Governor K's Two Cents

On Monday Governor Kulongoski released the first public draft of his Jobs and Transportation Act 2009.* The document is 23 pages - though the last third is appendices. The word bicycle (including bike, biking, and bicycling) appears only once, on page 6.

This is very disappointing. This alone suggests the plan is not very serious about its stated goals to: "Meet Oregon’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Goals" and "Account for Carbon in Transportation Planning."

The headlines of course are about the 2 cent increase in the gasoline tax and some associated motor vehicle fees. These too do nothing to reduce greenhouse gases.

It's possible to write a more detailed critique (and here) of the plan, but for the moment all bicyclists need to know is that the Governor's two cents on bikes is one tiny mention.


*The document's been circulating online, but it's not posted to the Governor's website yet. When it is posted, we'll link to it![update] It's now linked!