90. Hanging by a Thread

A turncoat Republican gave the county council the vote it needed to pass the $20 surtax on car registrations to keep the county bus system going.  The price she exacted was the elimination of downtown's free ride zone.  Initially meant to help downtown business and speed up the system (accepting fares takes time), it later served mainly tourists and the homeless, neither of whom have much clout in county politics.  Most riders use a pass, and cash fares have to be exact, so reinstituting fares downtown won't slow the system.

89. The Big Dig

Yet another vote today on the multi-billion dollar tunnel proposed to replace an earthquake-damaged elevated highway.  It's a state highway, and the state government is pushing it even though by it's own estimate it will do nothing to alleviate downtown congestion.  With a $5 or so toll and no downtown exits it will not be used by commuters or downtown shoppers, just those who want to bypass the city traffic.

I have no problem with this goal, just the means.  And the fact that some part of those billions could be used instead to improve public transportation.

San Francisco and New York both removed elevated highways with no apparent increase in street congestion.  A tunnel this big has never been attempted on the loose glacier sediment that it will have to pass through, and the funding does not include street improvements necessary to manage non-tunnel traffic (the tunnel will probably have fewer vehicles pass through it than the current elevated road).

The vote is to confirm the city council's decision to grant construction permits, so a no on the referendum means no tunnel, though many "experts" say that it is a done deal, too late to stop.

And apparently the city agrees; it appears that early returns show a 60-40 approval of the tunnel.  In November the county will ask for a $20 increase car registration fees to avoid crippling cuts in bus service.  Billions for cars, yes.  Millions for busses? We'll see.