{"id":3537,"date":"2013-04-19T19:19:45","date_gmt":"2013-04-20T02:19:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wabikes.org\/?p=3537"},"modified":"2013-06-08T22:14:52","modified_gmt":"2013-06-09T05:14:52","slug":"a-down-payment-on-a-connected-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wabikes.org\/index.php\/2013\/04\/19\/a-down-payment-on-a-connected-future\/","title":{"rendered":"A Down Payment on a Connected Future: Support the Liias Amendment"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two months ago, early in the session, we called on the legislature for a forward-looking transportation revenue package that would at long last start to meet the needs of our kids walking to school, seniors who need safer streets to maintain their transportation independence, and bicycle users who want safe, connected trails and roads to get where they need to go.<\/span><\/p>\n

We opposed the proposal then on the table because it simply didn\u2019t do enough, and at the same time it would add a bike tax\u2014two good reasons to say no.<\/p>\n

Today, a new proposal is on the table\u2014one that starts to move us in the right direction.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re finally seeing numbers with another zero in them that begin to reflect the growing place of bicycling in the transportation system of the future. We\u2019re seeing something we can support as a down payment on the $6 billion-plus backlog of projects (and those are just the ones we know about so far\u2014we know there are more to add to our <\/span>statewide project list<\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n

The 12-year funding proposal from Rep. Judy Clibborn, chair of the House Transportation Committee, includes $100 million for Complete Streets grants and $15 million for specific trail projects, and it no longer includes the additional fee on the sale of new bicycles that we opposed.<\/p>\n

Rep. Marko Liias is offering an amendment that would provide an additional $250 million for bike\/walk projects: an immediate $100 million for projects around the state, another $100 million over the life of the proposal for additional projects as they\u2019re identified, and $50 million for Safe Routes to School.<\/p>\n

With the amendment,<\/strong> the proposal takes us from the $61 million in the original proposal to $365 million over 12 years\u2014an increase of over six-fold, and numbers for bike\/walk projects that finally reach into hundreds of millions, not tens of millions.<\/p>\n

We said we could only support a revenue proposal that funds\u00a0biking, walking, and transit as essential elements of the transportation system. Because we\u2019ve been fighting ever since the first proposal came out for those investments, we\u2019re starting to make progress.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Is it everything we called for in the Transportation for Washington campaign<\/a>? No. That\u2019s the reality of negotiations in the political realm of Olympia\u2014especially when you\u2019re talking about new fees and taxes.<\/p>\n

Is it a move in the right direction that we can support? Yes.<\/p>\n

What next? Contact your state representatives right away to speak up for biking\/walking.<\/strong><\/p>\n

By phone: Call 1-800-562-6000. The operator will route your message. You\u2019re calling about HB 1954 in support of the Liias amendment that invests in walking and biking.<\/p>\n

By email: Enter your mailing address on\u00a0the district finder form<\/a>\u00a0(choose Legislative, not Congressional) and follow the instructions on the site to reach a contact form. Focus on your state representatives.<\/p>\n

Points to make:<\/p>\n