The League of Women Voters of Washington supports Referendum 51 because we must continue to make investments in our infrastructure. The purpose of infrastructure is to move people and freight around the state.
There are a number of ways to accomplish this: through transportation of individuals or small groups (cars and buses), through transportation of individual loads (trucks) and through use of mass transit of people and freight (buses, rail and ferries). Referendum 51 takes this approach – that all of those options must be addressed and not just a major expansion on the system of highways. This package was developed by using a long-standing list of priority projects carefully negotiated through our legislative process over a period of several years. There must be direct investment in roads and highways. The funding in R-51 is provided to address the choke points in our system which prevent effective movement of traffic.
Some of the highway funds go to rebuilding dangerous roads and bridges. Some goes to environmental mitigation. There is also an important commitment to complete the HOV lanes in the state. The result is the ability to encourage car pools, van pools and use of the excellent commuter bus system. R-51 also provides flexible funding for ferries, rail and public transportation. Our government has limited tools for funding transportation in addition to other essential services, and funding has remained flat (in real dollars) for the last 20 years. More and more goes to maintenance, rather than improvement. Referendum 51 will go far to getting us back on track.
League of Women Voters of Washington
Seattle
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