BART Oakland Airport Connector Hobbles on, but We Will not Be Moved

July 23, 2009

MTC Commissioners approved $140 million (including re-affirming the $70 million in Federal Stimulus Funds) for an overpriced, badly planned Oakland Airport connector at their July 22, 2009 meeting.  Despite eloquent testimony by community groups, environmental organizations, transit labor unions and transit users opposing the project and a list of cons that far outweigh the pros, the Commissioners voted to approve the funding. 

Swing-vote commissioners, such as Marin Supervisor Steve Kinsey and Santa Clara Supervisor Dave Cortese, cited the need to overcome general "inertia" in transportation planning and BART’s ultimate responsibility for the project as their reason for supporting the plan.  In the same breath, these commissioners acknowledged the laundry list of problems with the project and admitted that a much cheaper alternative would do the job and could provide more community benefits.  

That said, 3 brave commissioners withstood tremendous political pressure and voted against the funding.  These include Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates, SF Supervisor Chris Daly and San Mateo City Councilmember Sue Lempert.   Bates was the first commissioner to oppose the project earlier this year.  Lempert compared the project to the SFO BART extension saying that it hasn’t seen much ridership from South San Mateo, never met original ridership projections  and was just too costly overall.   She said that she would hate for us to go down the same road with the Oakland Airport Connector.  (SFO is currently running a free shuttle for its Airport workers because BART has refused to give them a discount on the recently jacked up surcharge on the extension ($1.50 to 4.00 per ride). See the story here.  How are Oakland Airport workers going to afford the $6.00/ride ride on the Oakland Airport connector?) 

If you are interested in thanking these three commissioners for their courage, you can find their contact information below.

This has been an ongoing struggle ever since MTC breathed life into what many thought was a dead project when the region received Federal Stimulus funds this past Winter.  Thank you to the many people and organizations that have continued to support this effort and those who turned out in force to MTC yesterday to make the case that WE SIMPLY CANNOT AFFORD to spend millions of dollars in limited transit funds on a 3-mile extension that serves the Bay Area’s elite, while our existing bus and train systems are cutting service, raising fares and laying off union workers. 

Our coalition and voice is growing!  We include:  Alameda Transit Advocates, APEN (Asian Pacific Environmental Network), ATU 192, ATU 1555, Bay Localize, Berkeley Gray Panthers, BOSS, Berkeley Center for Independent Living, Communities for a Better Environment, Genesis, Just Cause Oakland, LIFETIME, PLAN, Public Advocates, SEIU 1021, St. Mary’s Center , TransForm,  United Seniors of Oakland and Alameda County, Urban Habitat,  West Oakland Youth Standing Empowered (WYSE), Webster Tract Neighborhood Association,  Young Democrats (East Bay), many individual transit users, and the list goes on.  Special thanks to the office of Oakland City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan who has been a tireless advocate for smart and equitable transportation planning and taking a lead in the fight against the Connector.

Not over yet….
We are not giving up and we still have some opportunities to prevent the Connector from happening:

•    Oakland City Council will take action on the issue starting in September (likely Public Works   Committee on the morning of September 15th).
•    BART can be forced re-examine this project once the City votes on it in September or October.

So, we will take the month of August off to re-energize for this fight. 

Remember, if it weren’t for our continued effort, this project would be a done deal… and another example of transportation racism and classism, as well as simply bad transportation planning.

Stay tuned… and thank you for your support and involvement.  Together we can ensure that all Bay Area residents have access to safe, affordable and convenient transit.

For More Information:
Contact Lindsay Imai or Bob Allen at 510-839-9510, Lindsay(at)urbanhabitat.org or bob(at)urbanhabitat.org.

An article in CBs 5 News:
http://cbs5.com/local/Metropolitan.Transportation.Commission.2.1096639.html

3 Brave Commissioners:

TOM BATES
Representing Cities of Alameda County
Mayor, City of Berkeley
2180 Milvia Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
Phone: 510/981-7100
Fax:  510/981-7199
mayor@ci.berkeley.ca.us

CHRIS DALY
Representing City and County of San Francisco
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
Room 244
San Francisco, CA 94102-4689
Phone: 415/554-7970
Fax: 415/554-5163
TTY: 415/554-5227
chris.daly@sfgov.org

SUE LEMPERT
Representing Cities of San Mateo County
Former Mayor and Councilmember, City of San Mateo
365 Virginia Avenue
San Mateo, CA 94402
Phone: 650/342-9667
Fax: 650/458-6048
babalulempert@gmail.com