While Muttering in Cedar Avenue Traffic, Think A Little About the Future

Yeah, you think traffic is unbearable on Cedar Avenue now, wait till the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) construction gets into full swing. Yes, soon we will be awash in a sea of orange cones and striped barriers, guarded by yellow-vested soldiers of transportation. 

Although you may be cursing and muttering under your breath for the foreseeable future, you need to remember that we really should have started all of this years ago. We are just now moving into BRT, but we should already be moving into a new light rail phase for the south metro.

Why the delays?  Why, in this age of $4 and $5 gasoline, are we not further ahead with alternative transportation options?

Well it's a lot of things. Cost. Politics. A lot of the usual suspects.

But I have always contended that the main problem is a lack of vision.

We have always known that our energy problems will catch up with us. Every time we have a Middle East crisis we start a conversation about it. Or when oil futures spike to new highs and ungodly gas prices, we want action.

But the truth is, this is an area filled with neglect. Minnesota has always been a state that is up to date on technology and ideas. But in transporation, we are years behind other metropolitan areas. Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Denver, New York and many others already have modern and complete transit systems that can move large numbers of people quickly and efficiently. 

In addition to modernizing transit, we have fallen far, far behind in upgrading our road system. My gosh, we had a bridge fall down for Pete's sake. We have many bridges in need of upkeep and many bottlenecks that need new planning. How many years did it take to develop a solution for the Crosstown?

The legislative representatives in our area have generally come from one party, with a few brief exceptions. And the Republican party has never been favorable to a future vision with new bus systems or trains in it. 

In recent years, some of that has changed. But it is probably too late for the current generation or even the next. Now we are in a perpetual budget crisis. Constantly arguing about current needs and unwilling to tackle needs of the future.

I know that there is little enthusiasm to invest in such big projects, but the window of opportunity is closing. After World War II we didn't hesitate in building the infrastructure of the Interstate Highway System. That was a massive undertaking and it was done after fighting an enormously expensive war. We can still do these things now, if we keep our focus on a future vision.

While you are idling in that Cedar Avenue traffic jam, don't spend all your time muttering.  Try thinking about that future vision. It is imperative that we start.