There are several places to lobby for greener, bike-friendlier Stim projects.
1. WisDOT and the legislature's Joint Finance Committee, on state projects. 70
percent of Wisconsin's Stim "highway" funds will be spent by WisDOT. ("Highway"
is in quotes because even though it is commonly labeled that way, federal
Surface Transportation Program funding is in fact very flexible and can be used
for buses, bike facilities, rail, planning, demand-reduction programs -- pretty
much anything transportation related except air and maritime stuff.) WisDOT's
first $300 million has been devoted to highways, and though the quickie budget
legislation involved does allow that to be changed, there's a lot of momentum
behind those projects and they would be really hard. There will be another $250
million or so, however, and that's not yet spoken for. It could go to
high-speed rail or state bike paths, to name two options. There may be some
organizing around this, but it can't hurt for individuals to let WisDOT know
now that people want a greener Stim
with something for bikes. And if BFW (or any other organizer) knows of a state
bike corridor where the land has been acquired, i.e. is shovel ready, then
now's the time to rally support for construction with Stim money.
2. Local governments and MPOs. The other 30 percent of the state's "highway"
money will go to the locals. Local governments will propose projects to MPOs,
which will decide among competing projects. Madison city staff presented their
pre-Stimulus list of proposed road projects tonight to LRTPC, but they
acknowledged the Stim would change things, and Larry Nelson spoke a bit about
that. He said staff viewed it as a chance to move up some big-ticket
construction projects, specifically County Highway M expansion, and that even
though STP money could go for buses, transportation demand management, etc.,
nobody in the city was looking at it that way. So if you want to green the Stim
locally, maybe an alder or the mayor should know. Nelson was friendlier,
however, to some particular bike projects. The city engineering staff wants to
speed up work on the Aberg Aveneue overpass for the Starkweather Creek Path,
for example. And when LRTPC members asked about two
other potential bike projects -- the Cannonball/Miliatry Ridge Path overpass
at the Beltline near Fish Hatchery, and a link across the Beltline on the west
side to Junction Road -- Nelson said both were possible with Stim money. So if
the local bike community could rally around those or other similar projects,
that might help move them into consideration. I know there is some interest in
Fitchburg on the Cannonball Path, which might bring more support when it gets
to the MPO level. I don't know about allies on the Junction Road link.
Eric
________________________________
From: Aaron Crandall <[email protected]>
To: bikies <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 9:02:15 PM
Subject: [Bikies] Fw: BFW Agenda Item 2: Increased funding for bicycle and
pedestrian infrastructure
I'm not fully aware of the status on this but know it's an important item for
BFW & there's hope to see in more funding in the future. This is where it's
crucial that you contact your elected officials & ask for the funding for such
infrastructure. Finally, I'm also seeking that BFW conduct another "lobby day"
sometime in the future, which could allow for us to advocate for such funding,
etc.
Aaron
________________________________
From: "[email protected]" <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, February 12, 2009 5:50:04 PM
Subject: [Bikies] BFW Agenda Item 2: Increased funding for bicycle and
pedestrian infrastructure
Anybody heard any news about how this is going?
I noticed bicycle projects got zilched out in the Governor's preliminary
stimulus request.
I noticed bicycle projects got zilched out in the first $300mil tranche
of Wisconsin's pre-approved transportation projects from the federal
stimulus package.
I don't see any news about stimulus funding on the BFW site.
I noticed that the local stimulus applications for TE funding on the
WisDOT site (due next Wednesday) specifically exclude projects that
already have any level of federal funding, which as far as I can tell,
is pretty much any "shovel ready" bicycle project that might be in the
pipeline.
With $150 million in State budget cuts looming, it looks like the only
safe jobs at the state level are the ones associated with building
highways.
---
The BF of Dubya:
If you ride a bike in Madison, we resent you!
_______________________________________________
Bikies mailing list
[email protected]
http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org_______________________________________________
Bikies mailing list
[email protected]
http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org
