Re: “Ruff riders: Sound Transit will soon allow dogs on board” (July 25, A1):
Although providing mass transit alternatives to increasing automobile traffic is admirable, I wondered where exactly Sound Transit CEO Dow Constantine and members of the agency’s governing board have been living for the past 35 years to even contemplate that dog owners will comply with the leash law on Sound Transit on their way to the Marymoor Park off-leash area. Have they not heard about the dog fights created by dog walkers with 15-20 dogs at the Magnuson Park off-leash area?
And I wonder if Constantine and board members have ever actually taken Sound Transit when there is an event at Seattle Center or a Seahawks game. Humans are packed like sardines; it is a lot to ask a dog to behave well in such a circumstance. It might well trigger dogs as firecrackers do.
Only one carriage should be reserved for the ultra-privileged species — dogs; the rest for the underprivileged species — homo sapiens.
Allowing dog owners and walkers on Sound Transit will discourage people from taking Sound Transit. There are already several reasons to avoid public transportation — like saving your life.
Ellen Taft, Seattle
