The Gov Wants Lower Carbon, Multi-modal System

An ODOT newsbit floated by with some terrific news! Last month Governor Kitzhaber addressed the Oregon Transportation Commission, and charged them with working towards a more multi-modal future:

"My challenge for you today is to revisit the underlying assumptions that have guided our policy and partner with all transportation users so that we can create a 21st century transportation system that best serves Oregonians," said Governor Kitzhaber.

Governor Kitzhaber endorsed efforts to develop a mileage-based user fee to replace the gas tax and asked the Commission to find new approaches to mobility guidelines. He asked the commission and ODOT to apply six principles in their work:

1) Do we have the right group of individuals at the table at the beginning of the process to define the problem and solution together?

2) Should ODOT manage or own the facility or would it be better managed, for a diverse set of outcomes, by another agency or jurisdiction?

3)Are we creating programs that don’t simply invest in the future of the transportation system but meet a multitude of community objectives?

4) Does each decision move us closer to a sustainable, safe, lower carbon, multi-modal system?

5) Does the decision maximize benefit for the least-cost under the limited resources?

6) Does this decision or policy move us closer to finding a more rational transportation funding mechanism for the future?

Now, if his position on the Columbia River Crossing and other MegaProjects just met these tests!...quibbles, quibbles, I know.

(Photo from the ODOT Flickr pool)