Coalition Releases Plan for Economic Security through Transportation
In a press conference on Wednesday in eight U.S. cities, including Chicago, a coalition of community and business leaders announced the release of “Build for America: A Five-Point Plan to get our Economy Moving”. On the heels of the Wall Street bailout and hours before the final presidential debate, community and business leaders joined together to call on the next President and Congress to strengthen our local and national economies by building a 21st Century transportation system.
CNT joined the Transportation for America Campaign (T4) to put forth this bold economic agenda which has the potential to create millions of good, green jobs nationally, save Americans thousands of dollars per year, and reduce America’s dependence on oil once and for all.
As CNT President Scott Bernstein put it, “We’re too exposed to the rising price of gasoline and the need to own too many cars. This region’s households are spending over $40 billion annually for transportation, dwarfing what’s invested publicly. Working families now pay as much or more for transportation as they do for housing.”
The Plan calls for investment in public transit, high-speed and intercity rail, neighborhoods that are less car-dependent, more walkable and more affordable, and restoring the thousands of roads and bridges in failing condition across the United States. The five points to achieve these goals:
1. BUILD TO COMPETE with China and Europe, by modernizing and expanding our rail and transit networks to reduce oil dependence, connect the metro regions that are the engines of the modern economy.
2. INVEST FOR A CLEAN, GREEN RECOVERY through cleaner vehicles and new fuels as well as the cleanest forms of transportation – modern public transit, walking and biking – and for energy-efficient, sustainable development.
3. FIX WHAT’S BROKEN before building new roads and restore our crumbling highways, bridges and transit systems.
4. STOP WASTEFUL SPENDING and re-evaluate projects currently in the pipeline to eliminate those with little economic return that could deepen our oil dependence.
5. SAVE AMERICANS MONEY. Provide more travel and housing options that are affordable and efficient, while helping people to avoid high gas costs and traffic congestion.
Build for America is a project of the Transportation for America organization, a national consortium of environmental, consumer advocacy, business, and governmental groups preparing for the 2009 re-authorization of national transportation legislation. The speakers from the various organizations explained and reinforced the arguments for increasing investment in American public infrastructure. “Amtrak ridership in Illinois continues to break records. We’ve shown that if you build it, they will come,” said Kevin Brubaker, Deputy Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. “When people have a transit option, they use it. Who wouldn’t?” As Scott Bernstein noted, “owning one less car per household raises income by 10 to 20 percent.” Providing a transit option is the single best way to increase the income of individual households of all socio-economic classes while simultaneously providing access to jobs, stores, and other essential services. Higher investments in public transit will not only create jobs, but will also increase the mobility of all people. Ultimately, “investment in transit will produce the best returns for our economy, our pocketbooks and our communities,” explained Brian Imus, the Director of Illinois PIRG.
Download the full Five Point Plan or view photos from the press conference.
September 9th, 2009 at 4:17 pm
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