Memo - Resolution on Transportation FundingDepartment of Administration
0 Memorandum
To:
City Council
From:
Jim Genellie
Date:
May 3, 2011
Subject:
Resolution on Transportation Funding
The Regional Council of Mayors is urging City Councils to adopt a resolution which would
urge the Minnesota Legislature to continue funding for current and future public
transportation projects.
Proposed cuts in state funding for regional transit would force significant reductions in
existing service and "destroy the capacity of this region to move forward with transit
expansion," Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin warned at a recent
meeting of the Regional Council of Mayors.
McLaughlin, chair of the Counties Transit Improvement Board (CTIB), said the House
transportation bill would zero out state general fund dollars for regional transit service,
• forcing sharp fare increases and service cuts. The Senate bill also includes significant
funding cuts, he said.
•
For a time, McLaughlin said, the House was proposing to take the revenue from the
counties' quarter -cent transit sales tax and use it to help backfill the proposed cuts in state
funding for transit operations. Those sales tax dollars were levied to expand the current
transit system, not fund current operations, he said.
Such legislative proposals would destroy the ability of the region to complete the Central
Corridor LRT line, move forward with the proposed Southwest Corridor LRT line and
undertake other transit improvements, McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin urged the mayors to help deliver these messages:
1. Don't stop the Central Corridor LRT line, which already is well under construction
and expected to receive a Full Funding Grant Agreement from the FTA by the end
of the month.
2. Don't destroy service for existing transit riders, 80 percent of whom are traveling to
work and to school.
3. Don't destroy the capacity of the region to plan further transit improvements and
compete for federal funding to help finance them.
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Regional
Council of
ayors
Regional Council of Mayors
Resolution on Transportation Funding
Whereas, the Regional Council of Mayors LRCM"), is composed of the mayors of
Minneapolis, St. Paul and approximately 45 municipalities in the developed and developing
suburbs. The collaborative partnership provides a non-partisan platform focused on building
action strategies to raise overall economic competitiveness, accelerate innovation and
improve the quality of life in the MSP region; and
Whereas, our present levels of congestion and our unsafe roads hinder our economic
prosperity, erode our quality of life, and complicate numerous aspects of living and doing
business in Minnesota; and
Whereas, one million additional people are expected to move to the MSP metropolitan region
in the next two decades, further exacerbating our already unacceptable traffic congestion;
and
Whereas, solving our region's transportation problem is a complex and long-term challenge
that will require various strategies; and
Whereas, Minnesota needs to adequately and strategically expand both its transit and road
systems with predictable, adequate, and long-term sources of funding; and
Whereas, transportation funding must prioritize public transit within a comprehensive, multi-
modal, interconnected transportation system that serves the 11 -county metro area; and that
our planned light rail and commuter rail lines, along with expanded bus service, both regular
route and BRT, must be expanded to support the population and businesses in our fast-
growing region; and
Whereas, courageous and visionary legislative leadership is vital to forging a sustainable,
long-term transportation plan for our state and region.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that as elected leaders representing cities in
Minnesota's fast-growing 11 -county metropolitan region, we hereby declare our belief that
transportation has become one of the most vexing problems facing our communities and
state. We call upon the leaders in the legislature to create a long-term solution to our
transportation needs and, in the short-term, in order to keep our metropolitan area economy
vital and flourishing, we call upon the legislature to exercise good judgment and provide
adequate funding for Metro Transit as well as all suburban transit providers, namely
Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA), SouthWest Transit, Plymouth Metrolink, Maple
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Regional
Council of
ayors
Regional Council of Mayors
Resolution on Transportation Funding
Grove Transit, Prior Lakes Laker Line, DARTS and Shakopee Transit, so as not to adversely
affect the ability of all of our transit providers, whether urban or suburban, to move workers,
students and the thousands of other residents who use those services on a daily basis to get
to their jobs, to school or otherwise engage in important economic activity that benefits the
region and the State of Minnesota; to not halt or otherwise defer or delay progress on transit
projects, including the Central Corridor and the Southwest LRT; to do nothing legislatively
that will impede planning for other rail and bus rapid transit projects presently underway; to
be mindful that adequately funding our existing transportation system and having the
foresight to continue the commitment to both plan and build out our future transit system is
critical to the well being of our state and we urge the legislature to provide the kind of
leadership and stewardship necessary to accomplish those goals.
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Na a of Mayor (Print)
Name of City
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