Marohn on transportation funding: “Facing the Unknown with Courage.”

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My guess is that Irv Stumler disagrees, although it might just be a case for mood stabilizers. When presumed “pillars” view city streets as through highways, the case for sedation is even stronger, as are the required dosages.

Facing the Unknown with Courage, by Charles Marohn (Strong Towns)

… We accept that there is a big difference between the pace of change in technology and infrastructure. Yet, while we are accustomed to rapid change in technology – no thoughtful person would commit today to purchasing a new iPhone every other year for the next two decades – we also seem to accept no change – ZERO – when it comes to infrastructure. When considering roads and bridges, sidewalks and transit systems, there is a general consensus among policymakers and advocates that the only responsible approach is one that commits today to massive investments decades from now …

… We’re locked into a transportation system that requires us to lie to ourselves about what we can know about the future and then spend huge amounts to support that lie. When we underestimate our needs, it confirms our bias for building more. When we overestimate, we can explain it away – if we are ever asked to, which we hardly ever are – by citing factors beyond our control (oil price, recession, fickle humans, etc…). This is a dumb system.

And it’s not just Minnesota. In fact, we’re not even close to dysfunctional when compared to the insane asylum that is America’s state DOTs …

… Committing to spending billions on our current approach to transportation is not courageous; it is cowardly. It will take far more courage to stand up, admit that we don’t know what we’re doing – that we’ve actually had it wrong for some time – and chart a new course, one that uses real data and feedback (not politics) to discern spending priorities.

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