Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa and Democratic Transportation Chairman John Wozniak issued the following reactions to the pending report of the Transportation Funding Advisory Commission:
Sen. Costa: “Senate Democrats have recognized the need and urged our colleagues to be pro-active when it comes to addressing the deficiencies in our transportation system. For years, we have advocated various ways to get to a safe and efficient solution. While it is somewhat reassuring to see a meeting of the minds in an effort to finally move forward on the issue, we are somewhat confused as to what is and is not on the table for discussion. Acceptable options seem to change depending upon whom you ask.
Nevertheless, we welcome reasonable action for the sake of improving safety and strengthening these lifelines of commerce and will evaluate the recommendations. We do have concerns about doubling the county share for mass transit. Much the way they did when creating the 2011-2012 Budget, Republicans are once again passing the buck and this time requiring county governments to do the heavy lifting.
We are hard pressed to support these recommendations without having our concerns addressed. We would welcome the opportunity to share our insights with the commission.”
Sen. Wozniak: “The administration is unfortunately sending mixed messages on transportation. The commission’s report is interesting, but what Pennsylvania really needs is leadership from the top on how we’re going to pay for transportation infrastructure.
With due respect to the members of the commission who have obviously studied this thoroughly, it seems futile to issue a report suggesting options that the governor has already dismissed.
Unlike the budget debate, this should be a bipartisan effort that evaluates the recommendations without getting into a debate on what words to use for the revenue we need. You can call it anything you want, but it’s clear that more money is needed to maintain and improve our roads, bridges and public transportation systems.
There are also numerous other concerns with the report and they’ll take time to review. Senate Democrats are going to take some time and discuss this with local officials to gauge the effect on local priorities, particularly mass transit.”
