3 ms·

35W is a great example (I live in the Twin Cities and was only a mile or two from the bridge when it collapsed). Our Republican Governor at the time (Pawlenty)

by knz 10y ago

35W is a great example (I live in the Twin Cities and was only a mile or two from the bridge when it collapsed). Our Republican Governor at the time (Pawlenty) had aspirations for Washington so signed a "No New Taxes" pledge primarily to appease rural Minnesotans (he also promised to "reprioritize" spending to benefit rural areas). It was a great example of how bridges that were known to urgently need repairs were neglected. After Dayton (take a guess which party) was elected the State raised taxes and has rebuilt many bridges. The Twin Cities also has some other good examples - Republicans actively fight against metro transit projects (both light rail lines, the proposed SW Light Rail, BRT lines in place of LRT for at least 3 other corridors, and even regular city buses) but proudly tell their rural/exurban constituents about "successes" like replacing the Stillwater lift bridge (an old 2 lane bridge) with a massive four lane bridge very similar to the I-90 bridge just south of the area. How do you justify $500M for a bridge that benefits ~ 10,000 rural commuters/rural industry but ignore the daily congestion that tens of thousands of commuters face (coming in from Woodbury, Oakdale, Lake Elmo, Hudson etc). The gateway corridor had a similar price tag to the Stillwater bridge but became a partisan issue. It doesn't have to be an either or situation - we could fund both but it gets turned into a partisan issue by Republicans in the name of "wasteful spending by urban liberals". Democrats don't oppose rural bridges or highways but many Republicans actively oppose public transport on principle.

protomyth 10y ago
I was living in Twin City at the time also, and the loss of the T-Mobile tower made finding loved ones a bit difficult. Your history of the metro light rail is a bit off. The rail was pushed by Gov. Jesse Ventura (who the Republicans and Democrats would surely not claim). It was opposed by Pawlenty, but he relented on a smaller line to get the federal money. The state government under Pawlenty funded in via a bonding bill for $37.5 million. That didn't pay for it though. It took almost $100 million from the state and money from various other regional players with over $150 more million from the feds. It has not met its promised ridership goals, and it will never relieve congestion. All of this money could have gone to fixing the roads instead of funding a train that kills people because of a bad route in Minneapolis that once was a turn. Never mind the whole problem with the U. Check the stats on transportation to see how important those bridges are to business as commuter numbers are not the whole issue. Those daily congestion issues can be blamed on not wanting to expand the highways. The long proposed 294 and 894 would have done more than then the light rail.
- knz 10y ago
  I was referring to the new LRT corridors.The Hiawatha line was built before I came to MN. You are absolutely correct that metro funding via Met Council made up much of the cost. The most recent LRT line hit its ridership goals within one year (2014 instead of 2030 - https://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/09/19/green-line-ridership https://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/09/19/green-line-ridershi...). The Hiawatha line is also doing well - exceeding 2020 goals in 2016. People die on 94/694/494 all the time as well unfortunately. I'm not familiar with 294 and 894, will definitely read up on them. Thanks for the debate/information!
  - protomyth 10y ago
    > I was referring to the new LRT corridors. The Hiawatha line was built before I came to MN. You are absolutely correct that metro funding via Met Council made up much of the cost. I left in 2008 but still visit. All my relatives and friends move to MN after I moved back to ND. I try not to take that personally :). Someone needs to seriously fix the north west metro. I think the working name for 294/894 switched a couple of time so it might be "extended loop" or some bypass name. It was supposed to surround the larger metro area since 494/694 is basically an interior road. I'm glad someone is using it, but I do believe the federal application had a different ridership goal / promise. I just wish they had elevated it. Thanks for staying civil, its been a rough couple of months here.

by knz 10y ago

protomyth 10y ago

I was living in Twin City at the time also, and the loss of the T-Mobile tower made finding loved ones a bit difficult. Your history of the metro light rail is a bit off. The rail was pushed by Gov. Jesse Ventura (who the Republicans and Democrats would surely not claim). It was opposed by Pawlenty, but he relented on a smaller line to get the federal money. The state government under Pawlenty funded in via a bonding bill for $37.5 million. That didn't pay for it though. It took almost $100 million from the state and money from various other regional players with over $150 more million from the feds. It has not met its promised ridership goals, and it will never relieve congestion. All of this money could have gone to fixing the roads instead of funding a train that kills people because of a bad route in Minneapolis that once was a turn. Never mind the whole problem with the U. Check the stats on transportation to see how important those bridges are to business as commuter numbers are not the whole issue. Those daily congestion issues can be blamed on not wanting to expand the highways. The long proposed 294 and 894 would have done more than then the light rail.

knz 10y ago
I was referring to the new LRT corridors.The Hiawatha line was built before I came to MN. You are absolutely correct that metro funding via Met Council made up much of the cost. The most recent LRT line hit its ridership goals within one year (2014 instead of 2030 - https://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/09/19/green-line-ridership https://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/09/19/green-line-ridershi...). The Hiawatha line is also doing well - exceeding 2020 goals in 2016. People die on 94/694/494 all the time as well unfortunately. I'm not familiar with 294 and 894, will definitely read up on them. Thanks for the debate/information!
- protomyth 10y ago
  > I was referring to the new LRT corridors. The Hiawatha line was built before I came to MN. You are absolutely correct that metro funding via Met Council made up much of the cost. I left in 2008 but still visit. All my relatives and friends move to MN after I moved back to ND. I try not to take that personally :). Someone needs to seriously fix the north west metro. I think the working name for 294/894 switched a couple of time so it might be "extended loop" or some bypass name. It was supposed to surround the larger metro area since 494/694 is basically an interior road. I'm glad someone is using it, but I do believe the federal application had a different ridership goal / promise. I just wish they had elevated it. Thanks for staying civil, its been a rough couple of months here.