Transportation

Business

SoDo is home to the state’s most dangerous RR crossing. How can we make it safer?

Soundside host Libby Denkmann sits down with producer Jason Burrows to talk about the $2 million in federal funding being used to study the railroad crossing at South Holgate Street south of downtown Seattle.

Week in Review: climate change, drugs, and graffiti

Bill Radke discusses the week’s news with Seattle Channel’s Brian Callanan, freelance health journalist Joanne Silberner, and Seattle Times David Kroman.

Government

King County Metro suspends 6 peak routes amid staffing shortage

This week some Seattle area bus commutes are getting a bit more complicated. That's because King County Metro is suspending peak weekday trips along routes 16, 232, 237, 301, 304 and 320 from June 12 through the 23rd. This comes ahead of the agency's plans for a wider reduction in services starting in September. But Metro is not making these cuts because of the usual suspects low ridership or a budget shortfall. Instead, the agency is citing staffing shortages.

Health

Researchers tackle asthma hotspot: Seattle’s Duwamish Valley

People in the 98108 ZIP code are nearly four times more likely to end up in the hospital with asthma than King County residents overall. Duwamish Valley has twice the poverty rate of Seattle and is mostly people of color.

Politics

Rail workers call for safety improvements in Washington state

Democratic Washington Senator Maria Cantwell said this week that lawmakers need to pass new safety rules to help prevent train derailments and prepare communities in case of railway emergencies. The legislation would also increase penalties for companies that violate federal rail safety statutes.

Crime

Homeless man charged with derailing Tacoma oil train

Pierce County prosecutors have charged a 65-year-old homeless man with derailing an oil train as it approached the Port of Tacoma.

Private flying for regular people? A WA startup wants to widen the net

For a few years now, aviation enthusiasts have teased the idea of a Jetsons-style future in which small electric aircraft whisk us to work or across the state and region. That future is not here yet, though a handful of companies, including one based in the Pacific Northwest, are trying to get a head start on the future of flying using conventional planes.

West Seattle Bridge ramp connecting Hwy 99 closed after pothole snarls traffic

Wednesday morning traffic out of West Seattle was snarled after a large hole was discovered in a busy onramp.