Koch Money Seeps Into Milwaukee to Oppose Streetcar

http://streetsblog.net/2015/01/21/koch-money-seeps-into-milwaukee-to-oppose-streetcar/

"Two aldermen have been arguing, falsely, that if the the project was killed, the money could be used for other things like road repairs and schools."

 

Same old crap over and over.

Is there anything the Kochs won't try to ruin? Why the hell do they care about a streetcar?

Is there anything the Kochs won't try to ruin? Why the hell do they care about a streetcar?

 

Because public transportation represents social engineering whereas all these monolithic, anti-competitive, federally owned and funded highways are all symptomatic of the free market... Or something like that.

Here's something you may find interesting: http://buffalorising.com/2015/01/cars-finally-return-to-600-block-of-main/. For the first time since its opening 30 years ago, Buffalo's Metro Rail is now sharing a traffic lane--one in each direction--with cars in the 600 block of Main Street. The 500 block will soon follow, and plans call for the entirety of Main Street in downtown to eventually be returned to mixed traffic. As part of the project, the NFTA is rebuilding the trackbed in each of the blocks being converted and replacing the festival marketplace-style stations with structures more appropriate to the setting. It will be interesting to see how this project works out.

Here's something you may find interesting: http://buffalorising.com/2015/01/cars-finally-return-to-600-block-of-main/. For the first time since its opening 30 years ago, Buffalo's Metro Rail is now sharing a traffic lane--one in each direction--with cars in the 600 block of Main Street. The 500 block will soon follow, and plans call for the entirety of Main Street in downtown to eventually be returned to mixed traffic. As part of the project, the NFTA is rebuilding the trackbed in each of the blocks being converted and replacing the festival marketplace-style stations with structures more appropriate to the setting. It will be interesting to see how this project works out.

 

Thanks for the heads up.  The pedestrian mall was incredibly dead when I took photos on a weekday in 2009:

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,20046.msg420762.html#msg420762

The possible construction of a new Buffalo Bills stadium to the southeast edge of downtown also bears watching. It's possible that an extension of the light-rail line may be included, depending on the siting of the stadium. Prior to any discussion of moving the Bills, planning was underway for extending the light rail line a few hundred feet or a few blocks as an elevated line into the mid-levels of a new parking structure. This planning was being done as part of an alternatives analysis for an extension of Metro to Amherst.  http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/nfta-considering-its-options-for-expanding-service-to-amherst-20140928

 

Extending light-rail a short distance could be pursued independently of the Amherst extension to serve a stadium parking deck (http://wivb.com/2015/01/18/study-lists-four-potential-stadium-sites-for-the-buffalo-bills/) and better position the line for future extensions to the Southtowns or to turn NE toward Central Terminal and the Airport.

My Goodness!... A transit chief that's actually FOR extending his rail transit system.  What a novelty... well, at least here in bass-ackwards down Cleveland, at least, where the transit chief undermines his existing rail system and fights any talk of rail expansion.

 

Good for Buffalo.  NFTA Metro Rail is a strong LRT that's merited expansion years ago.  Let's hope they get it done.

Buffalo is also in a state that finally supports public transportation. So even in a no-growth metro like Buffalo's where the local tax support for transit isn't growing (like Cuyahoga County), Buffalo can turn to NYSDOT for additional capital and operating assistance. Cleveland doesn't have access to that from Ohio.

I always wondered if they decontaminate cars. I guess they don't.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2941720/E-coli-dysentery-meningitis-BUBONIC-PLAGUE-NYC-subway-DNA-tests-scientist-says-won-t-die-lick-one-metal-poles.html

Milwaukee council okays streetcar plan there:

 

http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/milwaukee-council-set-to-vote-on-approve-streecar-plan-b99441994z1-291390051.html

 

I know opponents had been gathering signatures for some sort of ballot issue, but not sure whatever became of that. 

Milwaukee council okays streetcar plan there:

 

http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/milwaukee-council-set-to-vote-on-approve-streecar-plan-b99441994z1-291390051.html

 

I know opponents had been gathering signatures for some sort of ballot issue, but not sure whatever became of that. 

 

... or the Koch Bros. $$$$ backing them.

Officials voice big ambitions for Detroit's M-1 Rail system, regional transit

By The Center for Michigan | Bridge Magazine By The Center for Michigan | Bridge Magazine

on February 24, 2015 at 10:30 AM, updated February 24, 2015 at 10:33 AM

 

By Matt Harding

 

From his new Midtown apartment at Woodward Avenue and Kirby Street, Michael Ford can look out and see construction on the M-1 Rail system. The new commuter rail line linking downtown Detroit to Midtown won't be done until late 2016, but Ford is already focusing on what's next.

 

Ford, the leader of the new Regional Transit Authority, envisions a future along Woodward with "robust activity, more storefronts and businesses, heavy pedestrian activity and substantial mobility options that are frequent, comfortable and always on time."

 

He has a lot of work to do. And he has 21 months to do it.

 

The future of public transportation in metro Detroit is at a critical moment. Ford is racing to build the foundation of a better transit system in Metro Detroit, while also building enthusiasm for an anticipated millage vote on the November, 2016 ballot for residents of Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw counties.

 

MORE:

http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2015/02/big_ambitions_for_detroits_m-1.html

Sounds like DC streetcar might not open at all in this article? How is that possible? Anyone have any insight into this?

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-streetcar-project-could-be-abandoned/2015/03/06/3b1e712a-c424-11e4-9271-610273846239_story.html

An nbc affiliate article about this has 0 comments. The WP article is only a few paragraphs and has just 16 comments.

 

In Cincinnati, heads would be exploding!!!

 

 

Ugh.  DC is such a mess.  I really don't understand how they keep the electricity running.  Remember that they bought these cars a decade ago for the Anacostia Line before they abandoned that project too. 

Another DC streetcar article:

 

"Transportation chief asks if troubled District streetcar system can be saved"

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/transportation-chief-asks-if-troubled-district-streetcar-system-can-be-saved/2015/03/08/9738f28e-c125-11e4-ad5c-3b8ce89f1b89_story.html

Tucson's streetcar exceeds ridership expectations

15 hours ago  •  By Patrick McNamara

 

After seven months in operation, Tucson’s Sun Link streetcar appears to have exceeded ridership estimates.

 

Streetcar ridership has been averaging more than 4,000 people each weekday, the Tucson Department of Transportation’s Jeremy Papuga told the Pima Association of Government Management Committee last week.

 

The city had estimated 3,600 weekday riders.

 

On weekends with large downtown area events, Papuga said the streetcar averages 8,000 daily riders.

 

MORE:

http://tucson.com/news/business/tucson-s-streetcar-exceeds-ridership-expectations/article_a5562837-57a6-5890-8fab-eeb8ae0b219b.html

Actually a heavy rail project, but whatever.....

 

RAIL Magazine ‏@RAILMag  2m2 minutes ago

Atlanta's @MARTASERVICE readies for rail expansion project, seeks public comment | @rail_pro_mag  – http://www.progressiverailroading.com/passenger_rail/news/MARTA-readies-for-rail-expansion-project-seeks-public-comment--44018 … #ATL #MARTA #GA

Purple Line backers protest after Gov Hogan puts rail line on ice and flies to Vegas

 

http://www.actfortransit.org/archives/press/2015May18RelHoganVegasPurpleLine.html

Purple Line backers protest after Gov Hogan puts rail line on ice and flies to Vegas

 

http://www.actfortransit.org/archives/press/2015May18RelHoganVegasPurpleLine.html

 

I notice the article is silent about Hogan's plans for Baltimore's crosstown Red Line, an LRT that, unlike Baltimore's existing slow-moving (streetcar-based) North-South LRT, subway-tunnels through downtown.  I know Hogan has recently stated he's waiting for his Transportation Secretary's recommendations before making any decision about the Red Line.  However, most MD political observers say that rejecting or substantially reducing the Red Line could be political suicide for Republican Hogan in Blue State Maryland where metro Baltimore is the biggest game in town, ... er, the state.

 

Not to say suburban D.C. isn't important as well, but given the massiveness of the existing D.C. Metro rail system and its extension well into the D.C. burbs, the proposed Purple Line LRT, though important, is far more expendable than the Red Line in Baltimore's more underdeveloped transit network.

Baltimore's subway was built to identical specs as the Washington Metro because originally many more lines were planned.  Those were scaled back to the nascent light rail mode in the late 70s as funds from the UMTA 1970 were reduced by inflation and then not renewed under Reagan (or Bush or Clinton or Bush or Obama).  Baltimore city also paid virtually nothing into construction of that subway line because the state had to pay for the suburban sections of the Washington Metro and so agreed to pay a similar amount to Baltimore's rail system.  So now Maryland contributes almost the highest if not the highest to local transit of any state in the United States. 

 

 

Subway under Las Vegas strip among proposals to reduce gridlock

Posted on May 28, 2015

 

LAS VEGAS — A light-rail subway system beneath Las Vegas Boulevard is among the ambitious recommendations unveiled in the business plans of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC), Casino City Times reported..

 

Other projects included in the draft of the Transportation Investment Business Plan include a double-deck tunnel under McCarran International Airport to connect Russell Road east and west of the airport and possibly provide a light-rail link to the Strip line, the report said.

 

MORE:

http://www.metro-magazine.com/management-operations/news/294361/subway-under-las-vegas-strip-among-proposals-to-reduce-gridlock?ref=Express-Thursday-NEW-20150528&utm_campaign=Express-Thursday-NEW-20150528&utm_source=Email&utm_medium=Enewsletter

NOTE: More on Vegas' LRT subway proposal, plus map, photo

 

Posted May 27, 2015 - 11:00amUpdated May 27, 2015 - 3:25pm

Will a subway eventually run beneath the Las Vegas Strip?

 

By RICHARD N. VELOTTA

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

A light-rail subway system beneath Las Vegas Boulevard is among the ambitious recommendations that have emerged from a transportation plan that has taken more than two years to complete.

 

Another big-ticket project is a double-deck tunnel under McCarran International Airport to connect Russell Road east and west of the airport and possibly provide a light-rail link to the Strip line.

 

The Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada unveiled a draft of its 15-point Transportation Investment Business Plan on Wednesday, opening the door to debate about how Southern Nevada can best prepare to address gridlock in the resort corridor.

 

“Without new investments, the roadways, pedestrian facilities and transit system will be overwhelmed, the quality of the visitor experience degraded and the core area’s economic growth impeded,” the draft plan states in its introduction.

 

The Transportation Commission funded consultants who were guided by a committee of stakeholders representing government entities and private businesses that depend on the tourism economy and moving visitors through the valley.

 

The recommendations emerged after nearly 2½ years of meetings by the committee appointed by Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and CEO Rossi Ralenkotter that included representatives of virtually every entity that has anything to do with transportation.

 

 

http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/will-subway-eventually-run-beneath-the-las-vegas-strip

^perhaps the most important paragraphs in the article... I wish Cleveland officials would think this way.

 

No cost estimates were provided in the initial report, but Tina Quigley, general manager of the Regional Transportation Commission, said the Strip light-rail project alone would cost billions of dollars.

 

But committee members noted that in cities with new transportation systems, there would be a significant return on investment in economic development as a result of the system.

 

For example, a light-rail system in metropolitan Phoenix that was built for about $1 billion was expected to generate $3 billion in economic development measured in construction, new jobs, retail sales and tax revenue. Instead, over five years Phoenix had seen an economic development return on investment of $7 billion.

The evolution of the Las Vegas strip is one of the most interesting development stories in the United States.  The strip is where it is because it is the road that leads in the direction of Los Angeles, which is where most Las Vegas patronage has always come from.  It first crept toward LA from downtown LV, but then lept to the airport in the 1980s and has been working its way back toward DT Las Vegas.  There has also been a lot of development since 2000 east of the strip even though there is a lot of vacant property on the strip.  The subway will firmly entrench the supremacy of the strip in a way that the clumsy monorail can't.  It will also enable the strip casinos to expand without requiring such gigantic staff parking garages. 

 

And what's ideal about a subway for the strip is that...it's a strip.  There aren't many places in the United States where the concentrated activity of a metro region is aligned so neatly in a straight line. 

 

 

^I thought the monorail was LV's rapid transit.  Why isn't it working out that way?  Why is it clumsy?  There is a ton invested in it although (too lazy to look up) I believe the casinos largely footed the bill, no?

^As someone who takes the Las Vegas Monorail sometimes when I work there, it is poorly-executed. Stations are hard to find (even hidden sometimes) and it runs behind the casinos a good distance east of the strip. Unless it's a major trade show, not many people ride it. A light rail subway is an outstanding idea in Vegas. The strip is also wide enough that it could run in a median, but given vehicular traffic, I can see why that's not ideal.

The monorail as it exists now is an expansion of a "novelty" monorail that ran between the back of two casinos.  I'm not sure how big that was but it was definitely not longer than a mile.  So they made the fateful decision to extend that rather than to start from scratch out above the strips's median.  It was supposed to run all the way downtown but there was some sort of snafu back around 2004 that caused the federal government to cancel its grant.  They have since been trying to extend it to the airport, but the taxi lobby no doubt has been successful in blocking it.  The taxi lobby in Las Vegas is incredibly powerful -- Nevada is the only state where Uber is completely banned. So they actually got a *state law* passed there, not a local ordinance. 

St. Louis progress! An oft-overlooked project..

 

Loop Trolley ‏@LoopTrolley  11m11 minutes ago

Work is progressing on the Loop Trolley bridge over Metro at DeBaliviere. Construction Update http://bit.ly/1MJEVRp

Detroit streetcar a study in public-private transportation funding

By JANET MOORE Star Tribune  JUNE 15, 2015 — 6:08PM

 

Earlier this month, I visited Detroit and noticed lots of construction along Woodward Avenue, a thoroughfare stretching north from downtown.

 

Portions of the street were torn up to make way for the M-1 Rail, a 3.3-mile streetcar line. The $140 million project is funded largely by private businesses and philanthropic organizations, with help from federal, state and city sources.

 

This public-private partnership is different from the way transit projects have been funded historically — usually with public funds and taxes.

 

MORE:

http://www.startribune.com/detroit-streetcar-a-study-in-public-private-transportation-funding/307461671/

St. Louis progress! An oft-overlooked project..

 

Loop Trolley ‏@LoopTrolley  11m11 minutes ago

Work is progressing on the Loop Trolley bridge over Metro at DeBaliviere. Construction Update http://bit.ly/1MJEVRp

 

St. Louis is very similar to Cleveland in terms of size, age (they're a little older), industrial character, demographics and severe population loss, and yet they continue to make progress and expand rail after having bypassed Cleveland in track mileage some time ago.

 

What's our excuse?

The Clayton extension to the St. Louis Metrolink system opened about five years ago and is very, very nice.  It has a subway section with 2 or 3 subway stations about 7-8 miles from DT St. Louis.  This extension is nicer than the original Metrolink line. 

Could Better Transportation Planning Have Saved Baltimore’s Red Line?

 

BY SANDY SMITH | JUNE 30, 2015

 

Right now, civic and business leaders in Baltimore are seeing red.

 

Just about everyone there, including Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, the Greater Baltimore Committee and the editorial board of the Baltimore Sun is furious at Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan for pulling the plug on the Red Line, a 14.1-mile, $2.9 billion east-west light-rail line that has been in the works since 2002.

 

All of the people and groups listed above blasted the Governor for throwing away $900 million in federal funds that were certain to go to the project along with tens of millions the state has already spent on planning the line. They also criticized him for taking off the table a transit route that would have brought economic development, jobs and improved job access to impoverished West Baltimore.

 

http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/hogan-maryland-purple-line-no-red-line-baltimore

Rural and suburban interests who elected Gov. Hogan tell Baltimore: "DROP DEAD!"

 

Why has Maryland’s governor killed off Baltimore's Red Line, a fully designed surface-subway light rail line? http://t.co/Oyk8HN1YU9

 

EDIT: Baltimore isn't giving up so easily....

 

NARP ‏@narprail  15s15 seconds ago

.@WYPR: #Baltimore Officials Seek To Revive Red Line. We support transit like light #rail http://ow.ly/i/bFtC2

Gov. Hogan's Maryland road widening will be more costly than the transit it replaces | @ggwash – http://t.co/Lb7t6USIYi

1.5 mile Charlotte streetcar opens tomorrow. http://t.co/Bfv41dL6sf

Rural and suburban interests who elected Gov. Hogan tell Baltimore: "DROP DEAD!"

 

Why has Maryland’s governor killed off Baltimore's Red Line, a fully designed surface-subway light rail line? http://t.co/Oyk8HN1YU9

 

EDIT: Baltimore isn't giving up so easily....

 

NARP ‏@narprail  15s15 seconds ago

.@WYPR: #Baltimore Officials Seek To Revive Red Line. We support transit like light #rail http://ow.ly/i/bFtC2

 

The Klaus Philipsen article is outstanding... It made me think, and I hate thinking this way: could possibly Baltimore's failure to move forward with it's Red Line possibly boost, in any way, Cleveland's chances to extend our Red Line to Euclid, as suddenly about about $900M in federal money, if I'm accurate, suddenly goes back into the hopper.  I would hate gaining at another cool city's expense but, hey, if Baltimore voters hadn't been snookered by Hogan's phony pro-city talk, Maryland and Baltimore would have elected a pro-transit Dem and the Red Line would be about to break ground about now. 

 

Of course, my thoughts are probably crazy, because I sometimes believe that Joe Calabrese, our vaunted transit chief, is every bit as conservative as Hogan and that having him run RTA is like having the fox guard the hen house.  Of course, all those feelings would disappear if he got the Red Line extended to Euclid... but I'm not holding my breath.

Only if someone in Cleveland or Ohio is willing to come up with the other half of a 50/50 match.

I love LA (rail progress).....

 

7/15/2015   

L.A. Metro begins tunnel excavation for Crenshaw/LAX line, marks 25 years of Blue Line service

 

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) late last week began tunnel excavation and decking work for the Crenshaw/LAX light-rail project.

 

Crews started laying the underground trench for the project's alignment between Florence Avenue and Slauson Avenue, and soon will begin the potholing process, Metro officials said in a press release.

 

A "K-rail" traffic barrier will be installed to create a working space on the median of Crenshaw Boulevard between 60th Street and 58th Place.

 

The $2 billion, 8.5-mile Crenshaw/LAX Transit Project will connect the Expo Line and the Metro Green line, and will have eight stations. The venture is funded by Measure R, a half-cent sales tax approved by Los Angeles County voters in 2008.

 

MORE:

http://www.progressiverailroading.com/passenger_rail/article/LA-Metro-begins-tunnel-excavation-for-CrenshawLAX-line-marks-25-years-of-Blue-Line-service--45104?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

7/17/2015

Washington governor inks $16 billion state transportation package

 

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Wednesday signed a bipartisan transportation investment package to address key safety, maintenance and congestion issues across the state.

 

The 16-year, $16 billion "Connecting Washington" package includes $1.3 billion for non-highway projects, such as those involving rail, transit and bike paths. It also authorizes Sound Transit to seek voter approval for $15 billion to extend the Seattle-area light-rail system.

 

Other investments include freight-rail improvements, as well as alternative rule tax credits and commute trip reduction programs.

 

MORE:

http://www.progressiverailroading.com/financials/article/Washington-governor-inks-16-billion-state-transportation-package--45126?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Phoenix 'peer' cities guide Prop.104 light-rail expansion

 

Brenna Goth, The Republic | azcentral.com 11:52 a.m. MST August 14, 2015

 

Navigate San Diego without a car and a $2.50 trolley ride will take you from downtown to a Chargers game, Old Town or the U.S.-Mexico border.

 

A few more dollars in Dallas buys a day pass for 90 miles of rail with stations in eight cities. A ticket in Houston gets you to the Museum District while a Sacramento line runs to the California State Capitol.

 

Robust light-rail systems in these car-dependent cities all started with a vision and a vote — and have since required more of each. Taxpayers took a chance funding infrastructure sold by region leaders as a way to redefine transit in sprawling metro areas and have for years supported systems that still are expanding.

 

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2015/08/13/phoenix-peer-cities-guide-prop-light-rail-expansion/31639307/

 

 

 

Who new Dallas and Denver were alike in every way.

A big reason Phoenix light #rail tax passed: It gives local $$ certainty vs state/federal funding uncertainties. A lesson for Ohio cities?

 

 

Updated Aug 25, 2015 - 11:14 pm

Unofficial results: Proposition 104 wins at the polls

SHARE STORY BY KTAR.COM | August 25, 2015 @ 8:39 pm

 

PHOENIX — Hot topic Proposition 104 appeared to pass at the polls as of 11:00 p.m.

 

Unofficial results showed the comprehensive transportation plan passing with 54.61 percent of the votes. No votes were at 45.39 percent.

 

As one of the most talked about propositions on the ballot this election, it would create .07 percent tax for the next 35 years to pay for the $31 billion plan that would add 42 miles to the light rail system in Phoenix.

 

“Tonight, the total transit network in metro Phoenix is becoming more of a reality,” said Valley Metro CEO Steve Banta in a statement. “With the passage of Phoenix’s Proposition 104, we are creating mobility options for current and future residents and business interest in our community. The uncertainty in Congress will not affect Phoenix’s bright and bold transit future.”

 

MORE:

http://ktar.com/2015/08/25/unofficial-results-proposition-104-wins-at-the-polls/

Turns out the tax pays for lots of stuff, including streets and public safety.....

 

How Phoenix would spend $31.7 billion on transportation

Brenna Goth, The Republic | azcentral.com 5:39 p.m. MST March 10, 2015

 

A $31.7 billion, 35-year Phoenix transportation plan approved by the City Council last week hinges on voters passing a sales-tax increase that could go to the ballot as soon as August.

 

Cost

 

The total plan would cost $31.7 billion, according to the city's Public Transit Department. If approved, the plan would last for 35 years with the tax running from 2016 through 2050.

 

Revenue from the tax would fund only a portion of the overall plan.

 

The tax itself would provide $17.3 billion. The city's current transit tax, passed by voters in 2000, would raise $9.9 billion of that — if it didn't expire in 2020 as scheduled.

 

Voting to increase the rate to the proposed 0.7 percent would provide the extra $7.4 billion. The rate would change in January 2016 and the new tax, if passed, would replace the existing one.

 

...Transit fares are the next biggest source of funding at $5.1 billion. Most of the remaining funding would come from the Federal Transit Administration and regional and bond funds.

 

Of the revenue raised by the tax increase, half would go to bus initiatives, 33 percent would go to street improvements and 17 percent to light rail.

 

About $2.9 billion from the plan would go to debt service and an operating reserve. The rest would go to maintaining and improving city transportation in three areas.

 

Light rail and high-capacity transit: $8.9 billion

 

Nearly $2.2 billion of the overall plan would pay for maintaining the city's current light-rail service for 35 years.

 

Another $6.7 billion would be used for new light-rail lines or other high-capacity transit. The plan envisions 42 new miles of light rail.

 

Bus and bus rapid transit: $17.5 billion

 

Nearly $11.8 billion would be used to maintain current bus services. About $2.9 billion would increase bus hours and frequency while another roughly $1.9 billion would pay for new routes and extending existing routes.

 

Streets: $2.4 billion

 

City streets would receive $2.4 billion in funding through the plan. It's a significant boost, according to leaders with the city's Street Transportation Department, because Phoenix's current transit tax provides minimal funding for street-related improvements.

 

Major street projects such as roads and bridges would receive $280 million

 

Other plans include 1,150 miles of new bike lanes, 170 miles of new sidewalks and more than 750 miles of new asphalt on the city's arterial streets.

 

The city also would install 2,000 new streetlights.

 

Public safety

 

The City Council voted to annually shift $16 million of Phoenix's general-fund public-transit dollars to the Police Department to hire new officers for the understaffed force if the tax passes. An initial 125 officers could be hired between August 2015 and May 2016, according to a report given to the council.

 

MORE:

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2015/03/10/phoenix-spend-billion-transportation/24733589/

In car-centric Texas, cities reap economic boon from light rail

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/car-centric-texas-cities-reap-economic-boon-light-rail/

Sounds like the highway contractors got to him. They'd rather have the state sponsor paved busways that are less popular than tracks that they don't build and are more popular/lifestyle-altering. This is what monopolies do to hold on to their power.

 

Grtr Grtr Washington ‏@ggwash  28m28 minutes ago

Governor Hogan will push some better busways for Baltimore instead of the Red Line:

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/maryland-governor-to-make-transportation-announcement/35968412

^ At least their Republican governor is actually talking about public transit

Sounds like National City Lines circa 2015...

 

... Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, who is also the chairman of the Baltimore Metropolitan Council, called Hogan's plan "window dressing."

^ At least their Republican governor is actually talking about public transit

 

Hogan only doing this as a defense posture following wide Baltimore-area condemnation after scuttling 10 years, and $200M+ in planning and spending for the Red Line LRT subway/surface plan that had won federal approval.  Trust me, if John Kasich was Maryland guv, he'd have done the same thing.  Like most Republican govs these days, Big John has a major transit kill on his mantlepiece: the 3-C's Amtrak rail plan that had won federal approval (money which is now funding Cali's very-worthy HSR development.  These Republicans are absolutely horrible on urban and transit initiatives... I'll give Hogan this much: it took some serious gonads to punk a major transit initiative like the Red Line in Baltimore which is THE metropolitan city in a considerably state smaller-than-Ohio ... unlike in Ohio where Cleveland is only one of 3 major state metro areas and is in the far northern corner and generally irrelevant to downstaters like Kasich.