My speech from last night

I ripped up one of the copies I had and gave a short excoriation of the lack of meaningful public input, as this KUT story indicates. Here’s the outline of the speech I was going to give (4 people had donated me time; I’m not sure I could have fleshed this out to 15 minutes if I tried).

Unlike some people who spoke with most or all of their time, I thought it more important to indicate that we didn’t agree with the decision to limit testimony (at the only real public hearing this thing was ever going to get).

(reformatted outline in 2022 to make it actually readable)

1. Background
   1. Member of AURA (founding member of the new version; supporter of the old)
   2. UTC 2000-2005
   3. Mention PG, modern UTC opposition in JD, MDG
   4. Writing on transportation since 2003
   5. On corner in 2000 supporting LRT with Eric Anderson (LAB)
   6. Opposed Red Line in 2004 due to high operating subsidy and low benefit to Austinites
   7. (mention this has borne out (operating subsidy “down” from 35 to 18 after cancelling buses; census from rider at Lakeline showing 80% Cedar Park)
2. PC Process
   1. In it since beginning.
   2. Assured LG on table. No obstacles. (Also assured of this years ago when Rapid Bus was pushed).
   3. Process clearly designed with thumb on scales
      1. Subcorridors instead of route
      2. West Campus into Core
      3. I35 ridership into Highland but neither I35 nor 183 ridership into Lama
      4. Various “errors” all of which hurt GL
      5. Bad flier canvassed at my house with flier designed to fool old people into dropping opposition to plan. No real plans for rail on Guadalupe!
   4. At end, people still didn’t know what was best for them!
      1. Repeated, strong, unbending preference for Lamar “subcorridor”
   5. So we brought up the FTA out of the blue
      1. Disputed by the guy in charge of Rapid Bus!
      2. Either lying now or lying at beginning.
      3. Getting mixed messages “we’ll do LG right after election but LG can’t ever be done because of traffic but we’ll do it next anyways”.
   6. Nobody in Austin should trust the output of a process this corrupt. You’re being fed a line about transparency that doesn’t hold up. None of our local transit activists who aren’t connected to the machine believe this.
   7. National commentators:
      1. Christof Spieler: “It’s amazing: Austin, the self-proclaimed progressive city, could have had the best rail system in Texas but has the dumbest.”
      2. Steven Smith: “Austin light rail is becoming more of a joke by the minute. Textbook example of politics getting in the way of good transit planning.”
      3. Jeff Wood, Reconnecting America: “I’m going to use this as a bad transit planning example forever”
      4. Others at the time ranging from “What A Sham”to “What A Shame”.
      5. Honestly have not seen a single national transit person approve this plan.
3. The output
   1. High operating subsidies even WITH assumed out of reality growth at Highland Mall
   2. No way to tell whether new residents around Highland will work along rail line
      1. Mention Mueller : people work all over the city
      2. Birds in hand on a good bus line are worth more than ten birds in bush (working all over city)
   3. Theory pushed by Chamber of Commerce that people will hop off I-35, go to park and ride, look for space, walk to station platform, wait for train, ride slow meandering train downtown instead of riding
      1. Park and rides DO work but only at far end of quicker, straighter, lines
      2. Or like in Houston where parking is very very expensive.
   4. Urban rail should be urban.
      1. Walk to stations from dense residential areas, not apartments in a sea of parking
      2. Entire Airport Blvd segment a waste : only one side can ever be developed; no good crossings to other side and low-density over there
      3. Hancock area : residential only, not as walkable as we need; no opportunity for redevelopment more urban.
      4. Respond to density instead of create it
         1. Christof Spieler : density wants to be near other density (fill in gaps rather than greenfield)
         2. Most of our supposed TODs underperform compared to background conditions
         3. Remember the TOD up in Leander that was going to help the Red Line?
         4. Crestview Station <<< The Triangle
         5. Not going to get high quality development in the planning straitjacket around Highland Mall (also remember birds in hand argument)
   5. Even with their bogus assumptions:
      1. 18,000 boardings/day would be a bad light rail line. BAD.
      2. Houston around 35,000/day. Phoenix above 40,000.
   6. Precludes expansions ANYWHERE else if line isn’t packed:
      1. Operating subsidy argument
      2. Horrible spine : slow, windy makes bad backbone.
   7. Precludes expansions on GL forever even if line is good
      1. We don’t trust you now after Project Connect Phase 1
      2. FTA reluctant to fund two early lines in “same” area
      3. Local politics makes funding 3rd line apparently in NCentralAustin a nonstarter
      4. Are they promising Guadalupe or “Lamar subcorridor”
         1. Ridiculous longrange map proposes Guadalupe served after MLK but we suspect grade too high on MLK; doesn’t go south into core of downtown. Why not just stay on Guadalupe/Lavaca?
         2. We don’t believe you anyways.
4. Conclusion
   1. Bad rail line can end system rather than start it
   2. Don’t mischaracterize our arguments. Highland is not just not our favorite line; it is a BAD line.
   3. Never get a chance to build system if you use up all your capital on a second high-operating-subsidy line.