South Tacoma, Lakewood transit stations need improvements, groups say. Will they happen?
There are sidewalks missing in parts of Tacoma. Some local groups are hoping Sound Transit can fix that.
“That’s a big detail. I think it often gets overlooked — the things that make it easier for people who rely on a functioning sidewalk,” said Jennifer Halverson Kuehn, chair of the city’s Bicycle Pedestrian Technical Advisory Group.
Krystal Monteros, chair of the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities, relies on functioning sidewalks. She uses a wheelchair, and public transit and sidewalks need to go hand in hand.
“If you have (a) crappy sidewalk, then that makes it harder,” Monteros said. “That’s just my fight with it. A lot of times, it just makes me want to be like, ‘No, I’m not going to take public transportation.’”
Earlier this year, Sound Transit met with BPTAG, Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities and other groups to discuss concerns and suggestions that would make the South Tacoma and Lakewood stations more accessible.
Projects to improve accessibility at both stations have been on Sound Transit’s radar for a while now, said Scott Thompson, public information officer for the agency.
One part of the planning phase was gaining feedback and suggestions on improvements, Thompson said. Another was conducting an online survey in April and creating an outreach summary afterward.
“We’ll have some further engagement as we move into the fall,” Thompson said.
Sound Transit received 59 survey responses; 34 for the South Tacoma station and 25 for the Lakewood station, according to the outreach summary.
For the South Tacoma station, survey participants called for things like infrastructure catered to the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists. That includes curb ramps, painted crosswalks and pedestrian-activated traffic lights, according to the summary.
The South Tacoma station also could benefit from more lighting and art because “not many people know of it, or where it is, unless they already use the station,” according to the summary.
Implementing arm-drop barriers for pedestrians on South 56th Street and South 60th Street, which are both near the South Tacoma station, would be ideal, said Gerrit Nyland, co-chair of the city’s Transportation Commission. Intersections with crossing arms have fewer fatalities, he said.
“Both of those (streets) have crossing arms that stop cars, but they don’t have crossing arms that stop pedestrians,” Nyland said. “Those would be good items.”
Halverson Kuehn said protected bike lanes would be another beneficial addition to South 56th Street. The street has a “very narrow” shoulder for pedestrians and is car-centric, she said.
“It is so gnarly,” Halverson Kuehn said. “The most experienced bike commuter in our group … doesn’t even ride it.”
Those who filled out the survey for the Lakewood station also called for more safeguards for pedestrians and bicyclists, according to the summary. Including more crosswalks, lighting and parking near the station were also suggested.
Sound Transit is planning to start making improvements to both stations by 2023. The timeline is subject to change as the agency continues to find ways to get more funding or fill its “affordability gap.”
“That gap is now down to $6.5 billion,” Thompson said. “We’ve got to come up with the money to build these projects.”
Thompson said Sound Transit allocated between $40-45 million for the improvement projects planned for each of the two stations, which will be allocated from the agency’s overall budget.
“We really can’t promise anything at this point,” Thompson said. “As we move along, we’ll start narrowing down the options of what we’ll be able to do.”
Sound Transit has been doing well at providing audio and visual accommodations like braille for people who need it, Monteros said, but should begin thinking about ways to fix larger issues.
“I think they need to focus on the whole route because the whole route is going to accommodate people with disabilities, not just the station,” Monteros said.
This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 11:31 AM.
