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Entries (RSS)The launch of CNT’s new Housing + Transportation Affordability Index website has lead to news stories from Boston to Seattle and from Minneapolis-St. Paul to Austin. On Monday, NPR did a story on what it costs to commute in the D.C. area. CNT talked to individuals across the country who live in compact transit-rich neighborhoods about why they choose to live there. Here’s a sampling of their stories.
Good news for transit riders and advocates: CTA “Doomsday” has been averted through the Illinois Legislature’s $530 million plan to cover the CTA’s operating expenses. Just what do you need to know about this bill now as it stands right now?
The Governor and legislature have decided to fund the new plan, which will go into effect on April 1st, through a quarter-percent increase in Northeastern Illinois sales taxes as well as funds from a new property-transfer tax. In addition, the Regional Transit Authority (RTA), which oversees CTA, Metra, and Pace, will be restructured with more power to coordinate those agencies, with the goal of eliminating overlaps in service like those that occur in inner-ring suburbs serviced by multiple RTA systems. Pension reform is another part of the bill; the fund for CTA employees will be fully funded by the year 2050.
The Governor’s last-minute addition of an unexpected amendatory veto stipulating that all senior citizens who live in transit districts ride free troubled many people. Currently, there are about 20 million seniors using CTA reduced fare cards; many more do not currently hold reduced fare cards, and thus no one can conclusively estimate the potential revenue loss to the CTA. Disability advocates are also upset that Blagojevich did not extend free service to disabled people, many of whom are immobile without the help of transit and overloaded with medical expenses.
The Illinois House recently introduced a plan to override Blagojevich’s veto and replace it with a plan to extend free service to those seniors who qualify for a discount program called Circuit Breakers, which currently provides discounts on property taxes and medical care for the elderly. Under the House’s plan, which will be introduced to the Senate next week, seniors who meet the income requirements for the Circuit Breakers plan will receive free service. Pending approval by the Senate, the plan will go to Governor Blagojevich; if he approves it, it will go into effect July 1 of this year, but if he vetoes it, the legislature will have to go into a veto session.
CNT has long been an advocate for comprehensive transit funding as an investment to the vitality of the region. Since the 1970s, the CTA’s resources have been dwindling, and the need for funding has clashed with Illinois’ desire for a balanced budget. It was not until recent years, however, that the RTA was fully backed up against the wall with the elimination of Federal Transit Administration subsidies and the later service cuts and fare hikes. Since then, the CTA’s infrastructure has been declining along with its quality of service, resulting in the infamous “slow zones” on elevated tracks as well as the long wait times that plagued riders. Voices within the CTA and without are now saying that even though doomsday may no longer be upon us, the solution addresses only operating expenses, with the capital funding necessary to improve aging infrastructure still unaddressed.
The entire Northeastern Illinois region took a hit when the Illinois House failed to pass SB 572, a comprehensive transit funding and reform bill, which would have restructured the governance system for transit in Northeastern Illinois as well as guaranteed a long-term source of funding for transit. The bill would also have prevented CTA and Pace’s “doomsday” scenarios from coming into effect on September 16.
Moving citizens from their homes to their workplaces is a regional dilemma. Because the Governor has failed to present an effective solution to the mass transit crisis, low-income resident have the greater burden of carrying the cost of transit, versus an equitable tax increase to all residents.
All residents benefit from a viable transit system. A sales tax increase to all residents makes sense when reduced transit service and increased fares not only negatively impact tens of thousands of household budgets, but result in adding more vehicles to the region’s clogged roads and contributing to the region’s air pollution.
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Less than a day after voters strongly turned down whether to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with another tunnel or an elevated highway, the Mayor and Governor met and ‘called a truce’. It was clear that the implications of the vote could not be overlooked and despite each option having political backing of both leaders, voters determined that neither is desirable for their city’s future.
Though it was a non-binding referendum, the overwhelming vote against both the Viaduct by about 70% and the elevated freeway by roughly 55% forced politicians to listen to their citizens. And it’s important to remember that the ballot asked separate yes-no questions on each option; in other words, it’s not as if voting no for replacing the Viaduct meant the voter necessarily wanted an elevated freeway. The implication of saying ‘no’ twice means the majority of the voters want neither.
Given the potential political ramifications of carrying on with either option deemed undesired by the voters, the leaders met yesterday to discuss plans to move forward with the less ‘charged’ solutions. Attention is now turned to an alternate plan that had been studied by Smart Mobility, commissioned by CNT and the Congress for the New Urbanism.
The ‘transit + streets’ plan examined the implications of replacing the viaduct with beefed-up surface streets and mass transit, and it found that this option can accommodate traffic and help the region focus efforts in creating more alternate transit options. An urban street can better respond to future transportation changes, and stimulate transit-oriented development in Seattle – at a considerably lower public expense.
“We don’t know what that solution looks like, but we do know it will include transit, light rail, streetcars, buses, biking, walking, it will keep freight moving efficiently and our economy strong,” commented the Mayor in a joint press conference. CNT’s Scott Bernstein responded to the newfound acceptance, “It’s a big step in the right direction for the Mayor and Governor to agree to partner and move forward with a solution that they were opposed to at first as a result of this non-binding referendum.”
One of these big steps is to invest about $125 million in transit, bus lanes and surface arterials to help manage traffic during construction.
Sure, it’s 20 degrees in Chicago and from this vantage, spring is a mere fleck on the map, but what better time could there be to start dreaming about your future outdoor activities?! CNT has some new tools to assist with your green thumb fantasies!
At the December 5 meeting of the Illinois River Coordinating Council, CNT Senior Engineer Bill Eyring presented Lieutenant Governor Patrick Quinn with the ceremonial “first edition” of our new pocket guide to green stormwater solutions.
(photo above is Illinois Lt. Governor Pat Quinn with CNT’s Steve Wise, Bill Eyring and Julia Kennedy)
The booklet, Water: From Trouble to Treasure, is a field guide to understanding and advancing green stormwater management, a critical component of a sustainable future. The guide gives community groups, homeowners, and others practical ways to capture raindrops where they fall that are simple, affordable and can replace more costly conventional stormwater approaches.
The guide lays out a vision of restoring the natural ability of landscapes to manage stormwater. It offers immediate steps for groups to get started without extensive funding, expertise, or fear of adverse consequences. Green solutions manage stormwater through simple approaches that restore or mimic natural systems. These include rain gardens, native vegetation, tree planting, rain barrels, and permeable pavement. Green infrastructure can save homeowners, developers and municipalities money while protecting water quality, recharging ground water supplies and creating more enjoyable landscapes in the process.
CNT’s Natural Resources work gains a new tool and a new face this week. We introduced our Green Solutions pocket guide, “Water: From Trouble to Treasure”, yesterday at the Illinois River Coordinating Council meeting. Visit our website later in the week to learn more about this guide to affordable and accomplishable “green” infrastructure solutions.
We are also excited to welcome Steve Wise to CNT as our new Natural Resources Portfolio Manager.
Steve comes to Chicago from Portland, Oregon and brings with him more than 15 years of expertise in environmental research and advocacy with a particular focus on watersheds and water quality. Prior to joining CNT, Steve served as Development Director and Interim Executive Director of the Opal Creek Ancient Forest Center, leading hands-on education, and restoration and research programs in the heart of a protected old growth forest. He has worked within an impressive range of mediums, bringing to his advocacy work the perspective and knowledge of a consultant to Lewis and Clark College’s Northwest Water Law & Policy Project; an adjunct professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Oregon; and an economic policy advisor for the River Network and Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition. Steve has also has worked since the early 1990s creating online tools and resources to assess environmental impacts and improve environmental decision-making.
His work in green building, wastewater system improvements, and restoration education programs will enable CNT to continue to develop new and innovative tools for evaluating and measuring green infrastructure while also strengthen our existing toolkit.
We just got word that the Community Energy Cooperative’s Energy Smart-Pricing Plan is a recipient of a 2006 Chicago Innovation Award. The awards were given to ten groups that over the last year have displayed outstanding innovation in products and services that not only inspire and educate others, but solve unmet consumer needs. The ESPP was selected amongst over 225 applicants.
For the past three years, the Energy Smart-Pricing Plan has helped save consumers money on their energy bills, reduce their power, and cut stress on the system as a whole. The voluntary pilot program has also paved way for a new law signed by Governor Blagojevich which in 2007 will give consumers the option of buying their electricity at hourly, market-based rates.
The Energy Smart-Pricing Plan is also proving to be a very timely program, now that we are confronted with ComEd’s energy rates in Illinois that are expected to go up by 22% next year. Through demonstration, ESPP has proven how giving consumers a choice about their energy rates can save them money while encouraging energy efficiency.
To read the article in the Sun-Times about the Energy Smart-Pricing Plan receiving a 2006 Chicago Innovation Award, go here.
We were ecstatic when I-GO Sales and Marketing Associate, Melissa Haeffner, emailed CNT staff with the subject heading, “200th I-GO member signed up today!”
Since its 2002 startup, I-GO has been steadily acquiring new members each month. And July marks the first time in their history to have 200 members sign up in just one month. I-GO is also quickly traveling the road to signing up its 3000th member.
It makes perfect sense that an innovative program like car-sharing is really picking up steam in a time that we constantly hear about rising gas prices. I-GO CEO Sharon Feigon points out, “Our program really makes it possible for people to get around without owning a car. There are a lot of smart people in Chicago who have realized that they can save a lot of money - thousands of dollars annually - and avoid high gas prices, by being an I-GO member”.
We think car-sharing is the wave of the future. And the present. I-GO’s successes have proven that residents in the Chicagoland area are taking notice and joining up in record numbers. Check out I-GO’s website and jump on the bandwagon, or the low-emissions car as the case may be!
(Photo courtesy of Joel Lerner/Staff Photographer/Pioneer Press)
The domain name for CNT’s AirHead website is now airhead.cnt.org. Please update your bookmarks.