It is time for Mayor Dave Cieslewicz to get on board with a regional plan to provide the Madison area with commuter rail.
The mayor has opposed the commuter rail line that would transport workers from the suburbs to downtown Madison, favoring instead a streetcar plan that would shuttle people around downtown.
Now the mayor wants the Transport 2020 group to wait to apply for federal funding for its commuter rail line until his streetcar proposal catches up with the rest of the application. That is a bad idea.
The Transport 2020 group—made up of representatives from Dane County, the city of Madison and UW-Madison—has been studying Madison's transit needs for more than 10 years now. They have done the legwork and have a reasonable chance to secure the federal money that would pay for half of the capital costs of a commuter rail system.
It could cost between $196 million and $285 million to upgrade the existing rail right-of-ways to handle commuter trains, depending on which route Transport 2020 selects. Although the line for federal aid is relatively short now, it is bound to grow longer as more cities apply for money to build their own rail systems to alleviate their own congestion problems.
However, waiting for the mayor's streetcar plan could push the Transport 2020 commuter train to the back of the line.
Streetcars might still play a role in Madison's future, and the Transport 2020 studied them as an option before deciding commuter rail system would better meet Madison's transportation needs.
Studies show streetcars would likely stimulate development in downtown Madison and encourage more people to move into the central city, thereby increasing the city's tax base. While streetcars might help boost the city's economy, they likely will not address our transportation needs.
The commuter rail line would not only provide suburban workers with easy access to the downtown, but would also improve transportation within Madison.
Because it has numerous stops within the city itself, the commuter train would provide near east side and west side residents with easy access to the downtown area. Likewise, it would provide downtown residents with easy access to commercial centers located outside of the central city like Midvale and East Towne Malls.
Granted, we have no idea how the region will pay for the other half of the capital costs to start up the system, or the $10 million per year it will cost to operate the system, but Transport 2020 needs to be able to pursue federal money for commuter rail, uninhibited by the mayor's desire for streetcars.
