Local Option Tax for Transit Funding

[monsoon]

I saw this article show up on the UrbanPlanet.org portal and thought that it might be worth a discussion here. Apparently the local governments in Idaho want the ability to levy taxes to pay for public transportation. So what are your thoughts on this?

[Boisefan]

that is the first ive heard of that, but goodness do we need it, traffic is horrendous, and if we don't beef up transit, it will get worse(it once took 30 min to go 1 mile in Meridian, the closest suburb to Boise)

[LesBois]

Mass transit is sorely needed in this valley. Sadly, I doubt we will see any serious effort to fund mass transit for many years to come. The cities in this valley are too busy approving massive subdivisions to worry about mass transit. I guess they feel it is their job to approve projects and let the feds worry about transit. It seems there is a race to see who can gain the most population before the 2010 census. Some imagined bragging rights, I suppose.

Traffic all over the valley is becoming increasingly nightmarish. I live in Caldwell and just in the last five years traffic has at least doubled. Travel on the Nampa/Caldwell Blvd is nearing gridlock at times. Yet there is little mention of mass transit, let alone any road improvements. There are plans to add lanes to I-84 between Meridian and Caldwell as well as from Orchard to Gowen Rd in Boise, but ITD works at a snails pace, so it could be up to fifteen years before this is completed.

[Randy@Tacoma]

GO BOISE!!! I really hope the Idaho government will allow what the local governments want... Im skeptical based on the conservatism in Boise, but Im very hopeful! Best of luck!

[Boisefan]

actually, you would be suprised about the conservatism in Boise, yes we are conservative, but we love and want to protect the enviroment, and i think mass transit should help protect the enviroment, so if propents could somehow tie the enviroment into the argument, then it could happen. However, the traffic continues to get worse and will continue to unless we fix it. It has been horrible so far.