4.2. SR 06-17-2002 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Myth ~ACT Parsons Brinkerhoff 1998 study data should be used to make decisions on the feasibility of Northstar commuter rail. The Parsons Brinkerhoff (PB) study was done for MnDOT four years ago to assess the feasibility of commuter rail in the seven county metropolitan area. The study ranked the Northstar Corridor as having the most potential for further and more detailed evaluation. Since then, a Major Investment Study (MIS) of transportation options for the Highway 10 corridor. The NCDA chose commuter rail as the best option. Then an Environmental Impact Statement (ELS) and Preliminary Engineering for commuter rail were completed. As a result of these studies, the scope of the project changed significantly from the PB study. Rather than running from Minneapolis to Elk River, it now extends to Rice serving eleven stations instead of seven. Service upgrades were made, from 10 to 18 weekday trains. The numbers of train sets were reduced from five to four. These changes resulted in a ridership increase from 3,400 to 9,594 passengers. For the Northstar Corridor, the PB study is now considered obsolete, superceded by the 2001 Preliminary Engineering report prepared using strict federal guidelines and greater degree of analysis. The 2001 Preliminary Engineering report will be the basis for additional federal funding decisions. It is the best available data, and the legislature should use it for its funding decision. Myth FACT Costs for building commuter rail will skyrocket. Many highway and rail project costs have skyrocketed between early scoping cost estimates and actual construction. The Northstar Corridor rail project cost estimate, however, is based on completion of preliminary engineering and has been inflated to the year of construction, fiscal year 2006. The state's involvement in building Northstar is limited to $120 million. Period. Myth FACT "Without question, transportation funding that goes into rail by definition will not be spent on roads. When voting on commuter rail, make no' mistake: it will be a vote between roads and rail." This excerpt from a March 14, 2002 letter from the Taxpayers League to Legislators is clearly in error. The Minnesota constitution prohibits the use of state general obligation bonds to be used for trunk highway purposes. The Northstar request for $120 million is from these general obligation bonds. Never have state highways been funded through this mechanism.. Trunk highway bonds can only be used for highway purposes. This project does not compete with existing highway financing formulas here in Minnesota nor at the federal level where the $147 million match is from transit-only funds. p. 3 May 9, 2002