Light Rail News, 22 Oct 2003

City leaders would like new downtown light rail line (KATU 2 Portland) - Portland city leaders want to expand light rail in downtown and they spent Tuesday night listening to what the public thinks about the plan. The idea is to have the MAX run along the bus mall on 5th and 6th Avenues, connecting Union Station and Portland State University.

In key week for light rail, a meeting at White House (The Seattle Times) - U.S. Rep. Jennifer Dunn, an Eastside Republican and longtime critic of Sound Transit, traveled to the White House yesterday to speak with President Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove. Dunn, R-Bellevue, brought along Rep. Ernest Istook, R-Okla., an influential subcommittee chairman who is holding up a $500 million federal grant Sound Transit needs to begin construction of its light-rail system. Also attending the half-hour meeting was Rep. George Nethercutt, a Spokane Republican running for U.S. Senate. Sound Transit officials say the federal money is crucial to breaking ground on the Seattle-to-Tukwila route. Without it, they say, the project will die.