For decades, the federal government would fund 90 percent of an freeway project and much less—if anything at all—of a subway, light rail or commuter train line. That changed the face of America, as highways were slashed through the heart of vital communities, breaking their spirit and hastening the exodus of people to far-flung suburbs. In the same period, hardly any federal or state money went toward expanding trains and other alternatives to the automobile. From the end of World War II to the opening of the Bay Area’s BART transit system in 1972, only a few miles of subway lines were added nationally, compared to tens of thousands of miles of interstates and other highways. That gross imbalance may well have affected the growth and character of your neighborhood.
Canada, on the other hand, spent far less federal money on highway projects, and you can see the happy results today. Fewer freeways cut through the core of Canadian cities (Vancouver has none at all in the city proper) and they’ve seen less inner city decline.
Luckily, transportation policies in the U.S. have improved greatly thanks to legislation introduced by the late U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-New York) and signed by former President George H.W. Bush. The 1991 Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA, commonly referred to as Ice-Tea) marked a major change in federal transportation policy. While providing billions to continue building and widening highways, ISTEA also set a precedent that communities could use a larger share of federal transportation dollars for transit, bicycle, pedestrian, safety and community enhancement projects.
This was just the opening that many communities had been waiting for, and America quickly bloomed with bike paths, walkways, light rail lines, transit improvements, and new ideas in helping people make the connection between one mode of transportation to another.
Community groups were often the instigators of the most innovative new ideas. ISTEA funded projects as varied as the 5-mile Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive Bike Trail in Idaho to the refurbishment of historic downtown Owensboro, Kentucky, to pedestrian improvements on the main street in Morristown, New Jersey. These are just a few of the thousands of innovative projects that have made a difference in communities from coast to coast. Look at the possibilities in your own community.
ISTEA’s emphasis on other modes of transportation proved to be a popular project and was expanded in 1998 and again in 2005. The most recent legislation breaks entirely new ground with a pilot program, championed by Congressman Jim Oberstar (D-Minnesota) to promote people’s switch from autos to bikes, walking and transit as their preferred means of getting around. Four communities-- Columbia, Missouri; Marin County, California; Sheboygan, Wisconsin; and Minneapolis, Minnesota—were awarded $25 million each to explore creative ways to lessen dependence on the automobile. They are testing out new ideas, which can later be applied everywhere. In addition, two hundred million dollars has been made available to help kids walk and bike to school.
The transportation bill is up for funding again this year, and sustainable community activists are gearing up to reduce money spent on building new highways and significantly increase projects to boost transit, biking, walking and livable communities. For more information see Transportation for America, a coalition of environmental and community groups: http://t4america.org
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