Article from The Advocate:
http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/16741086.html?showAll=y&c=y
Wouldn't it be nice to take a train from Gonzales to Downtown? Or even to Essen Lane? Or better yet, leave your car behind and take the kids on a train to the Audubon Zoo and the Aquarium in New Orleans? There are other options out there that make sense for the world we are living in - A world where the price of fossil fuels is getting higher and higher every day... A world where our national security may well depend on our self suffiency and weaning ourselves from oil imports...
I've traveled all over the world and the greatest cities don't all have loops, they have trains.
JMHO
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
To whom do we write now?
OK, we've written to the 5 Parish presidents; is there anyone else we need to write? Well, yes.
Governor Bobby Jindal, for one. He recognizes there are huge transportation needs, as shown in the commitment in the last special session of the legislature and his appointment of a new secretary of the DOTD who has already asked his folks to look at new ideas for traffic.
Now go to Senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter. There are federal dollars needed for this project, even with tolls. Senator Landrieu is a long proponent of Smart Growth and just last month helped welcome Louisiana mayors and others from across the country to a Smart Growth conference in Washington D.C., see http://www.newpartners.org/agenda.html .
But anyone else? One of the really wonderful things about this region is that there are some thoughtful and influential people who don't have to run for office, but care deeply about this region. And guess what? More than one of them is listed as a "stakeholder" in the Loop!
John Spain, Executive vice president, Baton Rouge Area Foundation - the BRAF has long been connected into Smart Growth and the future of our area; In fact, an article in today's The Advocate (fornt page) highlights the BRAF's current drive to look at the quality of life (including "lack of public transportatation"). Let him know what you think.
Stephen Moret, Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce - The Chamber is all about attracting new business and you can't attract new business if you transportation system sucks (sorry, that's a southerner's legal term for "ain't worth a darn").
There are more, but this is a start.
Governor Bobby Jindal, for one. He recognizes there are huge transportation needs, as shown in the commitment in the last special session of the legislature and his appointment of a new secretary of the DOTD who has already asked his folks to look at new ideas for traffic.
Now go to Senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter. There are federal dollars needed for this project, even with tolls. Senator Landrieu is a long proponent of Smart Growth and just last month helped welcome Louisiana mayors and others from across the country to a Smart Growth conference in Washington D.C., see http://www.newpartners.org/agenda.html .
But anyone else? One of the really wonderful things about this region is that there are some thoughtful and influential people who don't have to run for office, but care deeply about this region. And guess what? More than one of them is listed as a "stakeholder" in the Loop!
John Spain, Executive vice president, Baton Rouge Area Foundation - the BRAF has long been connected into Smart Growth and the future of our area; In fact, an article in today's The Advocate (fornt page) highlights the BRAF's current drive to look at the quality of life (including "lack of public transportatation"). Let him know what you think.
Stephen Moret, Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce - The Chamber is all about attracting new business and you can't attract new business if you transportation system sucks (sorry, that's a southerner's legal term for "ain't worth a darn").
There are more, but this is a start.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Resources!
Go to www.brloop.com to see the latest proposed paths of the BRLoop.
For information on how the loop impacts the Spanish Lake Basin. Go to www.leanweb.org and watch their video titled "Baton Rouge Loop Threatens Alligator Bayou".
If you live in the "yellow zone" and want to learn how to voice your opinion to the planning committe, get contact information and sample letters, join our yahoo group at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeffersonxing/
For information on how the loop impacts the Spanish Lake Basin. Go to www.leanweb.org and watch their video titled "Baton Rouge Loop Threatens Alligator Bayou".
If you live in the "yellow zone" and want to learn how to voice your opinion to the planning committe, get contact information and sample letters, join our yahoo group at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jeffersonxing/
Welcome to SmartBR Loop!
The people behind SmartBRLoop.com are citizens who want to see the plans for the BRLoop both look into the future and take into consideration the permanent damage it will cause for what is only a temporary solution in the current loop.
Smart Growth implies that we look towards the future and explore all the options. The scope of the current mission given to the engineers (1) examines only one weapon in the war against transportation congestion: a toll road, and (2) fails to include the State, which owns every mode of transportation in the BR Metro region.
Let's face it. The BR Metro region has a major congestion problem.However, the problem is a TRANSPORTATION problem, NOT JUST A TRAFFIC problem. The mission of the engineering team was simply to create a loop - not to fix our transportation issues with an eye for the future. This narrow scope does not allow the engineers the latitude they need to truly accomplish what should be their #1 goal: To improve the quality of life for all citizens of the region through improved transportation options that cut down on congestion and pollution/carbon emissions.
The goal of SmartBRLoop.com is to inform and educate the people of Ascension Parish and the BR Metro regions of other, smarter options. We don't have to sit back and accept just one idea of how our communities should look.
Smart Growth implies that we look towards the future and explore all the options. The scope of the current mission given to the engineers (1) examines only one weapon in the war against transportation congestion: a toll road, and (2) fails to include the State, which owns every mode of transportation in the BR Metro region.
Let's face it. The BR Metro region has a major congestion problem.However, the problem is a TRANSPORTATION problem, NOT JUST A TRAFFIC problem. The mission of the engineering team was simply to create a loop - not to fix our transportation issues with an eye for the future. This narrow scope does not allow the engineers the latitude they need to truly accomplish what should be their #1 goal: To improve the quality of life for all citizens of the region through improved transportation options that cut down on congestion and pollution/carbon emissions.
The goal of SmartBRLoop.com is to inform and educate the people of Ascension Parish and the BR Metro regions of other, smarter options. We don't have to sit back and accept just one idea of how our communities should look.
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