Transportation Choices 2020

Initiative Summary

Transportation Choices 2020 would provide increased, stable and secure funding for transit and for bicycle and pedestrian projects in Minnesota. It would:

1) Fund full implementation of the transit portion of the Metropolitan Council’s Transportation Policy Plan including expanded bus service, new park and ride capacity, and eight dedicated transitways - both bus and rail - by 2020 rather than 2030 or some later date.

2) Provide revenue to local units of government in the metropolitan area to allocate toward transit, bicycle, and pedestrian projects.

The initiative would be funded by a new 4/10 cent regional sales tax in the seven county metropolitan area. If passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor, the bill would go into effect on July 1, 2007 and the first money would be available on January 1, 2008.

Rationale for the Intiative

Transit investment in the Twin Cities region lags far behind U.S. regions of similar size. The Twin Cities region has a smaller bus system, fewer miles of rail transit, and lower transit ridership. The region secures fewer federal New Starts grants than our peers.

Transit service in Greater Minnesota is limited. Because transit lacks secure and stable funding, it has been subjected to repeated cuts. Transit has very little constitutionally dedicated funding. Minnesota’s trunk highway system has had dedicated funding for nearly 50 years which has provided ongoing money for expansion projects and allows Minnesota to maximize federal funding for roads.

Expanding public transit is critical to Minnesota’s quality of life and economic vitality. With stable, increased funding, our region’s transit system can expand to meet the mobility and access demands of the 21st century. A fully funded transit system with multimodal hubs will give all users of the Twin Cities regional transportation system alternatives to being stuck in traffic or stuck at home. When transit moves more people during rush hour, it reduces the need for costly expansion of highways and parking lots and reduces dependence on imported oil. In regions with a greater reliance on public transit, families spend less of their income on transportation and the elderly, disabled, and those without access to a car have more independence and opportunities. Transportation choices contribute to improved health and protect our air and water quality.

In other major metropolitan regions, the most common source of revenue for transit is a regional sales tax of one-half to a full cent. Atlanta, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, and Houston all have a one cent regional sales tax, San Jose has a one-half cent, St. Louis has three-fourth cent and Seattle has eight-tenths of a cent dedicated for public transit.

A new 4/10 cent regional sales tax in the seven county metropolitan area would be distributed:

• 95% (approximately $221 million annually) to the Metropolitan Council for Metro Transit, the Opt-outs, Metro Mobility, and other transit services for capital and operating costs of bus, rail, and paratransit service. The sales tax will provide for full implementation of the Metropolitan Council’s Transportation Policy Plan by 2020 including:

a) Expanded express and local bus service and facilities,

b) Transitway planning, design and construction for the Bottineau Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit line (BRT), Central Corridor light rail, Southwest Corridor light rail, Cedar Avenue BRT, Red Rock commuter rail, Rush line commuter rail, I-35W BRT, and

c) High priority express bus and park and ride service for I-94 West Corridor, Highway 10/252/65 corridor, Highway 212/169 corridor, I-394 corridor. I-35E North corridor, I-94 East Corridor, I-35W North, Highway 52/55 corridor, Highway 36 corridor, I-35E South.

• 5% (approximately $12 million annually) to the Metropolitan Council for pass through to counties on a per-capita basis for planning design, maintenance, construction, promotion, and operation of public transit, bicycle and pedestrian projects, and for planning of transit oriented development. Half of this money would be provided by counties to municipalities on a pass through basis.