Local Non-Profit Groups Can Apply for Vehicles Through Van GO Program

Community Transit will be awarding 10 surplus vehicles to Snohomish County non-profit organizations to help meet local transportation needs.

The Van GO program was established in 2000 after Community Transit was forced to cut service when the state eliminated motor vehicle tax funding for transit. Since then, the agency has awarded 126 vans and wheelchair lift-equipped paratransit vehicles to qualified 501(c)3 organizations in Snohomish County.

This year, Community Transit will award eight 7-passenger vans and two 16-passenger, wheelchair lift-equipped paratransit vehicles. Organizations have until July 31 to apply; the vehicles will be awarded at the Sept. 7 Community Transit Board of Directors meeting. 

Applications are available at communitytransit.org/VanGo.

Pictured above: Young Life Capernaum Snohomish County was awarded a van in 2016 through the Van GO Program.

Swift Construction

Construction on the Swift Green Line is underway!

Work on the Seaway Transit Center across from the Boeing Everett plant began last month. The transit center will be the northern terminal for the Swift Green Line and a hub for Paine Field area bus service. This project will be completed in mid-to-late 2018.

Starting in mid-June, work will begin on a project to add new lanes on 128th Street in south Everett, one lane on either side of I-5. The lanes will allow buses to get through the narrow overpass more easily and will have a benefit to general purpose traffic in the area (see Herald article). Work on this project will continue into the fall, with lane closures limited to nights and weekends.

Later this summer, construction is expected to begin on the 31 stations along the Swift Green Line corridor, as well as several road improvements on Highway 527. This route will provide fast, frequent service between Canyon Park/Bothell and Boeing/Paine Field beginning in early 2019.

Subscribe to Swift Network News to receive alerts about Swift Green Line construction. Or view and download all current issues of Swift Network News here.

Pictured above: An aerial view of the Seaview Transit Center construction site taken on May 25. Pictured below:Illustrations of the improvements resulting from the 128th Street Widening Project.

Lynnwood Commuter Carpools to Pay Off Mortgage 20 Years Early

For more than 11 years, Lynnwood commuter Lindsay Ward (pictured right) has used carpooling and riding the bus to get to work. That dedication has paid off in large dividends as she is working on paying her mortgage off by the end of 2017, nearly 20 years early. 

Keeping track of her trips in the Choice Connections program has helped motivate her to continue toward her goal. She’s helping the environment, too, by not releasing over 10,500 pounds of carbon dioxide into our air last year.

Ward was named the Smart Commuter of the 1st Quarter 2017. Learn more about the Choice Connections program at www.communitytransit.org/choiceconnections.

Watch Lindsay Ward tell her story in this short video.

Community Transit Achieves AAA Bond Rating

Community Transit has received an AAA rating from S&P Global, the highest bond rating issued. The rating will allow the agency to sell its municipal bond at very favorable rates when it sells its bonds on June 6, 2017.  The proceeds from the bonds will help pay for the purchase of 26 new buses.

Community Transit’s last bond sale for bus purchases was in 2004, and those bonds were paid off during the third quarter of 2016.  The agency maintains some level of debt in order to also maintain a favorable credit rating, so the agency has decided to issue debt once again to support its bus fleet during a major service expansion.

Community Transit’s last bond sale for bus purchases was in 2004, and those bonds were paid off during the third quarter of 2016.  The agency maintains some level of debt in order to also maintain a favorable credit rating, so the agency has decided to issue debt once again to support its bus fleet during a major service expansion.

Reasons cited by S&P for the AAA rating were:

• The agency’s sales tax base is solid and stable.
• The community has shown support for our services by voting for a sales tax measure in 2015.
• The regional economy is very strong and Pacific NW agencies like Community Transit represent good investments for investors.
• The rating agency – S&P Global – felt very positive about Community Transit’s operational abilities and its ability to sustain growth and add new service.
• Community Transit has planned well for the future by building reserves and creating a sustainable plan for future service growth (see TDP story).
  
  

Photo Credit: Getty Images/mmbirdy