Politics & Government

Critical Meeting for Future of the SMART Multi-Use Pathway (MUP)

The Marin County Bicycle Coalition (MCBC) urges you to attend the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) board meeting on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 1:30 PM at the San Rafael City Council Chambers (1400 Fifth Avenue) to give public input to retain funding for the SMART multi-use pathway (MUP).

The March 16 public workshop will be the first time that SMART presents a list of cuts to the initial operating segment of the SMART line, which will extend from Santa Rosa to San Rafael. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission has recommended cutting one-third of the MUP. The MCBC continues to urge the SMART Board to fund 100% of the $40 million MUP in order to complete the MUP from San Rafael to Santa Rosa by start of train operations in the fall of 2014.

We need your help to ensure that funds for the MUP are not eliminated. Attend the March 16 SMART board meeting and ask SMART to ensure that $40 million in Measure Q funds are used for designing and building the MUP. The pathway has already been cut from 70 to 40 miles (as has the rest of the rail line) to help with the budget shortfall (and eight miles of that pathway will not be built by SMART, as it will be constructed as part of the Highway 101 Sonoma Marin Narrows project). Additionally, $14.4 million have been spent using non-SMART funds for the MUP segments from San Pedro Road to the downtown San Rafael station.  As such, the MUP has already been dis-proportionately reduced with respect to the rail line and should not be cut further. In 2008 voters overwhelmingly supported the SMART train and pathway and both must be built together for start of operations in 2014. In SMART’s original EIR, the pathway was projected to carry 7000 people on weekdays, 10,000 people on weekends, and serve as a critical means of getting train passengers to rail stations in a way that does not induce traffic congestion in local communities.

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The March 16 meeting will be the one public workshop that focuses on the list of proposed SMART cuts before the SMART board makes a final decision on April 6 in Santa Rosa. March 16 will set the tone; this is the time to support the pathway.

Please RSVP to Andy@marinbike.org if you can attend this critical March 16 meeting in San Rafael.
 

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