The Dane County Towns Association included the following in their January 2011 update:
DCTA seeks RTA restructuring, not dissolution.
The Towns Association Board voted Wednesday, December 15, 2010, to contact the County Executive and others to request restructuring of the Regional Transit Authority. We did so by letter. The Association has been concerned, since the RTA was formed, that it has no Town representation on its governing body. We have heard from some people in response to the letter that they took it as a sign we support efforts to dissolve the RTA. This is emphatically not the case.
In point of fact, there are other interest groups out there who do want to dissolve the RTA. There also is unquestionably sentiment in the new legislature to undo any legislation adopted in the recent past which allows local option taxes. The DCTA does not support either position at this time.
We believe that a regional approach to transportation is important. However, the Association has been dismayed by the focus of the Dane County Regional Transit Authority on commuter rail. We do not believe that commuter rail is the best answer to future transportation needs in the County. We also empathically demand that any new taxes to support regional transportation initiatives be placed before the electorate for approval by a referendum. This is not a hypocritical position on the part of Towns. Towns have to win the support of the electorate for practically every major action we undertake, including the annual levy, borrowing and purchase of real estate.
It would be unfortunate if the opposition to the commuter rail proposal or the half-cent sales tax went so far as to destroy any opportunity to work proactively on a realistic transportation program. We think that Dane County has seriously failed to address transportation needs that address how people actually get around in the County. We need to expand bus service, but we also need to address the roads that buses and the vast majority of trips use.
I contacted Mark Hazelbaker, DCTA’s legal council to ask if he had anything to say about the most recent RTA plan for transit work, which does not put commuter rail in the forefront. His reponse was:
I have recently seen the RTA’s proposal program, which is significantly different from what was on the table last year. It’s encouraging. DCTA’s concerns have been that the RTA seemed too intent on commuter rail, and that it lacked town representation. The new plan seems to make major improvements in the program which are worth support.
The DCTA’s position seems at this point in time to be more favorable on the RTA than was generally understood.
