The cost of delaying Seattle-area transportation improvements continues to rise, with new estimates for a series of road projects adding to the existing price of lost time and inefficiency.
Overall road-project costs are likely to rise 20 percent from current estimates, former state Senate transportation head Jim Horn told The Seattle Times. The same story says material costs alone increased 8 percent a year from 2001 to 2005.
The new estimates, which are supposed to be officially unveiled in coming weeks, complicate planning for a package of transit and roads to be sent to voters in the three Seattle-area counties next fall. Some officials are already talking about trimming the budget and looking for alternatives.
No one should be surprised by the higher costs. One study found that congestion costs an average of $620 per person per year, counting fuel and lost productivity. While region has pondered which projects to build and how to pay for them, borrowing costs and commodities prices kept rising.
The solution may be more projects, not fewer. More congestion pricing on roads would raise funds and help smoothe demand while expanded transit would provide alternatives to those roads.