Metro has unveiled the list of “regional experts” that will sit on a task force to make recommendations on how the agency should dole out about $24 million in federal transportation dollars.
Back in July, there was a heated debate at Metro’s Joint Policy Advisory Committee on Transportation over how best to divide up those funds. The debate came after active transportation advocates lined up on one side and freight advocates lined up on the other. With both sides pulling at the committee, the vote was very close.
In the end, JPACT decided on a 75/25 funding target split in favor of active transportation projects. Given the contentious tone of the conversation, JPACT Chair Carlotta Collette decided that, instead of forming two separate task forces (one with active transportation experts and the other with freight experts) to choose the projects, it’d be a better idea to form a unity task force that represented both sides.
Here is the list of 20 regional experts that will sit on that task force (as made public by Metro today):
- Scott Bricker – America Walks
- Gary Cardwell – Northwest Container Services
- Jill Fuglister – Coalition for a Livable Future
- Steve Ganiere – Alliance Packaging
- Stephen Gomez – Bicycle Transportation Alliance
- Alison Graves – Community Cycling Center
- Matt Hoffman – Fred Meyer
- Chips Janger – Clackamas County Urban Green
- Pete Lehmann – Oracle Americas
- John MacArthur – OTREC/Portland State University
- Jeff Marson – Marson Trucking
- Sheila Martin – Portland State University
- Greg Osnes – SolarWorld
- Jim Petsche – Nike
- Alejandro Queral – Multnomah County Health Dept.
- Ron Russ – Portland & Western Railroad
- Joseph Santos-Lyons – OPAL – Environmental Justice Oregon
- Phil Selinger – Willamette Pedestrian Coalition
- John Willis – CH2MHill
- Philip Wu, MD – Kaiser Permanente
My quick summation of those names shows about 9-10 active transportation advocates and about the same number of folks whom one could assume would represent more of a freight/increased highway capacity perspective. It should be an interesting process to watch.
According to Metro, this new task force will “recommend investment strategies and priorities to us and our agency staff.” Collette says the task force should complete their recommendations by the end of this year. Then, in early 2011, Metro will create a draft project list. This task force will reconvene in spring 2011 to review and recommend the project list to JPACT.