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From: Pam & Paul Lewis [mailto:plewis@mvgryphon From: Pam & Paul Lewis [mailto:plewis@mvgryphon.com]
Posted At: Tuesday, January 22, 2008 4:41 PM
Posted To: Climate Comments
Conversation: Some Comments on Sections V and VI with a focus on Transportation
Subject: Some Comments on Sections V and VI with a focus on Transportation

Hello,
Your documents contain excellent ideas for action going forward and I appreciate the
time, energy, and thought that has gone into it so far. And Thank You for your
willingness to take it further. I have cut and pasted below some of your words from the
documents so that I can focus my thoughts and so that my comments have a reference.

1.

The largest source of Washingtons GHG emissions is transportation, accounting for nearly half
of total State gross GHG emissions in 2005.
In order to limit the impacts of further climate change, reduction or storage of current and projected GHG
emissions is also an urgent necessity, and
effective sustainable action to accomplish this is required.

until the market is fully functional, some specific strategies can be deployed immediately to
pursue low-hanging fruit, actions that have both immediate
reductions benefits and cost savings.

I agree that reducing GHG emissions is urgent. Many of the proposed solutions will take
time to implement and I agree with you that there are low hanging fruit things that can
be done immediately to reduce CO2 emissions. You will, I hope, identify those actions
from your work and get them going immediately. I also hope that you would make the
effort to find out from people all over this state what they are doing to reduce their
emissions and find a way to share/implement their ideas. Citizens are the key to
sustainable action. I hope you can also read the email which I sent on Citizen
Engagement and Action Framework, which focuses on Transportation.

2.

Taken as a whole the overall effort to transform to a Clean Economy is a huge undertaking.
Progress on reducing GHG emissions will be done a ton at a
time, in many different places and in many different ways throughout the economy.


Washington will need to leverage going quickly with going smartly'. In order to act
as quickly as possible to the threat that global warming represents to Washington, the
State should aggressively implement those strategies deemed viable now while being
cognizant of the uncertainties and potentially unintended consequences that may be
associated with them. When dealing with something as complex as transforming to a
Low Carbon Economy, the Legislature and the Governor should make being both quick
and smart a priority as they strike a balance between the unavoidable tension that arises
between moving forward immediately or waiting until additional information is available.
As long as we seize each substantive opportunity to act in the present that builds out this
comprehensive approach, we have the time and now, with this report, the road map, to
move forward in the future in a thoughtful and deliberate manner. The CAT sees this
thoughtful decision-making as a means to improve our decisions, not a pretext for delay.

I think that the State of Washington should immediately lower the speed limit to 55 
on our highways that now have a 60 or 70 mph speed limit.  This is one of the low hanging fruit actions that will immediately reduce CO2 emissions!  People have to 
realize that they can make a difference in the speed they drive and the way they drive.  
Every day, each person who commutes on our highways can keep tons and tons of GHG 
from being emitted. 
 
I travel from Seattle to Tacoma and back again about once a week to visit my 86 year old 
Mom.  I drive in the second lane from the right at 60 mph.  I am passed by all of the 
vehicles on the lanes left of me and by many of the vehicles to the right of me.  And this 
includes most of the big semitrucks.  Once I sped up to see that a semi was actually 
travelling at  70mph!  On 1/21/08,  on a local channels Traffic Update, the time from 
Tacoma to Seattle was 38 minutes.  Wow.  It usually takes me 5060 minutes depending 
on volume during non rush hour times.  How fast were those cars going? 
 
When I saw this Feasibility Issues (from Appendix F on page 69) I became
angry!
(I do applaud those who objected.)

Feasibility Issues
In addition to the individual strategies described above, the workgroup considered a strategy that
would reduce speed limits on highways in order to improve fuel economy and reduce GHG
emissions. As noted above, most vehicles operate at maximum fuel efficiency between 45 and 55
mph.

WSDOTs State Traffic Engineer provided a list of concerns regarding the feasibility of and
potential risks associated with this strategy. These concerns included the following:
Artificially lowering a 65 or 70 mph speed limit by 10 or 15 mph would not necessarily
result in a significant reduction in operating speed.
A speed limit reduction could create safety problems and more collisions as some drivers
obey a new 55 mph speed limit and other drivers continue to operate at high speeds. A large
difference in speed between drivers causes unexpected maneuvers and leads to collisions.
The Washington State Patrol does not have the resources to enforce a 55 mph speed limit.
WSDOT/WSP/Legislature have placed significant emphasis on safety within highway work
zones, which includes compliance with posted speed limits. Artificially lowering regulatory
speed limits statewide damages the credibility of all of the signs that are posted, which could
be detrimental to the desire for compliance within workzones.

In response to these concerns, the strategy was removed over the objection of some workgroup
members.

Your acceptance of the Traffic Engineers ideas and the removal of the strategy 
disheartens me!  Please change the signs on the highways to say 55 mph and lower the 
work zones accordingly.   
 
The State Patrol cant and doesnt enforce the speed limit at 60/70 now.  The engineer 
didnt make his case on any of those points listed above.  How could it be any more 
unsafe than it is now?!  Where was his data to show that lowering the speed limit 
wouldnt save GHG emissions.  Do you have the data showing that it does?...you imply  that it does in your paragraph above that considers the strategy.  Somebody needs to 
produce and verify the data NOW. 
 
The CAT hopes that the reality of global warming will coalesce the
political leadership from all sectors and the support of the public to see the strategies outlined
below (and in the next two headlines also addressing transportation related emission reductions)
as critical necessities whose time has come, and not as merely personal choices that can be
accepted or rejected with no real consequences for Washingtons future beyond more or less
traffic congestion or urban sprawl, etc.

The first goal is to reduce GHG emissions. Get the data on the amount that could be
saved every day in our state from commute times alone. Rally the citizenry around the
need to take our foot off the gas for the planet! Its funny, but have you ever seen what
happens on the freeway when a state patrol car travels at the posted speed limit? All the
cars drive the posted speed limit = the patrol car has become the pace car for the planet.
We need every citizen to understand about the real connection between the speed we
drive and the GHG emitted. I believe that most citizens care and once they understand
the connection they will act and drive 55!

The time has comethere are consequences for our State and the planet. This is a viable
strategy, an effective and sustainable action, that must be implemented! It can be done
NOW and every driver in this state can help and feel good about the amount of CO2
being kept out of the atmosphere!


Pam Lewis