Nov. 17, 1999
Jim Beall, Chair
Metropolitan Transportation Commission
101 Eight St.
Oakland CA 94607
Subject: Public hearing input, Transportation Blueprint for the 21st
Century
Honorable Jim Beall and Commissioners,
I summarize my comments at yesterdays hearing for the benefit
of all MTC Commissioners.
Consideration needs to be given to the phenomenon of induced
traffic. Adding more lane miles will not alleviate congestion,
except for a short term temporary effect. In the Highway 85 corridor,
this temporary effect lasted just two years after constructing the
freeway according to newspaper reports. Therefore, the public got
very little for the dollars spent. A bibliography of studies on
induced traffic is at:
moderntransit.org/links-induced.html
The principle of induced traffic also deduces that
traffic will decrease if highway capacity is decreased. The concept
of gridlock is a fallacy that is promoted by highway
construction interests as a scare tactic. Recent evidence for this
was the temporary closure of the Central Freeway in San Francisco.
Gridlock was predicted on the Bay Bridge. Not only did
gridlock never happen, traffic congestion actually
decreased. That is why on the Bay Bridge the electric passenger
trains need to be restored by taking back automobile lanes. The
trains were destroyed to create those lanes.
HOV lanes are a solodriver incentive. More solodrivers than carpools
are added to roads after constructing the HOV lane, a result of
carpoolers moving over to the new lane and the vacancy they leave
becomes filled by solodrivers. Carpool lanes increase pollution
despite claims to the contrary by MTC and RIDES because total VMT
increases as a result of increasing highway capacity. Carpooling has
decreased in the Bay Area since before there were carpool lanes. In
1980 when there were no carpool lanes, 16.3% carpooled compared with
14.3% in 1998. This was despite constructing 266 miles of carpool
lanes, beginning in 1982. Details, references and conclusions are on
our web page Carpool lane facts for the San Francisco Bay
Area at:
moderntransit.org/hov/hov-facts.html
Cashout would significantly reduce commuting by
automobile. The average of 10 studies shows a 26% reduction. MTC
should to adopt methods of implementing cashout at places of
employment and at large apartment complexes. Details are in the
handouts from Mike Bullock and also on our web site at:.
moderntransit.org/cashout/cashout.html
The proposed sales tax for roads is another subsidy for automobiles.
MTC staff [Chris Brittle] has stated that eliminating the
parking subsidy would significantly decrease automobile commuting and
increase transit use. Thank you for this recognition. Sales taxes for
roads would do the opposite, and is counter to government policies
that encourage people to commute by modes other than automobile. MTC
needs to oppose sales taxes for roads not only on these grounds, but
also because the same congestion would return in just a few years.
Such money is poorly spent. For concepts that truly reduce or
eliminate traffic congestion, please see our web page at:
moderntransit.org/solution.html
Sincerely,
Akos Szoboszlay
President