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dickboyd
Advanced Member
472 Posts |
 Posted - 19 Feb 2005 : 14:49:27
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www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-358T
The Committee on Government Reform, House of Representatives asked Kate Siggerud of the General Accountability Office (GAO) to study the role of the Federal Government in the operation of Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). As usual, the testimony is well researched, well documented and presented in a timely manner.
As a taxpayer, I feel I get my money's worth from GAO. Wish I could say the same about Congress.
My apologies to Kate S. and her staff if I misquote the report, the errors are all mine (Dick Boyd). The following comments are what I (Dick Boyd) took from the report.
Congressional Government Reform Committee asked for the report, not Transportation, not Infrastructure.
GAO points out that local governments were expected to establish stable and reliable revenue sources for WMATA. A stable and reliable revenue source for WMATA does not exist.
Figures in the report are that WMATA has a $1.3 billion yearly budget to support 3.5 million people in a 1,500 square mile area. That is about $370 per year or roughly a dollar a day per person if the support were completely local.
Support also comes from the Federal Government. Read the report to see if you can determine how much Virginia contributes to WMATA.
The following are Dick Boyd's thoughts on what was NOT said in the report.
There seems to be more competition than cooperation for commuter transportation in northern Virginia. METRO trains displaced WMATA buses. VRE (Virginia Railway Express) took slugs, carpool and van pool passengers, etc. But there does not seem to be an effort to get new passengers. Instead, relaxation of HOV rules for clean fuel vehicles results in more congestion and more pollution. Lack of support near METRO stations, development at Tyson's instead of Dunn Loring, and on and on all reflect real world in conflict with policy.
For the Committee on Government Reform, I would suggest that local government be required to fund the entirety of WMATA and COG. Absolutely no federal funds. Since DC has no roads, federal fuel tax money allocated to DC would be considered local money, not federal money. Let DC spend their money as they see fit with less Congressional oversight. If Virginia and Maryland want to spend their federal funds on WMATA, that is up to them. But I don't think California should be paying for transportation for Civil Servants and support contractors.
One exception to the spending of Federal money would be development of slug pick up points in DC, Crystal City, The Pentagon, and places of high employment density. Fill the empty seats in the cars of the drive alones before taking money from people in California to transport Civil Servants and support contractors.
DC may need one time help to get a more slug friendly environment. Possibly an attitude adjustment for Chief Ramsey is all that it would take.
Parking is a missing ingredient. There are more than enough empty seats in the cars of the drive alones and people are attuned to casual car pooling. But the infrastructure discourages slugs. There are not enough parking spaces in the suburbs to aggregate people for efficient transportation. Housing density is too low for timely buses.
The Council of Governments does not acknowledge or support slugs.
If you feel that WMATA should be supported with local funds only, please make your wishes known to your federal congressman as well as your state and county elected officials.
My apologies to David if this is a nonpolitical board. These are Dick Boyd's opinions and in no way reflects a consensus of slug feelings.
dickboyd@aol.com |
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Federal Role in Funding WMATA Slugs Too?
