Greater Emphasis on the Benefits of Mass Transit is Needed Now

A New York Times editorial urges Barack Obama "to give mass transit — trains, buses, commuter rails — the priority it deserves and the full financial and technological help it needs and has long been denied" as a means to address "the urgent problems of climate change and America’s growing dependency on foreign oil." Obama has two men who need to become primary allies in the push for greater emphasis on mass transit. "Ray LaHood, Mr. Obama’s choice for transportation secretary, must be not only an ally but a champion for mass transit... Another important ally should be — and almost certainly will be — James Oberstar, a Minnesota Democrat who is chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee." Americans for too long have "heavily favored cars and trucks — more than 80 percent of the big transit money from gas taxes goes to highways and bridges, and less than 20 percent to railroads or mass transit." As pending transportation legislation is being formulated; "Mr. Oberstar is proposing $30 billion for highways and bridges and $12 billion for public transit. This division of transportation spending would be a healthy boost for mass transit. The Times editorial also suggests: "The new administration could further help mass transit by shelving the unfair “cost effectiveness index” that President Bush put in place several years ago for new transit programs. The net effect of this index was to make it easier to build highways and almost impossible to use federal money for buses, streetcars, light rail, trolleys — indeed, any commuter-rail projects." The most daunting challenge for Obama and his allies will be to see the safe passage of the transportation legislation to ensure "the best, the most-efficient and the most-advanced ways for Americans to move around."