Number 19

The Transportation section of the Preliminary III Community Profile for the BoldFuture Initiative is troubling. Corpus Christi road conditions rank below the State average and will require $63 million more than projected State and Federal transportation dollars for the next four years. If supply of transportation dollars can't match our demand in terms of use, then why are we proposing new construction? If we don't have the funding now to maintain our automobile infrastructure and we won't have it in five years, surely we can expect further deterioration of our roads.

It seems reckless to propose new construction such as the Trans Texas Corridor and new Harbor Bridge. The new Harbor Bridge alone would equal more than 10 years of what it would cost to raise our roads to the State average. The new bridge represents stepping back a decade for Corpus Christi's roads. These Quixotic plans will be an exponentially increasing burden on our transportation infrastructure.

Additionally, the marginal attention given to pedestrian and cyclist access is a concern. Why would the city ask the question "How can we improve hike and bike trails?" when the MPO commissioned and the City Council in 2005 approved a Bicycle Pedestrian Plan? Not only has this plan been ignored, but recent work along Ocean drive is in direct conflict with the suggestions made in the plan.

If the City of Corpus Christi would invest more in public transportation and provide more for pedestrians and cyclists, we could reduce our impact on our roads. And if we focused on maintaining our current infrastructure instead of adding to it, we could hope to stretch our transportation dollars further and one day catch up to where we need to be.