The fourth attempt proved a charm as Marin and Sonoma county voters narrowly passed a 1/4 cent sales tax measure to build and run a diesel light rail train through both counties along with an adjacent bike path. The tax measure needed 2/3 to pass.
The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) "measure asked voters if they want to OK a 20-year, quarter-cent hike in the sales tax to finance a 70-mile rail line and adjacent bike and pedestrian path from Cloverdale to Larkspur that will cost an estimated $1.1 billion over the period.
The tax dollars will now be used to buy rail cars, rehabilitate existing track, build bridges, install signal crossings and build the bicycle and pedestrian pathway, among other things.
In 2006, the similar Measure R was on the ballot, but it fell short with 65 percent."
From SF Chronicle:
"The measure, which needed a combined two-thirds majority in Sonoma and Marin counties to pass, took 73.5 percent of the vote in Sonoma and garnered 63 percent in Marin.
The biggest asset SMART has is already in hand - the rail right of way, valued at more than $1 billion."
Thanks to MTC-ABAG Library
FULL STORY: Train tax rolls to victory
Another Reminder of the Futility of Carpool Lanes
What's the great 'fix' for the flawed Highway 101 carpool lanes in Marin and Sonoma counties in the Bay Area? Reduce the HOV time by two and a half hours during the peak commutes to enable solo drivers greater access to 52 miles of widened freeway.
When Carpool Lanes Cause Mayhem
A newly widened Bay Area freeway serves as a reminder of the futility of HOV lanes. There are better ways to manage and mitigate traffic.
USDOT Awards $96 Million to BRT Projects in Washington, Missouri and Commuter Rail in California
On April 9, FTA awarded $43 million for a new, 12-mile bus rapid transit line in Everett; $30 million to extend BRT 10 miles in Kansas City and $22.5 million to extend a North Bay commuter rail line two miles to a ferry terminal on San Francisco Bay.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association