Todd Britsch of Metrostudy gave an upbeat third quarter market report to an attentive crowd on Thursday evening. Prices in Puget Sound (Metrostudy includes six counties) show median house prices increasing from $307,049 in 2009 to $427,990 year to date. Also, net migration is up substantially, employment is strong, and, alas, there are not enough lots in the pipeline. Contact Todd directly for more info at tbritsch@metrostudy.com.

Last week I wrote about Kurt Triplett, the City Manager of Kirkland,giving a presentation at KW Eastside about a proposed Bus Rapid Transit system, possibly coming in 2016. The emails from our educated, articulate and incredibly wise readers came fast and  furious. To not keep you in suspense, the answer to Bus Rapid Transit from our readership is not only No, but Hell No! I didn’t get permission to use the names, so a sampling of the emails we received will have to do.

“Just another way for the planners to get people out of their cars. Let’s get 405 fixed. The new user lanes does little more than force to the few remaining free lanes, thereby increasing traffic difficulties, at least in the short run.”
“Soooooo if you put the transit program into a (Builder name) spreadsheet, it means that 4,300 extra customers a week X 48 weeks (take out holidays and vacation days = 10,320,000 new customers. $500,000,000/10,320,000 = $48.45 expense per ride versus a $2.00 fare??? A great investment by our government???”
“Same thing in Clark County. The people have rejected BRT several times. Who has a few hundred million hanging around?”
(From Canadian reader) “Good luck getting drivers out of cars to sit in a bus! Hasn’t worked anywhere else. We also have lovely dedicated bike lanes all over the city. They are covered in snow and not really useable from now until April. Lovely looking concepts but weak and expensive utility.”
“You have got to be kidding me! Get out of my car and ride a bus? Never.”

(from a well known research & feasibility guru) “They need to spend the money and go light rail to have any chance. Buses are not desirable, even to the Millennials.”