Title: An act relating to authorizing personal rapid transit and magnetic levitation transit systems.

Brief Description: Authorizing personal rapid transit and magnetic levitation transit systems.

Sponsors: Representatives Dickerson, Ericksen, Murray, Linville, B. Sullivan, Lovick, Talcott, Campbell, Chase, Nixon and Simpson.

Brief History:

Transportation: 2/23/05, 3/3/05 [DP].

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 26 members: Representatives Murray, Chair; Wallace, Vice Chair; Woods, Ranking Minority Member; Skinner, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Appleton, Buck, Campbell, Curtis, Dickerson, Ericksen, Hankins, Hudgins, Jarrett, Kilmer, Lovick, Morris, Nixon, Rodne, Schindler, Sells, Shabro, Simpson, B. Sullivan, Takko, Upthegrove and Wood.

Staff: David Munnecke (786-7315).

Background:

In the early 1990s, high-capacity transportation (HTC) systems were authorized to offer public transportation services within an urbanized region operating on authorized exclusive right of ways along with the supporting services and facilities necessary to implement the system. The services are to provide a higher level of passenger capacity, speed and service frequency. Transit agencies, which include city-owned transit systems, county transportation authorities, metropolitan municipal corporations, and public transportation benefit areas, are responsible for planning, construction, and operations. A planning process is outlined in statute.

Only transit agencies in counties with a population of 175,000 or more that have an interstate highway within their borders, except for any county having a population of more than one million or a county that has a population of more than 400,000 and is adjacent to a county with a population of one million or more, may operate a HTC system.

The HTC agencies may use the following dedicated voter approved funding sources: employer tax, and sales and use tax. These taxes are in addition to any federal, state, local, and private sector assistance available.

The HTC systems are defined in statute as rapid rail system, monorail, trolley, or other fixed rail guideway. Magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit, relatively new technologies, are not in that definition.

Magnetic levitation (maglev) is a system in which magnetic force lifts, propels, and guides a vehicle over a guideway at speeds of 250 to 300 miles per hour. The concept of magnetically levitated trains was first identified around 1900, but significant advancements in maglev technology did not occur until relatively recently. While Germany and Japan have spent significant amounts of time and money developing maglev technology over the last several decades, comparatively little research was performed in the United States until the 1990s when the National Maglev Initiative was established.

To evaluate the potential for maglev to improve intercity transportation and to determine an appropriate role for the federal government, the "Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century" (TEA 21) was passed in 1998, which created a National Magnetic Levitation Technology Deployment Program.

Summary of Bill:

The bill adds magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems to the existing high-capacity transportation statutes.

Counties are authorized to impose with voter approval, by a simple majority of those voting, dedicated funding sources already allowed in statute for other high capacity systems. Funding for magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems is limited along with all of the entities in a county implementing these systems to the maximum rate for each of the existing funding options.

The population requirements in the existing high-capacity transportation statutes do not apply, so all counties in the state can implement magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems.

Counties implementing magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems are authorized to use public-private partnerships.

The Department of Transportation (Department) will develop, implement, and administer a grant program for state and federal funding identified for magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems.

The Speaker of the House will appoint four representatives, two from each caucus, the President of the Senate will appoint four senators, two from each caucus, and the Governor will appoint a business person and a person with academic credentials in magnetic levitation and personal rapid transit systems to work with the Department to develop the criteria for the grant program.

Entities wanting to obtain grants from the Department will submit design proposals to the Department and will compete based on the established criteria.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Not requested.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect on August 1, 2005.

Testimony For: Magnetic levitation technology is a workable solution to the transportation problems we face. It has very low maintenance and operation costs, and we need to insure that it is part of the mix of options that we can use. We have the intellectual capability in Washington to make it work. It is already working in China, and is being considered in Colorado and Britain. It's happening around the world because it's a cost-effective, potentially self-supporting solution. The cost of construction varies from $10-20 million per mile, and it could be placed in existing right-of-ways to replace trains and reduce the use of highways by both people and cargo. This is a technology for the 21st century, and it needs to be supported now.

Testimony Against: None.

Persons Testifying: Representative Dickerson, prime sponsor; Representative Ericksen; Jo Klinski, Magna Force, Incorporated; and Mayor Rosemarie Ives, City of Redmond.

Persons Signed In To Testify But Not Testifying: None.