> I have no problem with light rail itself. It's the fact we are not the > deciding factor, that others are making the choices for us.
I agree that "we"--the metro residents at large--are not the deciding factors, and that's part of what I was trying to say with my opinion statistics posted a couple days ago (Vol 1 #2). What I'm saying is that we clearly want alternative options, but those handling the budget seem to be answering selectively to road construction industries and certain tax-paying demographics. > Second, they are making us pay for something we don't want, or use, and that > it is more costly than it's worth and can be done more economically. Definitely. That's a good reason why I think the Hiawatha Line jeapordizes the future of light rail in Minnesota. Did anyone catch MPR's Mid-morning today (Friday) around 10am? They had a state representative from Rochester who opposed public funding for transit, and Sen. Dean Johnson (D) Willmar, who pointed out that over 20% of Minnesotans don't have a driver's license. While some may not like using gas tax monies indirectly to divert funds into a Multimodal Transportation Fund, it makes sense. When we look at transportation from a short-term micro perspective (how am I getting to work today/tomorrow, how to solve immediate problems), we tend to use solutions that are readily in place, such as driving and demanding more lanes. But nearly everyone who looks at it from a macro perspective (long term aggregate problems) seems to arrive at the same conclusion: that we would all be better off if we moved towards more sustainable forms. This funding proposition-visiting the State House next week, I believe-gets the ball rolling so that these solutions may become more practical in the not-so-distant future. _______________________________________________ Twin Cities Metropolitan Issues Forum http://www.e-democracy.org/tcmetro Rules: Sign posts with real name. You may not post more than twice a day.
