The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the recipients of the $600 million in federal grant money designed to stimulate the economy, but Pima County’s Urban Loop project missed the cut.
Nannette Slusser, a Pima County assistant administrator and the point person for the 55-mile car-free loop, said she was disappointed they weren’t awarded a piece of the grant money.
She said the county would continue exploring other funding options including an upcoming bond election.
“It doesn’t mean [the Urban Loop] is impossible,” Slusser said. “It just means it might take a little longer.”
According to Slusser, missing out on the grant may have knocked the project back to being 10 years away from completion instead of five years away.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, more than 70 projects received a portion of the $600 million, none of which were in Arizona. The awards were broken into capital improvement projects and planning projects.
Read more about the grant and download the the complete lists of capital projects and planning projects.
Boo!!!!!
Great call, USDOT!
To complete the county’s Urban Loop would be to facilitate a Huckleberry/Slusser vanity and careerism project. At no small cost and little benefit to commuters. At best, the county’s urban loop is a parks and recreation thing, not a rational transpo improvement in densely populated areas where innovative improvements will yield the most bang.
The only question is how much did Pima county knowingly spend chasing a transpo grant from US Dept of Transportation (note: that’s NOT US Department of Parks and Recreation, there isn’t one) grant for a parks and recreation project?
Duh, Nannette…
“The projects chosen demonstrate their ability to contribute to the long-term economic competitiveness of the nation, improve the condition of existing transportation facilities and systems, increase energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improve the safety of U.S. transportation facilities and/or enhance the quality of living and working environments of communities through increased transportation choices and connections.”
from: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2010/dot18810.html
Again, great call USDOT and thanks!
Why doesn’t Red Star like The Loop? The three bits of it near me are constantly in use by walkers, joggers, and cyclists. It’s better than that trolley thing, does more for the community, and costs less. Kill the trolley and use the money for the loop I say.
Frank Tellez, Red Star doesn’t dislike “The Loop.”
Red Star dislikes the knowing misallocation of Pima county resources, such as they are, to apply for a TRANSPORTATION grant from USDOT for a
PARKS AND RECREATION project. The USDOT ground rules were pretty clear, yet Huckleberry/Slusser went ahead.
Note to Huckleberry/Slusser: They are wise to the game.