Dems push through sweeping $17B state transportation package
OLYMPIA — Majority Democrats drove their ambitious $17 billion transportation spending plan to the finish line Wednesday amid continuing criticism from Republicans and ongoing questions bout how the money will eventually be spent.
The final version of the 16-year package, dubbed Move Ahead Washington, emerged from a conference committee on a party-line vote. It will be voted on in the full House and Senate on Thursday, the final day of the 2022 legislative session.
The package’s billions of dollars will be spent on highway preservation, bridge maintenance, road projects, transit expansion, fish-barrier removal, and bike, bus and pedestrian programs. There’s money to build four electric state ferries and to allow anyone under the age of 18 to ride free on buses, trains and ferries.
Sen. Marko Liias, D-Everett, chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and one of the package’s authors, said Move Ahead “is going to invest in every corner of the state in a responsible way.”
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