NEW YORK Volume VIII No. 2 Spring 2005 TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

wagner.nyu.edu/rudincenter

TRANSPORTATION AS NATIONAL POLICY Letter from the Editor st was recently visited by The Transportation Equity Act for the 21 Century (TEA-21) expired on September 30, 2003. A year the International Olympic Committee and a half later, after numerous debates and six temporary extensions, it looks like a new bill may (IOC) to review New York’s bid to hold finally be in store this spring. In mid-March, the House of Representatives approved a $284 billion the 2012 Olympics. One of the key transportation bill for 2004-2009. Shortly thereafter, the Senate panel voted 17-1 to move their own issues was transportation. New York $284 billion bill ahead as well. The amount of funding proposed is well beneath previous proposals, City transit officials impressed the IOC with a presentation on the size and but is more likely to avoid a veto by the Administration. What will the new bill mean for trans- breadth of the subway system, past portation? Janette Sadik-Khan, Senior Vice President of Parsons Brinckerhoff and President of efforts to bring the system into a state Company39, the e-business subsidiary of the firm, and a regular contributor to the Journal, inter- of good repair, and future plans to con- viewed Congressman Earl Blumenauer of Portland Oregon, about the role of the federal government tinue system improvements and to in financing and regulating transportation in the United States. In this comprehensive interview, extend the “7” train to the West Side. Congressman Blumenauer speaks about TEA-21 reauthorization, his interest in streetcars, trans- Not mentioned in the presentation was portation security, and his involvement with Rail Volution. whether there were sufficient financial commitments to ensure a reliable tran- JSK: One of the big issues in New York is JSK: Do you think things will change come sit system in 2012. As we go to press, funding for transportation. What hope do you spring? the region's transportation capital pro- gram continues to limp along without see for a federal reauthorization bill this Federal and State funding programs. spring and what level of funding might be EB: It’s too early to tell. I have been continual- available, particularly given the President’s ly surprised that accommodation could not have In this regard, we have included in this edition of the Journal testimony given proposal of $256B over six years and the been reached given the urgency of the need, the by NYU Wagner Rudin Center Director House and Senate holding at around $300B? breadth of the coalition and the fact that people and the Journal's publisher, Elliot G. from coast to coast want and need this. It is Sander at a January 24, 2005 joint EB: Sadly, it may be the topic of the day for interesting that in the initial statements of (Continued on page 7) some of us but it has not received the wide- Congressional leaders — Senator Frist, the major- spread attention it has had in the past. This is ity leader, and Senator Reid, the minority leader, somewhat perplexing given the sluggish econo- neither Republicans nor Democrats had this on Inside NYTJ my of the last three years. Having a robust tar- their list of priorities. There still is a majority in Broad Leadership is Needed geted reauthorization along the lines of the the House that would support a robust bill in a to Pass the MTA Capital original ISTEA would have provided virtually heartbeat. The dynamic is not yet clear whether Plan every community with projects to jump start it will be permitted. One of the bright spots in By Elliot G. Sander their local economy. It is also perplexing the House is that one of the people who would A Unique Island with Unique because I have been impressed with the depth support a robust bill is the Speaker. Metropolitan Transportation Issues and breadth of the coalition that has been Chicago has unique and significant needs and By Jeffrey Zupan, P.E. assembled over the course of the last two frankly there are bottlenecks there that are years. The ability of this coalition to remain affecting my district, such as when it takes High Speed Rail in the United States united may in fact be the single most impres- longer for freight to move across metropolitan By Allison L. C. de Cerreño, Ph.D. sive, important, long standing development in Chicago than it takes to get there. transportation. It is significant when you hear Collaborative Planning for similar positions articulated by the US Chamber I am not going to make any more predictions but Land Use and Transportation Can Be of Commerce and the Sierra Club. It was unfor- passage of a reauthorization bill continues to be Successful for All tunate that reauthorization got caught up in a high priority for me. I’m going to work as By Allen J. Zerkin, J.D. presidential politics at a period of time when though it’s going to happen this spring and con- we were hemorrhaging red ink and there was a tinue to work with the affected groups; in part Honoring the 2004 Leadership in Transportation Award need for the Administration to demonstrate because in Washington, you make your own real- Recipients some fiscal responsibility.

(Continued on page 2)

1 2 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

TRANSPORTATION AS NATIONAL POLICY CONT.

(Continued from page 1) ity. If we have the political infrastructure in place, look at some minimum guarantee for metropolitan areas in the TEA-3 legislation. if we have made the case, if we know what it is that we want and we have the network to launch I’m also concerned about the continued uneven playing field between modes. FTA into action, it makes it more likely that passage has some pretty aggressive standards of accountability and performance. I’m con- will happen. cerned that this standard applies to only a small portion of the transportation fund- ing. Maybe it is time to think through the lack of accountability standards for mas- JSK: Moving further into the future, if we look sive highway projects. One shouldn’t have to jump through all sorts of loops for into a crystal ball, what are your thoughts as to relatively small amounts of money for one mode of transportation while another is TEA-3 and future policy directions for the trans- a massive entitlement. I don’t care how aggressive the standards are, but that they portation bill? ought to be uniformly applied whether it’s for a bike path, streetcars or freeway interchanges. I think it’s time to think about accountability. Another big question EB: For me, it’s time to go back and revisit the that should be addressed is what the match ratios should be. If we are trying to large concepts that we had for the original ISTEA. solve problems of freight and passenger mobility, does it make sense to skew the We are still indebted to great thinkers like Senator outcome based on a funding formula? Moynihan from New York and Senator D’Amato: Mr. Policy and Mr. Pothole, who created a framework JSK: Which clearly happens with transportation investment decisions all the that considered how the pieces fit together. I don’t time. want TEA-4 to become just a big ISTEA, where we run on fumes and we lose the sense of being able EB: If we have a ratio, and I’m agnostic as to what the match ratio should be — to give communities and States the opportunity to 3:1, 2:1 or 50-50, it needs to be a uniform match ratio for all modes. This would do a better job of making infrastructure work for add an element of accountability and rationality and it wouldn’t have the trans- them. Part of what made ISTEA so powerful was portation solution skewed by funding bias. the flexibility and empowerment it provided to states and metropolitan areas. Finally, we need to get serious about improving intermodalism. From where I sit, looking back at the “I” in ISTEA, the intermodal piece, everybody still acknowl- I think it is time for us to be more explicit about edges that it is not being adequately addressed in planning, funding or systems the role of the metropolitan area. There is all this integration. What is great about the current transportation coalition is that we do talk about states getting a guaranteed minimum have the truckers and the railroads both talking about the need to seize intermodal gas tax return. If we are sincere, we should talk opportunities. It’s why I feel so strongly about the Small Starts proposal for street- about equity as it relates to metropolitan areas car projects. around the country that are putting in two, three, four times as much or more than they receive JSK: Can you describe the Small Starts proposal and also perhaps some of the back. There isn’t a metropolitan area in the coun- implications that it may have for large metropolitan areas? try that isn’t being shortchanged by their state and federal formulas. Well, let’s take a step back and EB: Yes, as you may know I have been obsessed with streetcar. It was sort of a 20-

New York Transportation Journal The New York Transportation Journal is published by the NYU Wagner Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management in conjunction with the Rudin Center’s Adivsory board, Elliot G. Sander, Publisher the Council on Transportation. Allison L. C. de Cerreño, Editor Brian P. Sterman, Editor The Rudin Center gratefully acknowledges the foundation, corporate, and individual sponsors that make possible our efforts to promote progressive transportation policy, including the New York Transportation Journal. Editorial Board The views expressed in the New York Transportation Journal are those of the authors and not John Falcocchio Janette Sadik-Khan necessarily those of New York University, the Rudin Center, or any of its affiliated organizations José Holguín-Veras Bruce Schaller and funders. Robert Paaswell Sam Schwartz Letters to the Editor and other inquiries may be addressed to Allison C. de Cerreño at: Henry Peyrebrune Roy Sparrow Gene Russianoff Robert Yaro Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service 295 Lafayette Street, 2nd Floor Design and Layout New York, NY 10012 My Linh H. Nguyen Novotny & Ryan Yeung phone: (212) 998-7545; fax: (212) 995-4611 Email: [email protected] website: wagner.nyu.edu/rudincenter VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

year thing for me in Portland because I was during planning, construction and operation convinced that in our community, like many and are there any opportunities to make that were built around streetcar neighbor- progress on sustainable development in the hoods, there was an important transportation policy arena with the upcoming reautho- niche for this kind of smaller scale rail invest- rization bill? ment. It was just fascinating to watch it come to pass when the streetcar opened in 2001 at EB: It’s going to be a stretch to get this leg- a fraction of the cost of light rail and built in islation passed this year, let alone add new a fraction of the time. This is development programs. I think that we are better served by oriented transit for the purpose of really continuing to work at the metropolitan level spurring activity, and we have over 80 com- to make sure that people take advantage of munities now around the country that are the flexibility currently available, to be sensi- interested in the streetcar. tive to projects that complement long-term development objectives that are compatible JSK: We came up with a similar number in with energy conservation and with land use. a recent survey. Even recognition that we should look at life cycle costs of infrastructure investment would EB: It’s important on several levels. First of be an important advancement. You’ve got all, it can coax out what’s appropriate for FTA certified smart people running around who to do with rail transit projects. Maybe strong can explain, in terms of different construction Earl Blumenauer has devoted 29 years federal involvement made sense when the techniques and materials, whether you’re as an elected official to Livable first five or 10 or even 15 or 20 rail projects building something for 50 or 20 years. We Community issues. Elected to the were being done. We’d kind of forgotten how should also move beyond the impact on wear Oregon Legislature in 1972, he assumed to do them — each one was sort of an experi- and tear but what the likely impact is in terms leadership roles on tax reform, trans- ment. But now, when the federal government of inducing more or less use. We’ve started portation policy, and land use planning. is looking at ratcheting down its investment doing more work in Congress to talk about the After three terms in the Oregon House and when people know how to do these proj- health impact of investments. Things that will of Representatives, Blumenauer served ects, we don’t need to lengthen the process have less impact on air and water quality, eight years as Multnomah County out as much as we do. The streetcar illus- making sure that people can access the trans- Commissioner, specializing in govern- ment reform, environmental issues, and trates that with a smaller scale $25-75M proj- portation facilities, and contribute to healthy transportation. In 1986 he was elected ect, we don’t need that level of supervision living by design. There are any number of ini- to the Portland City Council, where his and involvement. We can expedite the tiatives. innovation and leadership as process and help dozens of communities while Commissioner of Public Works helped also helping us reshape what should be the One of the things that will be in this reautho- Portland become one of the nation's extent and role of FTA to help launch success- rization bill, and I take off my hat to most livable cities. ful rail projects and make sure that federal Congressman Oberstar and various and sundry investment is properly utilized. cycling fanatics, is a Safe Routes to School Since his election to Congress in 1996, program. There will be hundreds of millions of Blumenauer has focused his efforts on JSK: Looking at beyond the current TEA-3, dollars available for bike and pedestrian activ- making the federal government an and thinking progressively about the trans- ities. That’s a step in the right direction but effective partner in creating livable communities. Currently, Blumenauer portation program, sustainable develop- part of what we want to do with the reautho- serves on the Transportation and ment is becoming a big topic in transporta- rization beyond TEA-3 with the notion of sus- Infrastructure Committee and the tion circles. The MTA recently implemented tainable development, is to ensure the health International Relations Committee. He a sustainable development program for of the community that goes beyond the envi- founded the Livable Communities Task transit under the leadership of Mysore ronmental. Force and the Bi-Partisan Congressional Nagaraja who heads the capital program Bike Caucus, and is an active member of company in New York. You’ve been at the It’s very important to go back to intermodal the House Sustainable Development forefront of sustainable development across comprehensive planning as early as possible in Caucus. His unrelenting advocacy for the US and traveling to the UN World the process. One area that I feel very strong- livable communities and effective citi- Summit on Sustainable Development a few ly about is the air, rail, road interconnection zen participation is helping to create a years ago and on a more local level estab- and, coming from my community, marine as nationally recognized Livable Communities movement. lishing the City Council Office of well. We’ve got freeways, an international Sustainability in Portland. What do you airport, passenger and freight rail, all kinds of think can be done to make our transporta- converging on Portland. We can coax a lot tion and transit projects more sustainable more capacity out of it. We don’t want every

(Continued on page 14)

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 3 4 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

EDITORIAL

BROAD LEADERSHIP IS NEEDED TO PASS THE MTA CAPITAL PLAN

BY ELLIOT G. SANDER

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is testimony given by Elliot G. Sander before a January 24, 2005 joint hearing of the New York State Senate Finance and Assembly Ways and Means Committees on Governor Pataki's proposed 2005 Transportation Executive Budget.

Good morning. I am Elliot Sander, and I am testifying today in This report was augmented by a study we released at the Rudin my role as Co-Chairman of the Empire State Transportation Center in December, authored by Rosemary Scanlon, formerly Alliance, otherwise known as ESTA. ESTA is a coalition of the chief economist of the Port Authority and Deputy State leading downstate business, labor, and civic organizations Comptroller. Titled "At Capacity: The Need for More Rail Access concerned with transportation policy. Members of ESTA include the Regional Plan Association, the League of Conservation Voters, the Straphangers Campaign, the Long “New York State cannot afford to Island Association, New York Building Congress, the General Contractors Association, the New York Real Estate Board, the relive that period when a truck fell Association for a Better New York (ABNY), the American through the elevated West Side Automobile Association, and the Transport Workers Union, Highway, when the Schoharie Bridge amongst others. ESTA worked closely with the Governor and the State Legislature in the passage of the last MTA Five Year collapsed...when subway, commuter Plan, and the development of the transportation plan for rail, and bus service deteriorated to Lower after 9/11. horrible levels, and when subway and

I would like to make two points in my testimony this morning. bus shops literally collapsed.”

The first point I would like to make is the clear and compelling case to pass the Five-Year MTA Capital Program the MTA has recommended, and the need to make comparable investments to the Manhattan CBD," our report concluded that without the in our bridge, highway, rail and aviation system. system capacity projects proposed by the MTA, the economic growth of the State's economic engine, the Manhattan CBD, Last fall I served on the New York State Advisory Panel on will be severely truncated. Obviously, this will have significant Transportation Policy for 2025, a bi-partisan commission con- economic, political, and policy implications, endangering New sisting of representatives from business, labor, academe, and York City's ability to maintain its position as the leading global the civic community. After a series of extensive hearings commercial center. around the state, and an in-depth review of relevant litera- ture, our panel concluded that the economic future and qual- As the New York Advisory Panel on Transportation Policy on ity of life of our state will deteriorate without,"... bold lead- 2025 concluded, "It is essential that the State take bold and ership and substantial new investments of tens of billions of decisive action to ensure that the infrastructure of the Empire dollars in the next five years. The trouble that is on the hori- State does not slip back to the deplorable conditions of the zon will have immediate ramifications on the citizens and 1980s. During that time in the State's history, years of poor businesses throughout the state. If bold leadership is not planning and under investment led to a crumbling infrastruc- shown and adequate, meaningful funding is not provided, the ture, unsafe travel and unreliable service." infrastructure will deteriorate, the economy will falter, jobs will be lost, and the quality of life in New York State will suf- New York State cannot afford to relive that period when a truck fer dramatically." fell through the elevated West Side Highway, when the VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

Schoharie Bridge collapsed, when we had to In discussions between our ESTA coalition MTA FACTS & FIGURES close the Williamsburg Bridge and curtail and the Governor's Office, we have been subway service on the Manhattan Bridge, told that this is the beginning of the MTA Budget Forecasts, when we had 20 subway derailments a year, process, and that there is a sincere com- 2004-2008 when subway, commuter rail, and bus serv- mitment by the Governor, working closely Cash Surplus/(Deficit) in millions ice deteriorated to horrible levels, and with the Legislature, to achieve a level of when subway and bus shops literally col- 2004 $329 lapsed. On a personal note, when I was 2005 $31 General Manager of the Manhattan bus sys- 2006 ($695) tem in the 1980s, three of our facilities, “And who can deny the 2007 ($801) the 54th Street, 100th Street, and 132nd need to invest in system 2008 ($1,151) Street bus garages, suffered catastrophic capacity expansion for a structural failures, with extensive floor col- network that has not Surplus/(Deficit) as % of Revenues lapses and other deterioration that ren- grown in over 60 years?” 2004 4.4% dered these facilities inoperable. Do we 2005 0.4% really want to return to those conditions? 2006 -9.2% 2007 -10.4% Conversely, who can deny the role the fiscal support that will adequately fund our 2008 -14.8% rebuilding of our transit and highway system transportation system. There is a clear has had on the renaissance the downstate recognition that this is a difficult political Debt Service as % of Revenues New York region has experienced in the last challenge, and if we are to succeed, we ten years. The Rudin Center has just com- will all have to act as partners. 2004 12% pleted an analysis for the MTA, which will 2005 16% 2006 19% be released shortly, that clearly documents The Governor has signaled his recognition 2007 19% the extraordinary impact and benefits we that new revenues will have to be identi- 2008 20% have reaped from the investment the fied to do this by his proposed increases in Governor and Legislature began in our tran- the MRT and vehicle registration fees. In MTA Capital Program, sit system 20 years ago. At what price do we turn, the members of our coalition, from 2005-2009 walk away from that success? And, who can business leaders to transit advocates, have (in Billions of Dollars) deny the need to invest in system capacity indicated that they are all willing to do Core Program expansion for a network that has not grown their share, so long as the pain is allo- in over 60 years? Do we want to say, New cated fairly. New York City Transit $12.13 York will not grow in the future? Railroad $2.43 In conclusion, the members of the ESTA Metro-North Railroad $1.41 The second point I would like to make is the coalition stand ready to work with the Bridges & Tunnels $1.26 need for bold leadership. Legislature and Governor to realize the Total $17.23 recommendations of the Transportation System Expansion A little more than twenty years ago, the 2025 panel and the MTA Chairman. Failure Legislature provided that bold leadership is not option. Otherwise, we will simply be East Side Access $4.60 2nd Avenue Subway which saved our transportation system. The back here five years from now, the choices $2.83 7 Extension $1.99 Legislature, together with the Governor, will be even more painful, the economic, Lower Manhattan JFK Link $0.40 need to act with the same commitment and political, and policy consequences will be Administration $0.12 vision as it did then. significant, and we will be taking a risk Total $9.94 with the State's future that we cannot It is understandable that some State afford to do. Other Legislators have questioned the magnitude Total $0.64 of the request made by the MTA. $27 billion Total Cost of Capital Plan is a very large sum of money, particularly $27.8 Billion with the other claims being made on the State's funds. However, together, we must Sources: Alan Treffeisen, “Running on address the question, what is the level of Elliot G. Sander is Director of the Empty: The MTA’s 2005 Budget and funding and program activity that will NYU Wagner Rudin Center for Financial Plan,” Independent Budget ensure the State's economic growth. Office (Nov. 2005); Alexis Perrota, Transportation Policy & Management, “Financing Options for the MTA and Senior Vice President at DMJM Capital Program,” Regional Plan Harris. Association (Oct. 2004)

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 5 6 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

THE BOROUGHS OF NEW YORK —

AUNIQUE ISLAND WITH UNIQUE TRANSPORTATION ISSUES

B Y J EFFREY M. ZUPAN, P.E. “Staten Island has been the subject of numerous studies and There is little question that when it comes to transportation reports, but nothing seems to issues in the New York Region, Staten Island is unique. It is part of New York City, but closer geographically to New Jersey. It is change much, with the Island a suburban in character, unlike the other boroughs. The New York captive of its geographic and City subway system, so ubiquitous in the other four boroughs, is absent on Staten Island. Unlike the Bronx, Brooklyn or political status.” Queens it is separated from the Region's core, Manhattan, not by a narrow river, but by five miles or more of water. Yet, over 30 percent of Staten Island's workers work in Manhattan, rep- captive of its geographic and political status. In recent times, resenting a daily challenge to both its commuters and to trans- the Island has been the subject of an MTA New York City Transit portation providers. (NYCT) study of its transit system (1995), and an independent study by Regional Plan Association (2001), which focused on Staten Island is also a corridor county, at the center of the internal transportation needs. New York State Department of highway network that connects the entire nation to Brooklyn, Transportation (NYSDOT) has been examining what to do with the Queens and the rest of Long Island. Unlike the other islands Staten Island Expressway, the prime route from New Jersey to that are part of New York City, a toll payment is required to Brooklyn. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is revis- drive to or from Staten Island. Its one ferry line, the legendary iting how to replace the inadequate Goethals Bridge, after hav- Staten Island ferry, is the only publicly operated free transit ing been thwarted in their attempt to construct a "twin" to it. In service in the Region. Although free, it is slow and infrequent. Brooklyn, NYSDOT has been struggling with whether and how to Staten Island has its own rail line, the MTA Staten Island replace the Gowanus Expressway, a road used by many who live, Railway, but unlike the other parts of the Region's rail network, work, and travel through Staten Island. it is disconnected from the others. More recently, the College of Staten Island prepared a compre- Staten Island has a street system that is narrow and difficult to hensive transportation report, which suggests many alternatives, negotiate and a limited-access highway network devoted dis- most needing more careful analysis to prove their worth. The proportionately to through traffic, leading to slow travel local- Staten Island Chamber of Commerce has decided to use this ly and congested roadways for long distance and off-island auto study as a springboard for action and has wisely begun to involve trips. Its bus service is forced to contend with the same the implementing agencies in a review of the recommendations clogged roads and highways, offering little incentive for the in the report. (The Chamber has been meeting with the trans- driver to switch to transit. portation agencies for these purposes.)

All this adds up to Staten Island having all of the traffic con- The following provides this author's perspective on the more gestion of a mature suburb, compounded by its political door- short-term and feasible ideas for improving mobility for Staten mat status, high costs and poor transit service. Compounding Islanders. this is its rapid growth brought upon largely by the completion of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in 1964 — since 1960 the Buses Island's population has almost doubled. Reflecting its suburban-type environment, Staten Island has 25 express bus routes to Manhattan, the most operated by NYCT The island has been the subject of numerous studies and from any borough, as well as 33 local bus routes. The increased reports, but nothing seems to change much, with the Island a population density of Staten Island offers opportunities for more VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

attractive and cost-effective bus services. The relatively infrequent service of both the (Letter from the Editor Cont.) NYCT could consider instituting new bus ferry and the SIR is a deterrent to transit hearing of the New York State Senate service and increase bus service frequency use. NYCT could examine the feasibility of Finance and Assembly Ways and Means for routes at times of day when service is providing more frequent service tied to Committees. In his testimony, Mr. lacking in those residential neighborhoods more frequent Staten Island Ferry service, Sander emphasized the need for bold state leadership to provide sufficient where densities warrant. This can be done as well as speed up SIR express service from funding for the Five-Year MTA Capital after a thorough analysis of residential den- key stations. Program and to make comparable sities, residents’ travel patterns. investments in the Region's bridge, highway, rail and aviation systems. The MTA could modify bus routes to serve as Mr. Sander warned about returning to Similarly, NYCT could consider providing new feeders to SIR stations, where cost-effec- past intolerable conditions of unreli- service to the Staten Island Mall from points tive. This will expand the reach of the only able transit services that resulted from the previous underfunding of the in the northern portions of the Island. The rail line on the Island and attract more rides transit system's capital needs. agency could also consider modifying bus at little added cost. routes to the College of Staten Island after a With respect to Federal funding, Janette Sadik-Khan interviews review of the residential patterns of stu- Currently, there is no fare on the SIR for Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) dents conducted with the College. trips not made to or from St. George. This on the state of the proposals to reau- policy was instituted because of the high thorize the federal transportation funding programs. Senator Downtown Brooklyn is an important work trip cost of manual fare collection. But this pol- Blumenauer, a founder of Rail destination for Staten Islanders. Some are icy is contrary to good management prac- Volution, provides his views on the required to travel through convoluted transit tices and public policy. Furthermore, a fare role of metropolitan areas, inter- modalism, the proposed “Small travel patterns requiring numerous trans- system could help pay for the new service Starts” program, transportation secu- fers. The MTA could determine the feasibili- improvements. A fare could be re-installed rity, and Smart Growth. ty of express bus service to downtown using a proof of payment system that In the continuation of our Boroughs Brooklyn from selected neighborhoods on requires little added manpower, while series, we focus in this edition of the Staten Island. charging a fair and equitable price for serv- Journal on Staten Island. The Staten ice. Proof of payment systems are state of Island Chamber of Commerce has been pressing for implementation of The slowest bus route segments could be the art throughout the country and one is actions to address the island’s conges- identified as part of the Bus Rapid Transit being successfully used in the metropolitan tion and mobility issues. Jeffrey Study just begun by the NYCDOT and the region on the Hudson Bergen Light Rail Zupan of the Regional Plan Association supplies some perspective MTA, along with the causes of their slow Transit (HBLRT). and recommendations. speed, so that remedial action can be devised in cooperation with Borough Highways and Tolls The Rudin Center has been very busy in the past few months and the President. Specific remedies to slow speeds The I-278 Corridor is a congested route that Journal reports on some major activi- could be identified, such as prohibiting left connects New Jersey with Long Island run- ties. Allen Zerkin reports and com- turns during selected times, more effective ning east-west through Staten Island and ments on a highly successful session titled “Collaborative Planning for parking enforcement, and if not in commer- Brooklyn. The Staten Island segment of I-278 Land Use and Transportation: Lessons cial areas, curbside parking bans. In this is known locally as the Staten Island Learned from Pilot Sustainable regard, NYCT could coordinate with NYCDOT Expressway. The MTA's Verrazano-Narrows Development Studies in the New York Metropolitan Region.” The Rudin to devise a means to expand the bus prefer- Bridge and Port Authority of New York and Center held the session jointly with ential treatment on Victory Boulevard to New Jersey's Goethals Bridge provide con- the New York Metropolitan give buses signal preemption. nections on I-278 to Brooklyn and New Transportation Council. Allison C. de Cerreño summarizes lessons learned Jersey, respectively. The Port Authority also from a Rudin Center study on High- It is essential that NYCT and NYCDOT work provides connections to New Jersey through Speed Rail. Key among them are the with the local communities and businesses to the OuterBridge Crossing and the Bayonne need for federal government leader- ship, clarity on who is reaping the gain their support as these changes are put Bridge. benefits, strong institutional support, in place. and clear goals. Unlike most of its other river crossings, The Staten Island Railway (SIR) We hope you find the articles inform- MTA Verrazano Bridge tolls are charged one- ative. The SIR operates along the north-south spine way, causing substantial congestion at the of Staten Island, feeding the Staten Island toll booths, which are located on Staten Ferry at St. George. New service approaches for improving SIR service and charging fares Jeffrey M. Zupan, P.E., is Senior to pay for them could increase ridership and Fellow for Transportation for the mitigate traffic congestion. Regional Plan Association.

(Continued on page 12)

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 7 8 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

BEYOND THE REGION

HIGH SPEED RAIL IN THE UNITED STATES

BY ALLISON L. C. DE CERREÑO, PH.D.

Last year, the Rudin Center was awarded its first grant from the Mineta Transportation Institute in San José, California and Allison C. de Cerreño was made a Research Associate of the Institute. The study funded by the grant resulted in the peer- reviewed report, High-Speed Rail Project in the United States: Identifying the Elements of Success, that will be published by the Institute in spring 2005. The article that follows is based on the findings and recommendations presented in the report.

Courtesy of www.toursgallery.com

Since the 1960s, high speed rail (HSR) has held the promise of Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 fast, convenient, and environmentally sound travel. In 1964, (ISTEA), which called for the selection and designation of five Japan was the first country to deploy HSR, with the shinkansen high speed rail corridors around the United States. In October bullet train between Tokyo and Osaka that ran at 169 miles per 1992, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Andrew Card, Jr. hour (mph). Two decades later, France deployed its TGV announced the designations of the following high speed rail cor- between Paris and Lyon running at 188 mph; this was soon fol- ridors: Midwest (renamed the Chicago Hub), Florida, California, lowed by Germany's Intercity Express (ICE), which also Southeast, and the Pacific Northwest. Seven years later, Section reached 188 mph. More recently, South Korea has begun HSR 1103(c) of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century service and Taiwan will follow shortly, the former using French (TEA-21) authorized six additional corridor designations, though technology and the latter, Japanese. to date only five additional designations have been made, including the following: Gulf Coast; Keystone; Empire State; South Central; and Northern New England. (Amtrak's Northeast A Very Brief History of HSR in the United States Corridor is not a federally-designated HSR Corridor though it Experience with HSR in the United States has been markedly links or has the potential to link to several.) different than in Europe or Asia, not just in terms of the notable lack of progress in most cases, but also in terms of the Forty years after the initial High Speed Ground Transportation specific goals and definitions of HSR. The goal in the United Act, there are only two examples of HSR systems fully imple- States, for example, has not been to replicate European or mented (along Amtrak's Northeast Corridor between Washington, DC and Boston, and the Empire Corridor between Asian HSR systems, but to incrementally improve on current New York City and Albany), and whether these are truly HSR is U.S. rail systems and equipment. Further, HSR is defined in the a source of debate. Since the early 1980s, there have been 13 United States in two ways — either according to speed (denot- separate HSR efforts around the country. Some, like the efforts ed as anything over 90 mph by the U.S. Department of to implement HSR in the Texas Triangle between Dallas, Houston Transportation — far short of HSR elsewhere in the world) or and San Antonio, have clearly failed. Others, like the federally- according to whether it has sufficient market penetration and designated South Central Corridor have made little or no is competitive with airplanes and automobiles. progress to date; still others continue to make some fitful progress. A recent study completed by the NYU Wagner Rudin Congress first authorized studies aimed at deploying HSR with Center, and funded by the Mineta Transportation Institute, examined several of these cases — California, Florida, and the the High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965. Almost Pacific Northwest — and identified lessons and themes for con- three decades later, this was followed by Section 1010 of the sideration that could help in future efforts to successfully VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

develop and implement HSR. The three Context: While California and the Pacific TYPES OF HIGH SPEED RAIL cases offered some interesting counter- Northwest states have a history of reliance on points: rail and public transit, Florida has always been focused on automobiles and highways. INCREMENTAL HIGH SPEED RAIL New Versus Incremental HSR: California's Furthermore, Florida's debates on HSR have (ACCELERAIL) efforts are aimed at new HSR while the occurred within a culture that is patently anti- Pacific Northwest is focused on incremental personal and anti-property tax, leading to HSR, and Florida has competing plans for ongoing difficulties in determining how funds both. would be raised for such a major initiative. Voter Involvement: Florida and California Lessons for Success voters have been heavily involved in the debates over HSR in their respective states. After examining the three cases, and provid- ing some broader assessment of the remaining Indeed, in 1984 Florida's legislature passed Courtesy of www.trainweb.org an Act aimed at developing an HSR system. 10, several findings, lessons, and themes for consideration were identified. Accelerail trains, like Amtrak’s ACELA This was followed by a voter-approved Express, generally utilize existing Constitutional Amendment in 2000 requiring technologies and rights of way, but that a system able to run at speeds in excess The Role of Federal Leadership. Chief among make improvements to allow for speeds up to 150 mph (though in the of 120 mph be implemented, beginning no the lessons learned is the need for more lead- ership by the federal government, both in United States, most projects are aim- later than November 1, 2003. The ing for 110 mph) using either electri- Amendment was repealed by the voters in terms of vision and funding. With respect to fied or non-electrified systems. November 2004, after a massive campaign the latter, rail (both passenger and freight supported by Governor Jeb Bush and his rail) has long been neglected relative to other state's Chief Financial Officer, Thomas transportation modes as the "myth" that rail- NEW HIGH SPEED RAIL Gallagher. roads can pay for themselves is perpetuated. (HSR) High speed rail initiatives suffer from this same lack of willingness to provide public sup- port. Florida, for example, is mired in debates “There is an overarch- over how the project can be paid for without ing need for a national any public funds.

network strategy for In terms of vision, at the very least, federal rail — one that combines guidance and standards for successful models are needed. Without this, states have filled Courtesy of www.frenchculture.org passenger, freight and the void with a multitude of models ranging New high speed rail trains, like the high speed rail in the from constitutional amendments and legisla- French TGV, require new rights-of-way tion (like Florida and California) to multi-state and imported technologies currently United States as well as compacts (like the Pacific Northwest, which utilized in Asia or Europe, that allow a vision for how rail has been particularly difficult to achieve for speeds of over 200 mph. without federal involvement), to public-pri- connects to and interre- vate partnerships, without a sense of what is most likely to succeed. MAGNETIC LEVITATION lates with all the other (MAGLEV) modes around the More importantly, there is an overarching nation...” need for a national network strategy for rail — one that combines passenger, freight and high speed rail in the United States as well as a

Scope of Involvement: Of the three, only (Continued on page 13) the Pacific Northwest involves more than one state; indeed, it includes more than one country since the Corridor runs from Courtesy of news.bbc.co.uk Allison L. C. de Cerreño, Ph.D., is Eugene, Oregon to Vancouver, British Co-Director of the Rudin Center for Magnetic levitation trains, like this one from Shanghai, China, do away Columbia, via Seattle, Washington. Yet, the Transportation Policy & Management cases in Florida and California demonstrate with steel-wheel-on-steel-rail and at the NYU Robert F. Wagner allow for speeds in excess of 300 mph. that even efforts within a single state often Graduate School of Public Service. meet with great difficulties.

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 9 10 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL RUDIN CENTER POLICY EVENT

COLLABORATIVE PLANNING FOR LAND USE AND TRANSPORTATION CAN BE SUCCESSFUL FOR ALL

B Y A LLEN J. ZERKIN, J.D. “Many public officials are loath to embark upon consensus build- ing, perhaps out of an inchoate The Rudin Center hosted a program on September 15, 2004 fear of the unknown and/or titled “Collaborative Planning for Land Use and Transportation: Lessons Learned from Pilot Sustainable skepticism that the stakeholders Development Studies in the New York Metropolitan Region.” are going to prove capable of The program was held at NYU’s Kimmel Center and was, according to Gerry Bogacz, program moderator and Director of seeing eye-to-eye.” Planning at the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council (NYMTC), the first step in the evaluation of the four current pilot studies. involved five towns and nine villages in Suffolk County regarding similar issues, writ large (visioning complete, scenario modeling In many communities in the region, growth is overwhelming nearing completion); and Thom Kleiner, Supervisor, Town of the capacity of local roads and transit systems and threatens Orangetown, NY, whose pilot is focused on Route 303 in the communities’ character and livability. Four such communities Rockland County community (an overlay zone was passed by the have been attempting to cope with those challenges by taking town board, and implementation planning is underway). The an integrated, collaborative approach to land use and trans- fourth panel member was Robert Dennison, Hudson Valley portation planning. Called pilot Sustainable Development Regional Director, NYSDOT and Chair of NYMTC's Program Finance Studies, they combine “technical analysis with public out- & Administration Committee. reach” and strive to “build a consensus vision,” “develop plans for its implementation” and “advance interagency and inter- There are many reasons to undertake consensus building when municipal coordination.” attempting to address complex planning problems. For example, stakeholder participation ensures that granular local knowledge is Bogacz enumerated the following elements of the approach: taken into account, which makes decisions wiser and increases the likelihood that there will be no opposition to them when they Build on New York State Department of Transportation’s are finally reached. (NYSDOT) Arterial Access Management Program; Bring local officials and transportation agencies to the Nonetheless, many public officials are loath to embark upon con- table; sensus building, perhaps out of an inchoate fear of the unknown Include all aspects of transportation and land use planning; and/or out of skepticism that the stakeholders are going to prove Use community visioning as a basis for consensus building; capable of seeing eye-to-eye. (“If you knew these people,” Use computer simulation modeling to test future scenarios potential process sponsors are often heard to say, “you’d under- coming out of the visioning; and stand why we are reluctant to try this!”) Build final consensus around the modeling results. While that is undeniably a risk — and to their credit, Supervisors Three of the four pilot communities were represented on the Cooper and Kleiner embraced the opportunity despite them — the panel, each by a leader of the process: Linda Cooper, reality is that consensus building processes often flounder for Supervisor of the Town of Yorktown, NY, one of three much more mundane reasons, as the panelists attested. One Westchester municipalities working together on traffic flow on problem, with at least two variants, is the difficulty of sustaining Routes 202/35/6 and the Bear Mountain Parkway (their study participation over the course of what is likely to be a long is complete, and the findings are to be discussed at a joint process. One variant concerns all-volunteer citizen organiza- meeting of municipal officials); Gene Cross, Co-Chairperson, tions. In many cases, these groups are among the critical stake- East End Transportation Council, representing a pilot that has holders, and their leading members may be either unable or VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

unwilling to commit the time to the process. Inducing collaboration is always challenging. Rudin Center Worse, an individual may actually begin the Citing his initial hope that the carrot of fed- Highlights process, only to withdraw later when the eral funding might induce commitment to commitment is found to be too onerous. the process, Bogacz said that it was not Since the early stages of the process are so clear that this had had a discernible effect. important — the participants build working This conclusion is not surprising. While the SAVE THE DATE relationships and group cohesion and jointly benefits of collaboration may be apparent, move up the learning curve (Bogacz rightly they are long-term, and while selfishness or Wednesday, April 20, 2005 emphasizes “starting with a blank canvas” intransigence may ultimately be self-defeat- 8:30 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. and collaboratively engaging in technical ing, the temptation to “play politics” for Planning and Design with analysis), the withdrawal of a key member, short-term gain is strong. While organizers Communities in Mind: at the least, sets the process back, and, at of consensus building processes should not Context-Sensitive worst, completely undermines it. be naïve about this — it cannot be assumed Solutions in our Region that the benefits of collaboration to the One way to address this issue, albeit poten- community at large is going to be enough to tially an expensive one, is to find the funds insure good faith participation in the process that will enable such an organization to hire — it is not a reason to give up on collabora- someone to represent it. Typically, the tion. What is needed is a clear-headed and CURRENT PUBLICATIONS money would come from public sources or tough-minded strategic approach. foundations. In some cases, it may be possi- Choices at a Critical ble to have it contributed by some or all of The organizer of a consensus process needs Junction: New York’s the other participants. to think about the full range of incentives Mobility and Highway and disincentives that will impinge on the Infrastructure Needs for The second variant, often fatal, concerns players’ choices. One way to reduce the risk 2005-2010 changes to the cast of political characters. that someone will subvert the process is to The duration of a process can be long enough do a case assessment beforehand. Through by Bruce Schaller that elected and appointed office holders interviews with key stakeholders and knowl- may be replaced mid-course. The new play- edgeable observers, such an assessment may ers may lack commitment to the process — be able to alert the organizers to potential At Capacity: and although they may continue to partici- problems. It may also be able to recommend The Need for More Rail pate, do so half-heartedly — or may change strategies for addressing the problems (or it Access to the policies related to the issues themselves. may conclude that it is not advisable to com- Manhattan CBD mence the process). Process organizers can try to lessen this risk by Rosemary Scanlon and by seeking to have public bodies represent- One such strategy is based on understanding Edward S. Seeley Jr. ed at a more stable staff level, and by tim- community networks. Once one has identi- ing the process to take place entirely within fied which individuals have a questionable an election cycle. commitment to collaboration, one should try Context Sensitive to identify the individuals whose opinion Solutions in Large The panelists also cited the challenge posed matters to them. The latter can then be Central Cities by the vagaries of local politics. Some par- recruited, directly or through others, to ticipants will come to the process with agen- serve on a convening committee. Other by Allison L. C. de Cerreño das — for example, a local official, or aspir- members of this committee would include and Isabella Pierson ing local official, more interested in scoring well-regarded community “elders” or rhetorical points with constituents than “statesmen” who are now above the politi- making compromises. The more jurisdictions cal fray. The visible endorsement of and con- involved, the more difficult the problem is tinued interest in the process by such a likely to be, as Gene Cross discovered on the group can constrain bad behavior. In process- East End. es involving multiple jurisdictions, the strat- For more information egy can be implemented with "elders" from on events or publications, each community and with political officials please call 212-998-7545 or visit our website at: and civic leaders whose spheres of interest Allen J. Zerkin is is Adjunct wagner.nyu.edu/rudincenter Associate Professor at NYU's Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. (Continued on page 15)

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 11 12

(A Unique Island Cont.)

Island. The MTA has planned in its capital program the revamping of the toll plazas. The MTA could consider remov- ing the one-way tolls on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in favor of high-speed toll lanes collecting tolls in both directions. This would include eliminating the moveable arms at the crossing. The proposed revamping of the toll plazas presents an oppor- tunity to accomplish this. The effect would be to lessen con- gestion in both directions at the Bridge and to more evenly distribute traffic in other boroughs without adding to traffic volumes on Staten Island. The use of E-ZPass had eliminated the reason for the two-way tolls put in place to move the back-ups and resulting air pollution of Staten Island neighbor- hoods.

Another way to relieve traffic congestion on the Staten Island Expressway, especially related to truck traffic would be to Courtesy of www.nycroads.com extend the successful Port Authority policy of variable time of Tolls on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge are only charged on the day pricing on its three crossings to the three Brooklyn-bound side, creating congestion on the Staten Island side. Port Authority bridges to Staten Island and to the Verrazano- Narrows Bridge. More frequent and faster ferry service could be established from The New York State Department of Transportation’s Staten St. George, possibly using smaller vessels, and including a fare to Island Expressway study concluded that a bus lane is warrant- cover a portion of the added operating costs. ed on the highway. It may be more effective to allow both car- pools of three or more on the facility, and if not fully occu- These concepts for ferry improvements could be part of a more pied, permit single-occupant vehicles to use it too if they pay comprehensive and independent look at ferry services in the Tri- a toll, creating the Region's first high-occupancy/toll lanes. State Region.

The numerous studies underway in the I-278 corridor pose the Rail Expansion danger of the studies working at cross purposes. Therefore, a In recent years the idea of reinstituting service on the long-aban- working group among all seven agencies involved in planning doned Northern Branch of the SIR has been discussed. Similarly, the corridor could be established, covering the stretch from the concept of expanding the HBLRT from Bayonne to Staten the New Jersey Turnpike through Staten Island to Brooklyn. Island has raised some interest. However, with limited funding The group would address issues of capacity and compatibility for “new rail starts” projects, these projects are years off, even of tolls viewed from a regional context. if they prove to be cost-effective.

Ferries Process In the last few years, there has been a surge in ferry opera- Each of the transportation improvements proposed above, as tions throughout the New York-New Jersey Region. Yet service well as those proposed by others have their price of implemen- from Staten Island, the one area without a direct connection tation. The means could be established on Staten Island to dis- to Manhattan, remains unchanged. cuss transportation needs among all stakeholders and the conse- quent capital and operating costs associated with proposed pro- New high-speed premium ferry services from the Raritan Bay grams. The Staten Island Chamber of Commerce has taken the area of New Jersey to Lower and Midtown Manhattan have first step in advancing the discussion. Nevertheless, as part of been highly successful in fast ferry services. These services these discussions it is crucial to convince citizens and elected have substantially cut commuting times for their customers. and appointed officials that financing transportation is in dire Such services could be established from points other than St. crisis and that it does little good to propose added expenses George to the Battery Marine Terminal and other locations in without responsibly considering how to pay for the added pro- Lower Manhattan such as the World Financial Center and the grams and projects. new terminals being constructed in Midtown Manhattan. Additionally, park and ride sites on Staten Island that do not conflict with neighborhood and waterfront open space needs would have to be identified. VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

(High Speed Rail Cont.) RUDIN CENTER SUPPORTERS, 2005 vision for how rail connects to and interre- an effort, institutionalized support is criti- lates with all the other modes around the cal for sustaining the effort and for success- nation and how it all might be funded. fully implementing HSR. Without institu- The NYU Wagner Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management Otherwise, the nation will continue to miss tional buy-in for a project as well as the acknowledges the following entities for critical opportunities for key linkages and authority and responsibility to identify, their generous support in 2005. enhancing efficiency, not just for high gather, and manage funding, and the speed rail, but for regular passenger rail responsibility for and capability of seeing a Benefactors and for freight transport as well. project through, many HSR projects fail as soon as the key supporter or visionary Rudin Family Defining Cost. When cost-benefit analyses leaves. Indeed, it was this very frustration Con Edison are developed for high speed rail, the focus that led Florida voters to approve the General Contractors tends to be on the bottom line — how much Constitutional amendment requiring the Association of New York, money will be put in and how much will be building of HSR. However, as is seen in the Inc. generated. As long as one looks at cost as case of Florida, a Constitutional amend- Metropolitan Transportation purely “bottom-line driven,” we are unlike- ment and/or legislative acts alone still can- Authority ly to see high speed rail in the United not take the place of the need for institu- States given the capital investment needed tionalized support, since the former can New York Metropolitan Transportation Council to build such systems. However, a broader still be challenged and overturned by suc- tabulation that includes other costs borne cessive governments as well as other stake- New York State Laborers’ Employers’ Cooperation by the transportation system as well as the holders. and Education Trust Fund public as a whole under the “no-build” or “modal alternative” options often yields a Technologies and Approaches. Finally, Port Authority of New York & New Jersey vastly different picture. whether to develop a new HSR or an incre- University Transportation mental HSR system is very much dependent Research Center Related to this is the need to be very clear upon what it is one hopes to accomplish and on not just the goals of the particular HSR the context within which one is working. Sponsors and Contributors project, but on who is really reaping the For example, if the goal is to increase the Bombardier Transportation benefits. For example, in the Florida case, numbers of commuters utilizing rail instead DMJM Harris the central concern has revolved around of automobile to minimize highway conges- who should bear the risk for a project that tion, the key is to increase frequency and Parsons Brinckerhoff, Inc. is essentially being described as having a reliability of service, reduce travel times, Patrons and Friends public benefit but looking for private dol- and make the system more accessible. Such lars. The private sector would like to see goals may be better met with an incremen- ARUP the state bear more of the risk, while the tal approach that invests in station and Booz Allen Hamilton state would like the private sector and the equipment improvements, fixing curves and Empire State Development federal government to assume more risk. If improving tracks, and enhancing signals, International Union of there are truly public benefits to an HSR rather than new HSR. Alternatively, if one is Operating Engineers, project, then arguing for only private fund- trying to relieve air congestion between Local Union 15, A-D ing makes no sense and such projects are urban areas to free up space for more long- LiRo Group unlikely to succeed. If however, the public distance flights, a new HSR system linking benefits are questionable, then private key urban areas might be the better New York Building funding is a better choice. approach. However, such discussions do not Congress always occur; often the decision to pursue Constantine Sidamon-Eristoff Institutionalized Support. In many cases, one approach versus another is based more STV Incorporated the spark for building HSR has begun with a on political factors than on a clear assess- Thornton Tomasetti Group particular person in a particular state. For ment and explanation of what the specific example, it was Governor Bob Graham in goals are and how best to meet them. Transport Workers Union Local 100 Florida who visited Japan back in 1976 and believed Florida should have a similar sys- Opportunities Exist URS tem. Similarly, in California, several legisla- Washington Group Opportunities for both incremental and new tive leaders visited Europe and Japan and HSR exist in the United States and have for returned with the same sentiments. While the initial vision is important for beginning (Continued on page 15)

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 13 14 NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL

(Transportation as National Policy Cont.) community feeling like they have to be a deep water port or that It is clear that the voters did not intend to eliminate the protec- they have to add a third runway. Probably $3-4B in passenger rail tions that they have come to take for granted for their neighbor- improvements will probably save $15B, and I may be understating hoods and the environment. It was a very attractive ballot title it, in air infrastructure. that said if you take something, you ought to pay for it. Now we are finding out the details, what is a taking, what does it do to your JSK: What are you thoughts on transportation security in the neighbors, who qualifies for it, how do you calibrate it? It is, to say United States and port security more particularly? the least, a bonanza for lawyers. But it truly is vexing and it’s too early to tell what is going to happen. This is part of what we saw EB: Well, I think there is going to be a lot of soul searching here occur to states that have the initiative process, Oregon, over the next three or four years. You may know, this was a con- Washington and California being most notable, where activists cern I had for a long time. In fact I had been working on transit have been able to take a chainsaw to the revenue structures by security well in advance of 9/11 and had introduced legislation. We having attractive sounding ballot measures that pass with dramat- couldn’t get a hearing or a bill, it was slow going. It just didn’t hap- ically unintended consequences but are very difficult omelets to pen despite statistics showing that forty percent of international unscramble. terrorist acts were on subways, buses, streetcars. On September 13th, we had a hearing and in a matter of days, our provisions on transit security were dropped in their entirety into the Patriot Act. “Experts can identify points That was an egregious piece of legislation that I voted against, but it’s kind of interesting that at least there was some acknowledge- of vulnerability that are not ment of the importance of transportation security. It was more of solved by pulling some basic a reflex and I fear if we are not careful, transportation security could end up looking a lot like what we are doing with physical safety information off websites security in our nation’s capital where we’re just responding with and we do this stuff that more concrete and guns. will make no difference As somebody who was here in the Capital on September 11th, and to a dedicated terrorist.” lived through the anthrax scare, I’m not insensitive to the needs for security. I just think that most of this stuff is beside the point. We’re spending vast amounts of money, we’re making the city not work very well and we are making the dominant architectural This is one that has such profound implications and so many ambi- influence of this century Timothy McVee and Osama Bin Laden. I guities that there may be a possibility to take collective action in fear that we are moving in the same way in the area of trans- part because financial institutions are saying we are not going to portation security. We are still not x-raying what is in the hold of a make a loan for long-term investment in property that has been lot of airplanes right now. We're looking at only a tiny fraction of granted a waiver for a specific project. That’s a very slender lead the container traffic. There are a number of opportunities for peo- for them. In fact, they may not grant a loan to a neighboring prop- ple to sabotage transportation infrastructure right now. Experts erty that was granted a waiver because of the uncertainty in that can identify points of vulnerability that are not solved by pulling property. So these are things all of a sudden that people are swal- some basic safety information off of websites and we do this stuff lowing hard and understanding that it’s not just about a ninety-two that will make no difference to a dedicated terrorist. There is still year old lady being able to subdivide 20 acres into four lotsfor her so much that is unmet. I fear having some incident in one of these children and a little bit for her retirement. It may undermine areas of vulnerability that will just turn upside down container financial and environmental protections that people have taken for traffic for instance. I think we need to have a dispassionate risk granted. assessment, do less for show and deal with this freight movement. I think it's a much higher priority and I don't know that it's been We are in the middle of this now, having a discussion that many given the attention that it merits. tried to have before the election on what it meant and what the consequences were and it is too soon to tell what the results are. JSK: Turning to another topic, Portland’s progressive urban It is clear, however, that the values that underpin the land use boundaries legislation recently had a setback when voters planning process and protections remain. In fact, in focus group passed a bill requiring property owners to be compensated for after focus group, poll after poll, people did not connect the bal- the adverse effects on their land value created by the laws. How lot title with consequences on these protections. do you see this playing out? JSK: As William Safire recently said in The New York Times, EB: It is something that we’re in the midst of trying to sort out. “beware of those snappy sounding titles.” VOLUME VIII NO. 2 SPRING 2005

(High Speed Rail Cont.)

EB: There is some merit to the argument that many years, particularly along those cor- COUNCIL ON TRANSPORTATION facts seem to be playing less of a role in shap- ridors federally designated as HSR corri- dors. Indeed, a 1997 study by the Federal Representing major private and ing people’s perceptions of national policy and nonprofit sector organizations, the Railroad Administration concluded that this may be a local manifestation of that. Unless Council on Transportation is a “highspeed ground transportation [which and until this is brought forcefully home, I bipartisan group created by the includes HSR] could develop appreciable expect you are going to see it in a number of Rudin Center, committed to ridership.” The key will be getting at improving transportation in the states as activists around the country try and least one project fully implemented in a downstate New York region, export this model to other places. way that is clearly HSR (as opposed to especially in New York City. The those that have the capability of high Council acts as an Advisory Board to JSK: This is something that will be certainly speeds but only run at such speeds for the Rudin Center. talked about at Rail Volution. You are well small distances rather than at sustained Steve Greenfield, Chairman known as the founder of Rail Volution [see high speeds). Once a project is in revenue Constantine Sidamon-Eristoff, editor’s note], which is an organization that service, many of the concerns expressed Vice Chairman by critics, including ridership projections has grown and flourished, and attendance by Elliot Sander, Executive and whether HSR can work in a country New Yorkers is typically not as robust as it is Director where cars and air transport are domi- from other cities. I believe their high densi- nant, will be able to be addressed. Richard Anderson ties assure a strong transit/land use connec- Regina Armstrong tion. Why would they still benefit from Kevin Corbett attending Rail Volution? Allison C. de Cerreño John Dionisio Beverly Dolinsky EB: What we have tried to do with Rail Volution William Fahey is provide a forum for people to come together, John Falcocchio draw strength and encouragement, learn new Alan Friedberg ideas, forge alliances to make a difference on William Galligan (Collaborative Planning Cont.) the federal level with policy and at home with Gregory Hodkinson implementation. I continue to think that metro- José Holguín-Veras Mike Horodniceanu politan New York is one of the most interesting transcend the individual communities (e.g. Arthur Imperatore, Jr. challenges in the country. You continue to strug- county and regional leaders). Brian Ketcham gle with sprawl, fragmentation, lack of Carolyn Konheim resources, and as far as I can tell there is the Bogacz considers other lessons learned so Francis McArdle same sort of disconnect between regional gov- far to be that “a local champion is critical" James Melius ernment and state government, only it’s times and that the "community visioning has Mitchell Moss three. So I would think that people around the largely been successful.” While collabora- Robert Paaswell Henry Peyrebrune country would benefit from learning about the tive processes are not foolproof, front-end Steven Polan successes in the New York region and also convening work can inform how they can Richard Ravitch understanding those challenges because we are be structured so as to give them the great- Lucius Riccio all in this together. The fundamental principles est possible likelihood of success. The William Rudin that will help in metropolitan New York or leaders of the current pilots deserve cred- Gene Russianoff Chicago are also going to help in rural revital- it for their pioneering efforts. Further Janette Sadik-Khan ization. We’ve got to have the right tool kit, evaluation should yield more valu- Ross Sandler Bruce Schaller we’ve got to have the flexibility and we have to able insights that will enable other local Samuel Schwartz have allies who understand that this cannot be leaders to follow effectively in their Dom Servedio a zero sum game. That if we fund it right, if we footsteps. Roy Sparrow equip ourselves properly, everybody is going to Marilyn Taylor benefit. We all have a stake in the success of Ben Thompson our neighbors across the country. Ed Watt Roberta Weisbrod Michael Weiss Ed. Note: Rail Volution is a coalition of public and pri- Robert Yaro vate sector executives whose mission is to provide a forum that engages the public to build collaborative- Rae Zimmerman ly a diverse coalition dedicated to building livable Jeff Zupan communities with transit, through education, advo- cacy and increasing overall federal, state and local funds available for transit. Rail Volution will be held September 7-11 in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more information visit http://www.railvolution.com.

NEW YORK TRANSPORTATION JOURNAL 15 are presentedonanannualbasis: Yo bution tothefieldoftransportationwithinNew are honoredwhohavemadeasignificantcontri- T hosted theseventh Annual Leadershipin Center andtheCouncilon Transportation co- On February2,2005,theNYUWagner Rudin T H Dolinsky, ExecutiveDirector ofthePermanent honor fourcolleaguesintransportation. Beverly Ceremonies asover150individuals gatheredto sevent asMistressof presided overthisyear V As inyearspast,JanetteSadik-Khan,Senior transportation. ty toleadorfosterpositivechangeactionin role playedbyanindividualintheciviccommuni- transportation. standing achievementintheadvancementof of accomplishment. specific transportation-relatedprojectorhistory ransportation Awards. Eachyear, individuals ice PresidentatParsonsBrinckherhoff Inc., Civic Leadership. Awarded inrecognitionofthe Public Servant. Awarded toanindividualofout- Public Agency. Awarded inrecognitionofa rk metropolitanregion. Three typesof awards RANSPORTATION NRN THE ONORING Peter E.Stangl,BeverlyDolinsky, ChrisWard, andCommissionerJosephH.Boardman 2005 L A W ARD Plan Association. by Robert Yaro, PresidentoftheRegional ice totheregion. The awardwaspresented Special Tribute Award forhislong-timeserv- American StevedoringInc.receiveda Parsons. ChrisWard, PresidentandCEOof sented byRichardMaitino,Vice President,of Tr for theworkthathasbeendoneon2025 Public Agency Award onbehalfof NYSDOT T New York StateDepartmentof Joseph Boardman,Commissionerofthe New York City Transit. President ofMTA ed tohimbyhiscolleagueLawrenceReuter, than twodecades. The award was present- career inthepublicsector, spanningmore Public Servant Award, forhisdistinguished T mer ChairmanoftheMetropolitan time careerinadvocacy. PeterStangl,for- slong- given inrecognitionofMs.Dolinsky Attorney oftheStraphangers,awardwas Presented byGeneRussianoff, SeniorStaff was awardedtheCivicLeadership Award. Citizens Advisory CommitteetotheMTA, ransportation Authority, wasawardedthe ransportation (NYSDOT),acceptedthe ansportation Plan. The awardwaspre- Courtesy oftheNew York UniversityPhotoBureau AESI IN EADERSHIP R ECIPIENTS

NON PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID NEW YORK, NY PERMIT NO. 7931 NYU • Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service 295 Lafayette Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10012 16