Detailed Responses - Maryland State Senate District 17

Question 1

Do you support the Locally Preferred Alternative selected by Gov. O'Malley for the Purple Line, including an at-grade light rail line with a trail alongside it on the Georgetown Branch right of way between Bethesda and Silver Spring, as well as the at-grade light rail line running along Campus Drive through the University of Maryland?

Jennie M. Forehand (D) Yes.

Cheryl C. Kagan (D) Yes. Using transit to improve east-west communication in Montgomery County is good for the environment, economy, and public health. While it’s important to follow a Master Plan that serves the entire ridership, close attention should be paid to neighborhood concerns on issues like the siting of stations.

 

Question 2

Do you support further study of the Action Committee for Transit's plan for the I-270 Corridor as an alternative to the $4 billion plan to widen I-270?

Jennie M. Forehand (D) Yes.

Cheryl C. Kagan (D) Regional transportation planning must strike a balance between aspiration and reality, between long-term goals and short-term needs. The ideal would be a metropolitan area in which everyone could use public transit for all their personal and business needs. The reality is that for at least many years to come, most Montgomery County residents will be primarily dependent on their cars. Studies on the long-term traffic effects of road construction should be considered whenever highway expansion is planned, and transit alternatives given due weight.

Many of the elements of ACT’s proposed alternative to a widening of I-270 have merit, and would move us closer to the ideal of a fully transit-accessible region.

 

Question 3

How can we fund WMATA?

Jennie M. Forehand (D) Maryland, Virginia, and the District should be committed to fully meet WMATA’s operating and capital needs. Tying the amounts to a dedicated fund is too dependent on economic factors outside the State’s control. However, annual appropriations can sometimes get caught up in last minute politics. WMATA is an integral part of Montgomery and Prince Georges Counties’ transportation infrastructure and must be protected as such.

My (personal) legislation last year will enable WMATA to access the Federal funds over the next ten years. This had to be approved by Maryland and Virginia legislatures, and the D.C. Council.

Cheryl C. Kagan (D) Dedicated funding streams-- such as most other metropolitan transit systems receive-- can bring stability and predictability to the transit budgeting process. Especially appropriate as sources of public transportation funding are levies on private transportation, reflecting the latter’s strain on the economy (the waste of traffic delays), the environment (tailpipe smog and carbon emissions), and public health (obesity and stress associated with car commuting). Care must be shown in choosing the funding source, however, since one too closely tied to economic activity can dry up during a recession, just when demand for public transit tends to increase. Also, excessive fees on private transportation should be avoided, since they ignore the reality of most Marylanders’ dependence on their cars.

Another source of Metro funding is special agreements among the WMATA member jurisdictions, but they can be ineffective when these governments face fiscal crises-- as evidenced by Maryland’s recent preliminary announcement that it could not afford its FY 2010 contribution to the Metro Matters capital fund. There is also a tendency to demand more from certain areas--such as Montgomery County-- based on an assumption of greater resources than may actually exist. Local jurisdictions spending the money necessary to obtain matching funds-- such as the federal government is providing under its 2008 capital maintenance program-- is smart fiscal policy, as it creates two dollars of funding for every dollar invested.

 

Question 4

Should any money be spent on increasing highway capacity associated with the Great Seneca Science Corridor Master Plan before a light rail Corridor Cities Transitway from Shady Grove to Clarksburg is fully funded for construction?

Jennie M. Forehand (D) The CCT should be built first, and it should be a very high priority for federal funding, especially since the “Science Corridor” will bring excellent new jobs to the region.

Cheryl C. Kagan (D) Funding and construction of the Great Seneca Corridor Master Plan is (and must be!) contingent on development of the Corridor Cities Transitway. Since the goal of the Master Plan is to create a Smart Growth (SG) development in West Gaithersburg, it’s only reasonable for it to proceed only as transit -- one of the hallmarks of SG -- becomes available. While provision must be made for those who are unable to rely on public transit for all their transportation needs, it seems sensible to measure the need for private transportation after determining the capacity of public transit.