Yesterday’s O had a brief article on the workshop held on Tuesday.
The article focused quite a bit on the trail aspect, which is important (I looked at a bike map to see how I might get to the workshop by bike or a bike/bus combo, and concluded you can’t get there!).
But my favorite quote came from Lake Oswego Mayor Judie Hammerstad:
“The federal process we’re involved in says you’re supposed to look at everything before you make any recommendation, so I’m not supposed to say that streetcars are the answer,” Mayor Judie Hammerstad said. “But from what I know today, streetcars are the answer.”
2 responses to “Reporting on Willamette Shoreline Transit Workshop”
As said in the 80’s.
Duh. :)
Can’t the feds just release the funds and let teh states have theirs back? It should, would be more direct and less confusing allowing places like Portland to get things done a lot faster. It would also not be held over the heads of states to force them into compliance with Federal Laws. Bribery is never a good thing, even when done from the Federal to State Governments.
Really, I think the best idea is to keep money local and not filter it thru the feds. People think of it as “free” money and as a result it gets spent on things that may have had a better and/or cheaper alternative or should not have been built (“pork”).
As for the quote, I think there are a decent amount of projects that require an impact study/alt. selection when the parties already have a preferred solution in their minds.