In his June 3 column, “Wasted votes, radical ideologies and clanging bells,” John Laird said, “If every local jurisdiction affected by a major transportation project got to vote on that project, the Interstate Highway System would’ve remained a figment of Dwight Eisenhower’s imagination.” While true, this is misleading.
The fact is that the federal government is responsible for the interstate highways. Those projects are funded at almost 100 percent. It’s the extras that cost us a pile of money locally. Raised freeway-spanning parks to “reconnect the city,” and light rail are not necessary. Therefore, the federal government will most likely not pay one nickle of that added expense.
At a time when we can ill afford it, do we really need tile mosaics and a train that serves Clark College and downtown Vancouver?
In this case, I feel that we the people have a right to be heard.
