PRESS RELEASE: Central Corridor Veto May Add Greater Tax Burden to Minnesota’s Families

SAINT PAUL—Governor Pawlenty’s veto of the Central Corridor light rail transit line will likely increase the cost of the project by tens of millions of dollars. Delaying the project by one year will increase the overall cost of the project by $40 million dollars, and the loss of federal matching funds could force Minnesotans to pay $500 million more for the project.

The veto is the latest in a string of the Governor’s attacks on transit funding. In addition to eliminating state funding to build Central Corridor, the Governor cut funding for nearly every transit project outlined in the Metropolitan Council’s regional transit plan. Earlier this year, the Governor slashed funding almost 40 percent of the general fund allocation to transit, a cut nearly 10 times greater than cuts to other general fund allocations.

“The Governor’s continued attacks on transit are the height of fiscal irresponsibility,” says Lea Schuster, Executive Director of Transit for Livable Communities. “By delaying projects and cutting funding, the Governor is placing a direct financial burden on Minnesota families, who are seeking alternatives to high gas prices and sitting in traffic.”

These attacks are made even more perplexing by the Governor’s public statements of support for transit and reducing the impacts of global climate change. 

"There's no question that transit - effective and efficient transit - absolutely has to be part of our transportation vision," Pawlenty said in an article appearing in the August 15, 2002 edition of the St. Paul Legal Ledger. Going further, the Governor was quoted in the January 13, 2004 edition of an ECM Publishers article, saying "We're choking on congestion. [In 2003], [Minnesota] made the largest infusion of road-building funds in history. Now, we need to also look at expanded transit opportunities.”

“It’s tough to understand why the Governor, who has publicly committed to expanding transit opportunities and addressing climate change, would continually attack transit funding,” says Dave Van Hattum, Policy and Advocacy Program Manager at Transit for Livable Communities. “We can only conclude that the Central Corridor is an unfortunate pawn in his political game with legislators. It’s a shame that our region’s needs are left out of the equation.”