ASKING WHY NOT! -- Changing from State to Regional?
The Baltimore Metro Region includes six political subdivisions: Baltimore City and the five surrounding counties (Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, and Howard).
For many years, public transportation in the Region has not been governed by the Region's political subdivisions. Instead, public transportation for the Baltimore Region
has been run and controlled by the Maryland State Department of Transportation (MDOT). Within MDOT, the responsibility for public transportation planning,
design, operation, maintainance, and financing is carried out by and through the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA). Incidentally, it is important to notice
that the MTA's first name is "Maryland," not "Metropolitan" or "Mass."
ATLANTA - Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority - MARTA
While planning the proposed new Red Line through West and East Baltimore, and the Greater Baltimore Bus Initiative (GBBI), the Maryand Transit Administration has been trying harder to listen to its customers.
Even so, what reasons might justify at least discussing the pros and cons of the Baltimore Metro Area forming
its own Metropolitan Baltimore regional transportation authority independent
of the Maryland State Department of Transportation?
These reasons are worth considering. The most frequent objection to this change from State to Regional is concern about reason #5 which deals with financing the transportation system. A
frequent observation and complaint is that "the State has all the money." It would seem that such a statement at least merits some serious and very public discussion. Otherwise, we are left
with the familiar sigh and shoulder shrug of hopelessness. Can't we do better than this? b'more mobile thinks we can!
This particular arrangement for public transportation in a major urban/suburban area is unusual in the United States. Public transportation in most metropolitan regions
in the US is governed by a regional (NOT a State) authority, with representation from all the affected political subdivisions. We do not have far to look to find evidence of this. Here is
an alphabetical list of representative metro area systems, all of which work quite well:
BOSTON - Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority - MBTA
CHICAGO - Regional Transportation Authority - RTA
DENVER - Regional Transportation District - RTD
LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority - METRO
NEW YORK CITY - Metropolitan Transportation Authority - MTA
PHILADELPHIA - South Eastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority - SEPTA
PORTLAND (Oregon) - Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon - TriMet
SAN FRANCISCO - Bay Area Rapid Transit District - BART; and San Francisco Municipal Railway - MUNI; and several others
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority - METRO
For instance, one might ask, why does the State of Maryland have to have all the money? Can this situation be changed?
How come States as different from one another as Georgia, Massachusetts, Illinois, Colorado, California, Pennsylvania, and Oregon do not seem to have control of all the transportation money for their metro areas
(see above)? How come their metro areas run their own show?
In planning facilities and programs for the general public, everything should be on the table, and nothing should be taboo. So, let's see about having that public discussion soon....
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