Up Sucker Creek

Up Sucker Creek
Photo Courtesy of the Lake Oswego Library

Monday, August 7, 2017

Human Nature not important

Myopic Vision, Magical Thinking, or Malicious Intent?

There is nothing on the article, and quite possibly in he ODOT report that addresses th spillover to alternate routes when tolling is introduced.  What would the impact be on Lake Oswego roadways?

Just guessing, but I predict that:
  • Boones Ferry Road, including Kerr Parkway  (from Tualatin to Barbie Boulevard) would pick up more traffic until it too was choked;  
  • Highway 42 from Oregon City and West Linn to Portland would be far worse,; and 
  • Stafford to Highway 43 or Childs Road and Bryant Road to Boones Ferry would see their share of increased traffic. 
Any route that connects to another that gets into Portland or goes East and West through Portland's southern suburbs outdoor be crowded.  ODOT, Tri-Met and Metro routinely and conveniently choose to ignore human nature when planning their projects.  Whatever they plan is what is supposed to happen.  We bend to govrnment's will.

Have all options been tried?  Express buses, bus rapid transit. advantageous traffic signaling for buses, HOV lanes separated from the main freeway, lanes that change direction with rush hour traffic flows?  NO. Time to call your state and federal representatives.  

Toll roads are a good idea in cities where roadways have kept pace with growth over the years, or where there is enough room to build a toll road.  A private enterprise has built a toll alongside an existing roadway to provide convenience to frustrated drivers in Austin, Texas. Investors expect to make money, all with the City and State's blessing.  They are on the hook to make the project pencil out;  Private companies build and operate better than government-run projects, so capitalism o a market-based approach will be better run and financed from the start.  

Portland Trubune, July 27, 2017 By Peter Wong. 
Freeway tolls loom for metro motorists 

Portland-area motorists face the possibility of tolls on Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 as part of a $5.3 billion transportation package approved by the state Legislature earlier this month — but not until 2019 after a study is completed, and only if the Federal Highway Administration says it's OK. 
The multibillion-dollar plan for transportation projects also requires the Oregon Department of Transportation to report by February — six months away — how much it will cost to widen I-205 between Stafford Road and the George Abernethy Bridge and to reinforce the bridge against severe earthquakes. 
But unlike two other major highway projects proposed in the region, the transportation plan provides no specific funding for that work. Some money for I-205 was included in an initial version that proposed $8.2 billion in spending over 10 years, but it was dropped in the final proposal.
If the federal agency says yes, the state commission must inform lawmakers and implement the proposal. No public vote is required.

"What they entail is charging a price for the use of a transportation facility that varies based on the time of day or the level of congestion on the facility," said Travis Brouwer, ODOT's assistant director for public affairs. "We need to develop some form of variable-rate pricing of roads that would help address some of our congestion concerns."

ODOT's Brouwer said there are other considerations for tolls, such as billing, collecting and customer service, which ODOT is likely to contract out. 
"It may not pencil out in certain areas. There are a lot of components that go into whether something is viable," said Tammy Baney of Bend, the state transportation commission chairwoman and a Deschutes County commissioner. "But I think we are at a crossroads in Oregon. We need to look at all options to make sure we are exhausting those and taking into consideration all factors."

1 comment:

  1. It could not be more true that planners disregard normal human behavior. If they were in private business and came up with these concepts, the business would be soon bankrupt. Planners know little if anything about human behavior!

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