’s investments in its first headquarters hub in Seattle continue. On Wednesday, King County Executive Dow Constantine and officials from Amazon announced that the company would spend $1.5 million to fund 12,000 new bus service hours over two years to boost service on six major King County Metro routes leading into downtown Seattle and the South Lake Union area. That’s where Amazon-fueled growth has sent transit ridership soaring. Since 2014, Amazon has paid more than $60 million to support public transportation by providing transit passes for its Seattle-based employees. [King County; @amazonnews]
- According to a new white paper released by Gallagher, the transportation sector ranks third in IT security vulnerability, including risks to GPS tracking and automotion. [Insurance Business America]
- After the recent rains damaged a section of light-rail tracks south of Baltimore, some residents and local leaders in Anne Arundel County are interested in limiting or shuttering transit service due to crime concerns. [Baltimore Sun]
- After years of delay, the North Carolina Department of Transportation is getting ready to award construction contracts for new express toll lanes along Interstate 485 in the Charlotte area. [Charlotte Observer]
- A Portland, Oregon resident faces a $6,000 fine for not repairing landslide damage on his property that’s led to problems along SW Skyline Boulevard. "I didn't build any new structures. Nothing has changed on my property since 1937. I don't see why I'm responsible here." [Willamette Week]
BUDGET & FINANCE | Two major bond-rating agencies, Standard & Poors and Fitch Ratings, have given Minnesota their highest grade for fiscal health: AAA. On Wednesday, Gov. Mark Dayton praised the Minnesota Management and Budget Agency and Commissioner Myron Frans for “their steadfast commitment to improving Minnesota’s financial management.” [Pioneer Press / TwinCities.com]
- The good news: “California’s two immense public employee pension funds this month reported investment earnings higher than their assumed rate for the second straight year.” The bad news: “Crushing debts remain.” [Dan Walters / CALmatters]
- Montana Gov. Steve Bullock says that state agencies will see more than $70 million in budget cuts restored thanks to better-than-forecasted revenue. [Montana Public Radio]
PUBLIC HEALTH | Federal officials met with residents in Montgomery County and Bucks County, Pennsylvania on Wednesday to discuss contamination from firefighting agents used at local military bases that contain PFAS chemicals. [The Inquirer / Philly.com; WPVI]
- A 14-year-old girl in Bergen County, New Jersey may be the first person in the United States to be discovered carrying an exotic tick from Asia first detected in the Garden State last year. [The Record / NorthJersey.com]
- A Hawaii state health inspection has found that wastewater has been leaking from garbage trucks onto the streets of Honolulu and into local waterways. [Hawaii News Now]
ENERGY | The Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, a consortium of 30 municipally owned power systems in the Beehive State, is looking to build the nation’s first small nuclear modular reactor in Idaho in order to provide Utah consumers with a renewable energy source. [The Salt Lake Tribune]
- Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday that the state has hired international energy consultant BVG Associates to “develop strategies to strengthen Virginia’s position in attracting the offshore wind supply chain and service industry.” [Gov. Ralph Northam]
- Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló skipped a congressional oversight hearing on “mismanagement and disarray” at the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority thanks to a Twitter feud with House Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop. [Roll Call]
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT | U.S. Sen. John Hoeven has requested that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study gaps in weather radar in parts of western North Dakota, where a tornado recently killed an infant in Watford City. [Bismarck Tribune]
- Parts of Yosemite National Park in California will remain closed through the weekend due to ongoing wildfires in the area. [CNN; Fresno Bee]
- Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has declared a second state of emergency in Houghton County in the Upper Peninsula, which was hit by widespread flash flooding in July. [WLUC / UpperMichiganSource.com]
Michael Grass is Executive Editor of Government Executive’s Route Fifty and is based in Seattle.
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