Comments on: Tell Congress: Don’t Waste Money on Highway Expansion http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/01/07/tell-congress-dont-waste-money-on-highway-expansion/ Covering the New York City Streets Renaissance Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:07:22 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 hourly 1 By: Todd Scott http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/01/07/tell-congress-dont-waste-money-on-highway-expansion/comment-page-1/#comment-61390 Todd Scott Wed, 07 Jan 2009 22:30:30 +0000 http://www.streetsblog.org/?p=5218#comment-61390 We've expressed this same concern in Metro Detroit, since we have two very large highway widening projects with approved FEISs. http://www.m-bike.org/blog/2008/12/31/the-potential-downside-to-the-economic-stimulus However, the good news from our MPO is widening projects are not likely to be "shovel-ready" since they involve land acquisition, which takes time. They will not stimulate the economy quick enough. I hope our MPO is right. Detroit has submitted mass transit projects. Our non-motorized projects have been submitted through numerous channels. We've expressed this same concern in Metro Detroit, since we have two very large highway widening projects with approved FEISs.
http://www.m-bike.org/blog/2008/12/31/the-potential-downside-to-the-economic-stimulus

However, the good news from our MPO is widening projects are not likely to be "shovel-ready" since they involve land acquisition, which takes time. They will not stimulate the economy quick enough. I hope our MPO is right.

Detroit has submitted mass transit projects. Our non-motorized projects have been submitted through numerous channels.

]]> By: Larry Littlefield http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/01/07/tell-congress-dont-waste-money-on-highway-expansion/comment-page-1/#comment-61383 Larry Littlefield Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:56:47 +0000 http://www.streetsblog.org/?p=5218#comment-61383 "The best state? Probably Massachusetts, which asked for more transit funding than road funding, absolutely no highway expansion money, and $18 million for bike and pedestrian projects." Doing penance for shifting all the transportation money in the state to the Big Dig for years, while sinking the MBTA in so much debt (like our MTA) that it is virtually going under. Those debts would have been front and center, if I had anything to say about it, if Bill Weld had been the Republican nominee for Governor of NY in 2006. I would have pointed out that he would be in no position to bankrupt our MTA, because Pataki had already done it. "The best state? Probably Massachusetts, which asked for more transit funding than road funding, absolutely no highway expansion money, and $18 million for bike and pedestrian projects."

Doing penance for shifting all the transportation money in the state to the Big Dig for years, while sinking the MBTA in so much debt (like our MTA) that it is virtually going under.

Those debts would have been front and center, if I had anything to say about it, if Bill Weld had been the Republican nominee for Governor of NY in 2006. I would have pointed out that he would be in no position to bankrupt our MTA, because Pataki had already done it.

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