Minnesota hosts Reauthorization Listening Tour stop; Twin Cities' Central Corridor a livability showcase

Earlier this week, at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, we held another installment of our Surface Transportation Reauthorization Outreach Tour.

I was pleased to be joined by Rep. James Oberstar, a Minnesota Congressman who chairs the house Transportation Committee where this legislation will be debated. Also joining us to listen to a range of expert voices on transportation were Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Betty McCollum, Rep. Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, and St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman.

These outreach events ask participants to provide valuable input as we begin crafting a surface transportation reauthorization program that can best serve the needs of our citizens, their communities, and our nation.

For those who aren't familiar with this insider terminology, surface transportation is a collection of transportation alternatives that includes highways, railways, transitways, and waterways. Every few years, Congress establishes national policy on these transportation modes in what is called the reauthorization process.

Because it sets our transportation priorities for several years, this is not small potatoes. And that's why we want to hear from the experts.

Our priorities on this tour include:

• Safety
• Livable communities
• State of good repair
• Environmental sustainability
• Economic competitiveness

You'll hear more about this process and our Listening Tour stops in the coming months. So please stay tuned.

Now, one project that works to advance our livability and sustainability priorities is the Central Corridor. This is a 9.8 mile light rail transit line between the downtowns of the twin cities, Minneapolis and St. Paul.

It is the largest public works undertaking in Minnesota history. And I had the pleasure of touring it with officials from both St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Thanks to our recent decision to balance cost-effectiveness criteria with other transit criteria, we are able to help fund three additional stops on this line. These crucial stops are in underserved and lower income communities and will allow a lot of workers to get to their jobs without the burden of owning cars or trudging extra distances through the Minnesota snow.

It would have been ridiculous for these communities--who need public transit so badly--to have to watch a rail line to which they had no station access get built right through their neighborhoods.



About the Central Corridor and the three new stations, St. Paul City Council Member Melvin Carter (above) said:

"This is a victory for our community. We'll build our future here on this rail corridor."

That is exactly what planning around livability can mean to a community. And that is why we are restoring these criteria to the transit grant mix.

Comments

[Greg Cohen]

Thanks for the opportunity to comment. I'll keep this simple.

We need to raise the highway user fee and dedicate that money to road safety, freight corridors, congestion relief, and obsolete and deficient bridges.

The focus on poorly-defined "livability" is unnecessarily pitting highway mobility supporters against transit and bikepath supporters.

There is no reason why all modes can't have funds increased proportionately and substantially. But you need to start talking realistically about funding. Highway users are ready to pay more -- the subject needs to be on the table.

For ways to improve the highway program, you need to talk to highway users. I suggest visiting http://www.highways.org/pdfs/2009-reauth-final.pdf to get ideas.

Good luck!
Greg

[Michael E. Bailey]

This is great news that you are interested in going out into the community to get ideas from experts on transportation issues for the Reauthorization. I also have an idea for increasing and improving public input. I remember the Community Issues Forums the White House had in December where community members got together and had a forum on economic issues in the area they lived and sent the results back to the White House. Our People First Orange County Chapter did one at our December meeting. The Reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Act seems ideal for community forums. You can get ideas and information on transportation issues and what needs improving and what could be built on from community forums that may not be provided by expertpanals. Then put the information collected together to form a transportation program. People First chapters are made up of disabled persons and nearly all of us are unable to drive. Another piece of good news is that The Surface Transportation Extension Act S.1498 is out of Senate committee and is waiting a floor vote by the full Senate. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey