Your Jan. 13 opinion page led off with a citizen’s letter proposing a new “I-205” freeway to bypass Everett, Seattle, Bellevue and Tacoma. That idea was wisely rejected decades ago by a regional planning decision to restrain urban sprawl eastward toward the Cascades.

A large majority of voters reinforced that decision this past November, taxing us all quite heavily to extend light rail to Tacoma by 2030 and to Everett by 2036 instead of adding new freeway lanes. True enough, the Sound Transit 3 extensions to those destinations are years in the future, but I-5 traffic north of Seattle will be greatly relieved when light rail service opens to the new Lynwood station just seven years hence in 2023. No urban freeway could be designed, approved and built faster than that.

Peter Marshall

Bellevue