BALTIMORE REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP Newsletter
Land Use and Transportation Issues Around the Region
November 21, 2003
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Contents:
*State Transportation Funding Debate Shaping Up
*Virginians Choosing to Give Up Their Cars
*Bicycle Sales Up, But Fewer Children Use Them
*Wisconsin Study Finds 3 to 1 Return from Transit
*Washington Post Runs Series on Traffic Congestion
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STATE TRANSPORTATION FUNDING DEBATE SHAPING UP
As the opening of the 2004 Maryland General Assembly approaches in
January, the outlines of a debate over a possible increase in
transportation funding are taking shape. Some legislators and the
Maryland Chamber of Commerce are saying they will only support a
transportation revenue increase if it all goes to road construction.
But others, joined by business groups like the Greater Baltimore
Committee and the Greater Washington Board of trade, are calling for a
measure that funds transit equitably. Baltimore and Washington-area
transit advocates are mobilizing in opposition to any revenue increase
measure that does not meet currently unfunded transit needs, including
maintaining current farebox recovery requirements and moving the
Baltimore Region Rail System Plan and the DC-area Purple Line into
construction in the coming 2-5 years.
Anyone interested in joining this pro-transit effort is encouraged to
contact Irene Lin, Baltimore Regional Partnership, at
irene@balto-region-partners.org
or 410-539-1369 x228.
Nov. 9 Sun article on funding debate:
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.transportation09nov09,0,3881947.story?coll=bal-local-headlines
Nov. 11 Sun article on business groups weighing in:
http://www.sunspot.net/news/traffic/bal-md.hellman11nov11,0,4357711.story?coll=bal-traffic-headlines
Towson Times article on unfunded projects and debate:
http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?pnpID=659&NewsID=506458&CategoryID=1840&show=localnews&om=1
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VIRGINIANS CHOOSING TO GIVE UP THEIR CARS
Nearly 12% of Arlington County households in Virginia do not own a car,
the highest rate in the region among major jurisdictions outside the
District of Columbia. In the county's increasingly urban Metro
corridors, the proportion is even higher -- approaching 1 in 5,
according to a study to be published next month in the book "The New
Transit Town," a broader look at similar communities that, like
Arlington, have focused much of their development along transportation
corridors. County officials have used other incentives to try and
promote and carless lifestyle. In nearly a dozen site plans approved
this year, developers have been encouraged to reduce condominium sales
prices or rent to residents who won't need a parking space, a county
official told the Washington Post. And the county manager is set to
embark on a $250,000 program that subsidizes Metro fares for residents
of an apartment complex near Clarendon if they don't have cars or limit
auto ownership to one vehicle.
See article in the Washington Post for more info:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49785-2003Nov16.html
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BICYCLE SALES UP, BUT FEWER CHILDREN USE THEM
Though bicycle sales may be increasing, thanks to cheap imports, bike
riding has been declining according to an annual survey by the National
Sporting Goods Association. The organization surveys 10,000 households
annually on biking participation among people ages 7 to 17. It found
that about 20.4 million children in the United States rode a bicycle six
or more times a year in 1991, and 16.8 million did so last year.
Experts blame suburban sprawl, concerns over safety and bike-unfriendly
neighborhoods as the reasons behind the decline.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49689-2003Nov16.html
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WISCONSIN STUDY FINDS 3 TO 1 RETURN FROM TRANSIT
An independent analysis conducted by HLB Decision Economics, an
international consulting organization, found that Wisconsin public
transit services is a wise investment that generates substantial
economic returns by connecting millions of travelers to jobs, schools,
health care, tourist sites and other destinations. The study looked at
public transit services in six Wisconsin communities and concludes that
every dollar invested in public transit in the state generates over $3
in economic returns. The study looked at bus services along with
shared-ride taxi services in River Falls and Neillsville. A previous
study, Dollars and Sense: The Economic Case for Public Transportation in
America, had found a net economic return on public expenditures for
public transportation was 4 or 5 to 1, while the hidden subsidies for
motor vehicle use are in the hundreds of billions of dollars annually.
For more information on the Wisconsin study, see:
http://www.lwm-info.org/publications/magazine/magarticle1.html
For the Dollars and Sense study, see:
http://www.ctaa.org/pubs/dollars/
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WASHINGTON POST RUNS SERIES ON TRAFFIC CONGESTION
The Washington Post is running a series on relatively low-cost measures
that can be implemented in the near term to help alleviate traffic
congestion. The suggestions include inexpensive traffic-clearing
measures, small changes to suburban neighborhoods to facilitate walking
and biking, and financial incentives to take transit. One article also
discusses the intersection of East-West Highway and Connecticut Avenue
in Montgomery County, discussing a second left-hand turn lane as a
short-term measure and noting construction of an east-west rail transit
line from Bethesda to Silver Spring as a longer-term solution. The
Washington Post has been hosting online discussions and is soliciting
reader input.
To read the series:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/metro/specials/transportation/series/
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ABOUT THE BALTIMORE REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP AND NEWSLETTER
The Baltimore Regional Partnership is an
alliance of five civic,
environmental, and anti-sprawl groups:1000 Friends of Maryland
(www.friendsofmd.org), Baltimore Urban
League (www.bul.org), Chesapeake
Bay Foundation ( www.savethebay.cbf.org),
Citizens Planning and Housing
Association (www.CPHARallyForTheRegion.org),
and Environmental Defense
(www.environmentaldefense.org).
This newsletter explores current issues, recent and upcoming events, and
ongoing deliberations that affect the region's quality of life through
transportation, economic development, and land use policy and planning.
We hope to link citizens in the region who are working to fight sprawl,
promote clean and efficient transportation, protect valuable farm and
forest lands, and revitalize urban areas, older suburbs, and historic
towns. You can view past issues at
http://www.balto-region-partners.org/news.htm.
Has this newsletter been forwarded to you, and you would like to receive
it yourself? Go to
http://www.balto-region-partners.org/news.htm to sign up.
Send us information, too. Let us know about your
work on land use and
transportation decisions that are affecting the Baltimore region. Email
information to Irene Lin at irene@balto-region-partners.org.
Visit the
Baltimore Regional Partnership website at
http://www.balto-region-partners.org.
