Will the Tigard folks join the Clackistanis in their revolt against METRO's heavy-handed planning for rail transportation throughout the region? The light rail (or other "high capacity transit") line to Sherwood looks like it may stall out at the Tigard City line. This would be disastrous for the central planners at METRO. The voters will have the last say on this, which is the way it should be everywhere. Citizens should not have to go to the mats to fight their governments to have a say in how these huge, land use decisions are made.
One thing I noticed that was swept under the rug in LO is (perhaps) serious discussion of BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) as an alternative. The HUGE caveat here is the impact on surface streets:
In the Southwest Corridor, more than half of the entire route would need to be on a bus-only lane in order for the project to qualify for federal New Starts funding.
A hard pill to swallow. Suburbanites will not give up their cars, nor should they have to, for a Federal Grant that comes with such nasty strings attached. So who is trying to get us out of our cars - the Feds, the State, METRO, or cities? Looks like they all have been drinking the same Kool-Aid. The common denominator appears to be a concern for the environment. More about that later. Until then, congratulations to the Tigard Tigers for working hard to get the public an opportunity to have their say!
PS: Note that on the METRO map shown in the Oregonian article, part of Lake Oswego is included in the Southwest Corridor Plan.
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