Blake Trask

TBH I'm not sure there would still be a RapidRide program if Claudia Balducci hadn't been on the county council after 2020.

B/c one candidate has shown unquestioned leadership to grow walking and biking, including:
✅ building out Eastrail & fighting for state regional and local funding
✅ advocating to keep regional trails open 24/7
✅ leading the passage of VZ/safe system policies in Bellevue, King County & PSRC

Counterpoint: one candidate has done a lot to de-differentiate his previous positions from her. As he said, “I’m not running a contrast campaign.”

Buried Report Throws Cold Water on Zahilay’s Billion-Dollar Housing Bond Proposal » The Urbanist # The idea of using King County's uptapped bonding capacity to unlock dollars for affordable housing seemed like a promising new area for exploration. But a report dropped on the county council's door...

Also to note that the workforce housing study proposed last year appears to not be moving forward www.theurbanist.org/2025/10/08/b...

Local Control Can Work to Solve Our Housing Crisis: Here's How - PubliCola By King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci If we’ve learned nothing else from the last couple decades of explosive growth in…

Claudia has been leading on affordable housing and it’s making an impact on shaping our county’s housing goals publicola.com/2024/06/06/l...

In 2023 she led the work to pass one of the - if not the - largest countywide arts levies in the nation. She is coordinating w/ local jurisdictions to get a handle on our aging wastewater infrastructure backlog. In 2025 she partnered w/ transit operators to improve transit safety. And there’s more!

Claudia represents the Eastside as a CM, but she is one of the biggest regionalist leaders around. She has served as president of the Puget Sound Regional Council, the county Affordable Housing Committee & works regionwide as chair of Sound Transit’s system expansion committee. 1/2

Updating my LEGO White House

My sincere hope for the Mariners is that every move they make from now to Opening Day is marked by new ambition. You just got your teeth kicked in, but you were a bad pitching change away from your first World Series, and in a year when much of your rotation was banged up. Go get better.

JUST SAW A FOUR CAR TRAIN ON MERCER ISLAND - !!!! That’s it just had to get it out there so I don’t hyperventilate.

That sensible, pragmatic strategy also rears its head in her new Sound Transit platform, where she has proposed eliminating a second downtown tunnel to save mounting costs. The transit nerds are not happy about this. We aren’t thrilled either. Balducci has been taking the safe route after the primary, and it’s only affirmed our decision to go with Girmay. Vote Zahilay.

I gotta say, it's really frustrating to see The Stranger use a Sound Transit board member's request to listen to national transit experts and actually answer one of the biggest outstanding questions about ST3 (after nine years!) as bludgeon during their endorsement of her opponent.

Not sure about this but would love to learn more!

How Ballard and West Seattle Light Rail Became a $30 Billion Undertaking » The Urbanist # Since voters approved West Seattle and Ballard Link in 2016, the two projects have been caught in a perfect storm of factors that led to the eye-popping cost estimates that we have today. While the ...

NEW // How Ballard and West Seattle Light Rail Became a $30 Billion Undertaking

Story by @typewriteralley.bsky.social via @theurbanist.org www.theurbanist.org/2025/10/10/h...

King County Metro seeks major safety investment after driver's fatal stabbing King County Metro is pushing for more than $115 million in safety investments over the next two years.

Transit safety isn’t optional, it’s a necessity.

This week, CM Balducci led a Transit Safety Report briefing—a blueprint built with operators, safety experts, & community leaders.

Now it's time to turn these recommendations into action.

Watch KING 5’s coverage:

Three Key Questions to Save Our Light Rail Future - PubliCola By Claudia Balducci It’s no secret that our region needed high-capacity transit yesterday — or better yet, four decades ago.…

🚇 Seattle’s biggest transit challenges mean we need bold thinking to deliver ST3 without breaking the bank. That means reimagining the second downtown tunnel, speeding up delivery, and putting riders first. Read more in @publicola.bsky.social >>>

100%. Those are the questions to ask/study to conduct to make it work (if it can!)

Three Key Questions to Save Our Light Rail Future - PubliCola By Claudia Balducci It’s no secret that our region needed high-capacity transit yesterday — or better yet, four decades ago.…

Three Key Questions to Save Our Light Rail Future
In a guest post, Sound Transit board member and King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci says it's time to consider light-rail options that don't require digging a second tunnel through downtown Seattle.
publicola.com/2025/10/08/t...

Yes

Again, there is a very important election coming up for King County Executive. The winner will be critically important in how funds are used for housing and how to build out our light rail system which needs creative solutions to come into budget. Claudia Balducci is the right vote

E-bikes could cut carbon, congestion, and costs — if cities take them seriously E-bike sales are booming, providing a clean form of transportation that also improves public health. Yet cities remain committed to cars.

“The e-bike market is skyrocketing — and, according to some studies, outpacing electric cars…The question now is: Do officials double down on deadly car-centric urban design, or do they rethink cities to encourage people to ditch four wheels for two?”

Via @grist.org grist.org/transportati...

Now on KUOW’s Soundside:
King County Executive candidates debate @kuow.org www.kuow.org/stories/squa...

Raised crosswalks solve two problems with one intervention: 1) accessibility for people on sidewalks without curb ramps and 2) traffic calming, resulting in fewer injuries and deaths

Trump shouldn't take election advice from a Russian dictator While mail-in voting provides obvious logistical challenges, every serious analysis of mail-in voting results has found it to be secure.

"Simple research shows 34 countries or territories have some mail-in voting and—in an amazing coincidence—that list largely mirrors those countries that are freest, wealthiest and most democratic." [Steven Greenhut, @reason.com]

Grocery prices rise at the fastest pace since 2022 as Trump tariffs bite On the campaign trail, Trump promised lower grocery prices.

This is the biggest story in America right now.

Coffee up 20.9% year-over-year

Steaks up 16.6%

Apples up 9.6%

Bananas, 6.6%.

www.axios.com/2025/09/11/t...

Amazing photos from last night's historic floating bridge rail crossing. Courtesy: @sound-transit.bsky.social #soundtransit

An apparent meteor streaks across the sky on Monday in Seattle, adding to the feeling that train fans were indeed part of a special event. (Nick Wagner / The Seattle Times)

Two amazing sights, all at one moment:

“At nearly the same moment the railcar first entered the I-90 bridge from the Mercer Island side, 11:49 p.m., a thick shower of sparks streaked high above the park, from an apparent meteor.”

www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

So beyond exciting to be out watching this historic moment with a crowd of rail fans!

Super fun to watch this historic moment.

What a night!

“As usual, King County Councilmember @kccclaudia.bsky.social came with the most highly-detailed suggestions…”