Light rail logistics focus of events

Last summer, the Vancouver City Council decided that light-rail trains should roll through downtown on a one-way couplet.

Despite that decision, the city has scheduled two public workshops, plus a walking tour of the recommended route, to gather input on rail alignment, station locations and other issues.

Matt Ransom, Vancouver’s transportation planning manager, said the workshops are part of ongoing work to refine a project that would include replacing the Interstate 5 Bridge, extending Portland’s light-rail line into Vancouver and rebuilding freeway intersections on both sides of the Columbia River.

“Now the more advanced preliminary engineering is under way, there is a need to really investigate the details, such as the station location,” Ransom said. “And in doing that, there is benefit in confirming the alignment recommendation.”

Two public workshops are planned:

n Noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Hudson Bay High School, 1601 E. McLoughlin Blvd.

n 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14, Discovery Middle School, 800 E. 40th St.

The workshops will allow participants to provide feedback on the recommended light-rail couplet, which calls for Broadway to be used for northbound trains and Washington Street for southbound.

City transportation planners believe each street is wide enough to accommodate two-way auto traffic along with a single light-rail track, although some parking would be lost.

They recommended a light-rail couplet because it would bracket Main Street and could encourage retail development along a street that today falls short of its iconic name. It also would allow for more flexible traffic circulation and avoid a perceived 30-foot wide barrier created with side-by-side light-rail tracks.

Ransom said the Esther Short Neighborhood Association expressed interest in using Washington Street for northbound and southbound trains instead of a one-way couplet.

“I just think in the spirit of collaboration, we need to look at that and see if there’s a need to re-examine,” he said.

Those willing to brave January weather can get a pedestrian-level view of the light-rail route during a walking tour, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday at Hudson’s Bay High School.

Ransom said participants probably won’t walk the entire light rail route, from where it would touch down west of the current I-5 Bridge to its proposed terminus near Clark College. Buses likely will be used to shuttle participants to different spots where people will get out and walk portions of the route, he said.

The two workshops also will feature discussion about location of transit stations, as well as how Park & Ride lots should be integrated into the transit line.

Ransom said the workshops will present “best practices” information, essentially lessons learned from other communities for locating transit stations.

As for Park & Ride spots, recent plans call for a 1,750-space lot or garage along the east side of I-5 near Clark College, plus another 590 spaces near state Highway 14 west of the freeway and 560 spaces at the “Mill District” station, planned for the vacant block west of the Clark County Historical Museum downtown.

Jeffrey Mize: 360-735-4542 or jeff.mize@columbian.com.