NEWS RELEASE
December 3, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kim Geveden
(502) 682-2010
[email protected]
Annette Lee
(502) 498-4008x230
[email protected]
Plan Will Help Create Jobs and Bolster Kentucky's Economy
FRANKFORT --- Before a group of public transportation advocates at Louisville's Union Station today, Lt. Governor and U.S. Senate Candidate Daniel Mongiardo unveiled a very detailed plan for a comprehensive 21st century multi-modal public transit system for the Louisville-Metro area and Kentucky. In a presentation sponsored by the Coalition for the Advancement of Regional Transportation (CART), Mongiardo outlined his ideas for improving transportation in Kentucky.
"Investing in public transportation is one of the single greatest investments we can make to spur economic growth, attract new industries and create new jobs. I will be a champion in the United States Senate for public transportation in Kentucky," he said.
Mongiardo said for Kentucky to remain economically competitive in the future, Kentucky's next U.S. Senator must make transportation a priority and work to ensure the state is included in the nation's high-speed rail plan.
Mongiardo's public transit plan for the Louisville-Metro region integrates existing airports and highways with a Monorail (RAM), Hybrid Light Passenger Rail and expanded bus service, along with strategically located bike paths and walkways. Mongiardo proposed using Hybrid Light Rail to connect Kentucky's urban centers with rural areas. By using existing railways and unrealized money from the National Highway Fund's transit account - which Kentucky motorists are already paying into in the form of federal fuel taxes, but not receiving back - Kentucky could easily begin to significantly improve its public transportation infrastructure, expand economic opportunities and create thousands of new jobs. A recent study by the American Transportation Association found that for every dollar invested in public transportation creates four dollars in economic benefits.
"This plan will create thousands of jobs, generate investment and help recruit new industries and businesses that will lead to even more jobs. At the same time, this initiative will improve the environment, significantly reduce traffic congestion, greenhouse gases and our dependence on foreign oil, while promoting revitalization and smart growth initiatives in outlying rural communities as well as within Louisville's urban core," Mongiardo added.
To read his full remarks or to read an outline of Mongiardo's plan for a 21st century public transit system visit www.drdan2010.com.