http://www.statesman.com/blogs/conte...n_wynns_r.html
More details needed on Wynn’s rail concept
By The Editorial Board | Monday, October 29, 2007, 04:51 PM
Will Wynn swerved from his largely ceremonial second term as Austin mayor last week by leading a call for a major mass transit project to connect the airport and important nodes of the city by passenger rail.
Wynn made his pitch before an approving audience, the Downtown Austin Alliance, which has been eager for mass transit alternatives in the core city. Unquestionably, the idea of linking Austin-Bergstrom International Airport with downtown, the University of Texas and the Mueller redevelopment is a good one.
Austin sorely needs a mass transit system that can move residents and visitors quickly and easily around major centers of interest, entertainment and employment. The problem is the cost and how to pay for it. Wynn was somewhat vague on that issue, though he said he wants a task force to study ways to make his idea a reality.
Certainly it’s an ambitious plan, and we applaud the mayor for stepping forward with it. However, the devil will be in the details - including financing, involvement of other government entities and the technology to be used. It is such a complicated project that Wynn’s timetable for placing the issues before voters looks much too quick.
In announcing the proposal, Wynn said he would like to have the necessary questions on the ballot by November 2008. Capital Metro’s commuter rail between downtown Austin and Leander will barely have begun by then, and pushing a complex ballot issue before voters so soon could backfire.
Why not give local residents who will pay for the line a chance to experience commuter rail before saddling them with another multi-million dollar bond issue for another rail line? Commuter rail has been a hit with voters in most localities, and if the Austin-Leander line works well, it will provide more incentive to add another line to the airport.
Some local leaders believe Wynn sprung the project on them rather than exploring it in depth first, which is another reason not to rush the vote. And at this point there are only vague ideas about how to pay for a passenger rail system that will be costly because it must cross the Colorado River, Interstate 35 and several major highways.
In just 12 months, local leaders will have to figure out the route and right-of-way needs, the financing and the technology - light rail, electric rail, diesel power - and sell it to voters. That’s a tall order that risks the entire project if worried or cautious taxpayers vote it down.
As the mayor described it, the project’s financing could be a strange brew of city and county bonds, airport revenue, federal transit money and help from private developers. He said he would like to see the line built without having to raise property tax rates. Obviously, funding this new proposal will be the deciding factor in whether voters support it or not.
Austin needs a mass transit alternative from the airport to downtown and the university, but it should not be rushed. We eagerly await more details on the cost of Wynn’s proposal and how to pay for it.
Permalink | Comments (33) | Post your comment Categories: Top Editorial
Threaded Mode