WA: EDITORIAL: Camas mustn't ignore its C-Tran-using residents

One of the fundamentals of any effective strategy is to have a backup plan. But as officials in the city of Camas ponder dropping out of C-Tran, it appears unlikely they have thought the issue all the way through.

Would the city create its own bus service? Would it link with C-Tran lines so Camas residents can access Vancouver and Portland on public transit? Or would they assume that everybody in their city has a Tesla or a Ford F-150 to get where they need to go?

How much would the city have to spend on purchasing buses and hiring drivers and administrators? How many residents rely on C-Tran? And would they expect C-Tran to simply bypass Camas and continue to serve Washougal residents in east Clark County?

Currently, Camas and Washougal are served by C-Tran's Route No. 92 and The Current, an on-demand rideshare service. According to C-Tran officials, the bus route had 75,818 boardings in east county in 2024; The Current had 25,443.

That is more than 275 rides per day, taking people to jobs, doctor appointments, shopping and dining outings, and wherever else they are going. Despite that valuable service, Camas officials are considering withdrawing from C-Tran in a pique against light rail.

In February, the city council unanimously voted to oppose the extension of Portland's MAX system into Clark County, which is likely to be included in plans for a replacement Interstate 5 Bridge.

In June, the Washington State Department of Transportation informed C-Tran officials that the board is out of compliance with state law because the city of Vancouver and Clark County — which have the region's largest populations — are underrepresented on the transit agency's board of directors. If C-Tran doesn't come into compliance by Oct. 1, officials warned, the agency could be ineligible for millions of dollars in state grants.

Now, Camas leaders express concern that altering the makeup of the C-Tran board could give Vancouver representatives enough power to push through approval of a light-rail extension.

In addition, Camas City Councilor Tim Hein, the city's representative on the C-Tran board, said Camas provided $5 million of sales tax revenue to C-Tran but received only $1.9 million from the service in 2024. The disparity, he added, is likely to grow with the addition of light rail.

Camas Mayor Steve Hogan said: "We need to pay attention to how that formation of the board of directors goes and then begin to start thinking seriously about whether we stay in or go out. When this goes down, and if this goes down the way it looks like it's going to go down, should we have some open houses or some town halls or a public discussion of whether or not we should explore possibly pulling out of C-Tran?"

Opposition to light rail is understandable; construction and operation of the system is expensive, and the initial plan would serve only Vancouver. And frustration about perceived bullying by Oregon and its TriMet transit agency also is understandable.

But petulant threats work against the idea of regional solutions for regional problems and promotes politics over public service.

More important, it demonstrates little concern for the residents in Camas and Washougal who rely on C-Tran services and combined for more than 100,000 boardings last year. Before peevishly withdrawing from the region's transit service, Camas officials should give some thought to the needs of their residents and whether they are prepared to meet those needs on their own.