Political Quotes

“This amendment prohibits the use of any funds in this act for so-called transit-oriented development. Contrary to the claims of proponents of such communities, they do not increase ridership on transit lines. Rather, they just ensure taxpayers subsidize development that would likely happen anyway. Moreover, like transit investment generally, they do not create economic growth. Instead, these communities just subsidize the growth that would likely have occurred naturally. This is a giveaway to developers in large urban areas, as most areas do not have the population density to support these communities. It does not address the more fundamental issue plaguing our Nation's transit systems than driving down ridership, which is the problem. Doing so will only result in wasted Federal resources that would be better directed toward core highway and bridge projects. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.”