What’s happening in Whatcom County for Oct. 26
Amtrak ridership, on-time service both down
A new state Department of Transportation report on congestion on Washington’s highways, ferries and trains show that both ridership and on-time service were down in 2014 compared to the previous report in 2012.
Ridership was down 3.4 percent from 2014 compared to 2012, and the train service’s on-time performance was down 2.1 percent - due primarily to “inter-train congestion” (more trains on the tracks) causing delays, according to the report. Also, the Vancouver, B.C., to Bellingham route was the least utilized (less than 40 percent of capacity), but most riders were taking longer trips, according to the study.
RE Sources gets a warning
Environmental group RE Sources for Sustainable Communities violated state requirements for reporting political activity, but the Public Disclosure Commission decided against disciplining the organization. “The ... contributions were disclosed as much as 64 days late but seven weeks before the election,” said the PDC’s letter to Charlie Crabtree, who filed a complaint against RE Sources. The group raised funds to campaign for Proposition 9, the five-district proposal, on the Nov. 3 ballot.
ICYMI: Cubs didn’t win the Series, but Marty McFly did appear in Bellingham
In case you missed it, a Bellingham celebration of Back to the Future Day on Oct. 21 was featured in a video on Facebook Stories last week. The celebration at Pickford Film Center was organized by Bellingham resident Brian Skywalker and helped raise money for local therapeutic dance classes for people with Parkinson’s disease. .
Back to the Future DayMore than 1 million people joined over 6,500 Facebook Events to celebrate Back to the Future Day. Brian Skywalker of Bellingham, Wash., was one of them. He created an event on Facebook for some friends to come over on Oct. 21, 2015, the date Marty McFly travels to in the Back to the Future Trilogy. When more and more friends joined, he decided to take the party to a bigger venue. After hearing Brian’s idea, the Pickford Film Center organized a screening and '80s block party — DeLorean and all. The event raised $2,100 for a local dance center that holds therapeutic dance classes for people with Parkinson's disease.
Posted by Facebook Stories on Friday, October 23, 2015
Expect delays during I-5 repairs
The right northbound lane of Interstate 5 near Nulle Road will be closed from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27, for guardrail repair. On Wednesday the left lane of southbound I-5 will be closed at Northwest Avenue from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for similar repairs, according to the state Department of Transportation.
Talk about public policy
Western Washington University’s annual Ralph Munro Seminar for Civic Education will be held Tuesday and Wednesday, Oct. 27-28, with free discussion panels on public policy. Free parking also is available.
All discussion panels will be in the Wilson Library Reading Room and each panel session. Topics are race and criminal justice, economic development, and emergency preparedness. Get details here.
Trail mix recall
If you have a milk allergy, don’t touch any packages of David Trail Mix Sweet & Salty variety until you check this recall notice. An ingredient in the trail mix contains milk protein powder, but that’s not on the label.
Dog treat recall
If you purchased Good N Fun Beefhide Chicken Sticks at a dollar store, check the package to make sure it’s not one affected by a recall because of possible salmonella contamination.
This story was originally published October 26, 2015 at 10:30 AM with the headline "What’s happening in Whatcom County for Oct. 26."