Think Regional/Act Local

If you have bought gas lately, you know that the price is hovering right about $4 a gallon and we are being told it could go even higher as we get into the summer season. For those of you who remember, we started to see the price of gas begin to impact travel behavior the last time gas prices got to and exceeded the magic $4 per gallon figure. Evidence suggests it is happening again.

What happened last time? People started driving less, carpooling, and taking the bus more often. Some people lost their jobs because they could not afford to drive to work and the bus didn’t get them there when they needed to be at work. Given this situation, it would make sense for the legislature to try to find a way to allocate more funding to public transit operators so they could expand or at least maintain their existing service. People could still get around, get to work, make a living, pay their taxes, and otherwise continue to contribute to the recovery of the state.

Instead, what are they proposing? They are proposing to further cut transit funding. At a time when transit operators will likely see a spike in ridership levels, the House and Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommitees are proposing major cuts to state funding for public transportation services. This would not only hamstring Michigan's public transit providers at a time when ridership is likely to grow, but potentially leave federal matching money in Washington rather than bringing it into the state.

Governor Snyder's original budget proposal provided a small overall increase for public transportation services in Michigan – probably not enough, but in these economic times, probably the best that could be hoped for. At least it recognized the need to increase or at least maintain existing levels of service. At a time when more and more Michigan residents are relying on bus and rail services, the state should at the very least continue stable funding for public transportation providers and our citizens.

Last Saturday, the temperature finally got over 70 degrees and many people were out and about enjoying the day. As I was driving around, I couldn’t help but see and hear all the motorcycles that were out on the road. I thought to myself that as the cost of gasoline continues to go up, there may be more and more motorcyclists out on the road. So, this is a good time to remember to be careful. In fact, May has been designated as Motorcycle Safety Awareness month.

Let me state the obvious – motorcyclists are much more vulnerable to crashes than other passenger vehicles. They are smaller and can be hidden in a driver’s blind spot. It is important that motorists always make a visual check for motorcycles by checking mirrors and blind spots before entering or leaving a lane of traffic as well as at intersections.

Research shows that per vehicle mile traveled, the death rate for motorcyclists is nearly 40 times greater that for passenger car occupants. Three percent of all motorcycle crashes in 2010 in the SEMCOG region resulted in a fatality.

Not only should drivers be on the lookout for motorcyclists, but motorcyclists need to follow the rules of the roadway, be alert to other drivers, and always wear a helmet. It works both ways.

Let’s hope for many more beautiful days as the weather gets warm. Let’s enjoy them and enjoy them safely.

As you probably know, last week the President and the Congress averted a government shut down at the last minute by agreeing on a spending bill for all government agencies for the remainder of the current fiscal year.  The deal, called for $38.5 billion in spending cuts below FY 2010 levels through Sept. 30, 2011.

Actually, it was a two-part deal that included a seven-day continuing resolution and an initial $2 billion in spending cuts, thus giving Congress till this Friday to hold votes on the larger agreement covering spending and the remainder of the $38.5 billion in spending cuts.  It also allowed someone to write the agreement down and them to read it - always a good thing in my opinion before you vote on something.  Yesterday, Thursday 4/14, the deed was done.

I do not have the full details of the larger agreement yet.  However, it appeared that at least $3.1 billion of the cuts were coming directly from transportation.

Among the transportation cuts known to be part of the broader deal include the following:

• $2.5 billion in cuts taken from the following transportation programs:
  • USDOT Transportation Planning, Research & Dev.
  • FAA Facilities and Equipment
  • FAA Research, Engineering and Development
  • FRA Capital Assistance for High-Speed Rail ($1.5 billion)
  • FRA Railroad Research and Development ($2.5 million)
  • FTA Capital Investment Grants (New Starts) ($280 million)
  • FTA Research and University Research Centers ($64.2 million)
• $630 million in cuts from already-earmarked (but unspent) transportation projects.

What is next?  Well they will start discussions on the 2012 budget as early as today.  Wonder how those talks are going to go?  I will give you a little hint – the republicans want to keep spending below FY 2008 levels for the next 5 years at least and eliminate funding for high speed rail among other things.  Democrats and the president are not too keen on this direction.  Here we go again!

Well this morning on the radio, I heard a report that the price of gas has gone up again – up to $4 at some stations! Here we go again. At some point, this will begin to impact how much gas we buy, the kind of cars we buy, and all other kinds of decisions we make as consumers. The price of gas is high, but I started thinking of the price of other products that we buy and wondered how much they would cost per gallon if you could use them as fuel to power your car.

For example, a 16 oz. bottle of diet Snapple is $1.29 – that is $10.32 a gallon. A 20 oz. bottle of Gatorade is normally $1.59 or $10.17 per gallon. A 9 oz. bottle of Evian water sells for $1.49 or $21.19 per gallon! Did anyone ever think that a bottle of water would cost over five times what a gallon of gas would cost? No, me neither.

However, the real kicker is the price of printer ink – the stuff you buy at the store to use in your home printer. I don’t know how much I use in my printer, but it comes in a very small container. I have seen estimates that the cost of a gallon of printer ink is $5,200 per gallon!

So next time you go complain about the price of gas, be thankful that your car doesn’t run on Snapple, Gatorade, or, God forbid, printer ink! Wonder how many miles per gallon you would get? Just kidding!

I got a call this week from a reporter wanting me to comment on a report released Monday by a group called Transportation for America, a transportation advocacy group. The report indicated that more than 13 percent of Michigan's highway bridges are structurally deficient, a number that will only grow as thousands of spans statewide approach their 50-year life expectancy. This ranks Michigan as the 13th worst state in the nation in the number of bridges in poor condition,

The reporter asked me how I felt about this report – did I think it was accurate and if so, what can we do about it. I told the reporter that, while not having a chance to read the entire report, the information appeared accurate. How we improve the situation? Well, the answer to that is to increase funding. Now let’s be clear on one point here – while a bridge may be labeled as "structurally deficient," it doesn't mean the bridge is unsafe, but rather that it's showing wear and tear, and needs repair.

Is this good enough? Well, I told the reporter that obviously it is good enough, since we have been telling the legislature and the governor for years now that additional monies are needed if we are going to address the growing transportation needs of state and no new revenues are on the horizon. In fact, dollars have been decreasing! How bad do things have to get before action to provide additional funding will occur? Obviously, we have to be worse than only the 13th worst state in the nation.

Remember, every unsafe bridge is either weight restricted or closed, so it is not a safety issue right now – it is more of an economic issue. Consider this another early warning, though, that the day is soon coming where more and more bridges will be closed and/or weight restricted making it harder and harder to get around and potentially stifling our economic rebound as a state and a region.

Check out this Free Press article for more information.