May

19

Public hearing on MoDOT funding

May 19, 2009 | 3 Comments

Tonight Kansas Citians have a rare opportunity to talk to the people working future funding for MoDOT.  So far they are ignoring urban issues like transit, walking, bicycling, etc. – so this a good time to let them know what’s on the minds of the citizens of the state’s largest city.

Let’s Go KC: Tonight – Help Fix MoDOT

Categories: Transportation


Comments

3 Comments so far

  1. Ranj Niere on May 21, 2009 2:13 pm

    It was like watching the French try to fund the Maginot line with the assurance that Germany will never again successfully invade France.

    MoDOT is saddled with an un-administratable number of redundant state roads. Cut them loose to the counties and municipalities.

    The level of service for motorists on most of these roads is too high for their usage in many cases while almost no level of service exists for lower impact transportation.

    The transportation alliance seems to be making the point that the roads must be bailed out with new funding authority. That would only return the Dept of Transportation to a Dept. of Highways.

    By giving the control of state highways back to counties, the roads would be slower, less well kempt, and indeed might return to simple tar macadam and gravel in places. But right now MoDOT is a partner in encouraging sprawl.

    MoDOT and the transportation seems unwilling to consider other factors than simply inflating the current paradigm. Cars in 2020 will not be as numerous, or have the same range per recharging/refueling. Semi traffic will be have a transportation modeshare perhaps a fourth its current 80% level.

    Missouri will suffer at a greater level than it’s neighbors because we are so backward in our vision of transportation, instead spending big money to keep the LoS at 65mph out to the land of the mini mansion.

    Then, add tolls on all remaining MoDOT highways.

    MIssouri needs a simple electric rail inter urban system to move people cheaply between all major Missouri and neighboring metropolae. It needs to use the existing interstate and or federal highway rights of way. It would not even have to be a super high speed system, 90mph would be more than good.

    Ideally it should have the ability to add cars PRN to hold passengers, cargo, and even light electric cars (neighborhood EVs) could be ferried from city to city. This is the way we transition away from a paradigm that is now clearly unsustainable to one that is lean and clean.

    Ranj Niere

  2. gary fox on May 21, 2009 4:45 pm

    The missouri department of transportation has locked itself into a vision of the future that only seems to include maintaining roads statewide at the expense of all other forms of transportation and goods movement other than the car. And yet at the meeting recently we find out that 80 percent of traffic runs on only 20 percent of the roads. And that Amtrac only recoups 28 percent of its operating costs. Well as far as I know at this point roads in Missouri are a money sink and generate zero percent of their operating cost. Perhaps we need a paradigm shift and education about the true costs of basing all transport on the internal combustion engine

  3. webshabab on May 23, 2009 9:08 pm

    hmmmm
    it is not easy to know what’s on the minds of the citizens of the state’s largest city.

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Speak your mind