| Utah
and Other States Focused on Mobility
Texas is thinking mighty big these days,
with a 50-year, $183 billion transportation plan called the Trans-Texas
Corridor, which would be financed, constructed, maintained and operated
mostly by private companies deriving revenue from toll authorities.
The cost of the 4,000 mile multi-modal (six lanes for cars, four
for trucks, six rail lines, and utility lines for oil, gas, electricity,
water and fiber optics) project would be more than the original
price tag for the entire U.S. interstate system.
The massive project faces a lot of obstacles,
as outlined in an article in the Dec. 6 issue of Time Magazine.
But visionary Texas leaders, including Gov. Rick Perry,
recognize the vital importance of mobility in becoming a 21 st Century
economic powerhouse. Closer to home, Utah's economic competitors
Denver and Phoenix are also embarking on massive transportation
projects.
In Utah, a mobility coalition has come
together to advocate a large transportation initiative over the
next several years. The coalition is remarkable in two ways. First,
it represents unprecedented cooperative planning and collaboration
by the Wasatch Front Regional Council, Mountainland Association
of Governments, the Utah League of Cities and Towns, the Utah Department
of Transportation, and the Utah Transit Authority. They have all
come together to support a unified plan. Second, the effort is being
championed by Utah's business community, quarterbacked by the Salt
Lake Chamber, with support from nearly all the state's major business
associations.
Utah 's Legislature has also been doing
its part with a Transportation Task Force that has done a great
deal of work assessing needs and different financing options.
The business leaders are essentially
telling legislators that with current transportation congestion
and rapid growth ahead, the time is right for a major mobility initiative,
including highways and mass transit, that will serve Utah's needs
well into the future. The Chamber's 60-member board of governors
passed a strong resolution supporting the effort.
Chamber President and CEO Lane
Beattie , in his message in the December issue of the Chamber's
magazine, said this: “Movement is at the center of our economy.
The quickest way to kill our economy is to choke the transportation
around us into a standstill. We are in danger of debilitating gridlock
. . . Mobility in our community is crucial to economic growth and
to sustaining and managing that growth.” Beattie applauded the work
of the broad transportation coalition and pledged the Chamber's
support.
The broad mobility initiative will go
to the Legislature in January, where it will be considered along
with other state priorities, like education. Lawmakers will face
difficult choices as they sort out the state's needs and consider
transportation tax increases. The difference this time is that they
appear to have strong support from local leaders and the business
community in making the hard choices.
Politicos, Media, Get Low Ratings
Looks like about everything I'm associated
with gets low ethical ratings from citizens. A Gallup
Poll released this week asked respondents to rate the “honesty
and ethical standards” of various professions. Car salesmen came
out worst; nurses came out best, and political, media and business
professions ranked low.
Gallup asked: "Please tell me how
you would rate the honesty and ethical standards of people in these
different fields -- very high, high, average, low, or very low?"
The percent who answered "very high" or "high,"
for each job is as follows:
1. Nurses: 79
2. Grade school teachers: 73
3. Druggists, pharmacists: 72
4. Military officers: 72
5. Medical doctors: 67
6. Policemen: 60
7. Clergy: 56
8. Judges: 53
9. Day care providers: 49
10. Bankers: 36
11. Auto mechanics: 26
12. Local officeholders: 26
13. Nursing home operators: 24
14. State officeholders: 24
15. TV reporters: 23
16. Newspapers reporters: 21
17. Business executives: 20
18. Congressmen: 20
19. Lawyers: 18
20. Advertising practitioners:
10
21. Car salesmen: 9
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