Now that the state Transportation Department has millions of new dollars to spend on repair and construction projects, it's time to decide which ones get done first.
One of the tax increases in the transportation bill vetoed by Gov. Pawlenty is an optional one-quarter percent sales tax for Twin Cities transit. Advocates say the money would supply a long needed, dedicated source of transit funding for the metro area.
Gov. Pawlenty has vetoed a bill that would spend $6.6 billion over the next 10 years on transportation, setting up an override showdown in the the House and Senate.
Supporters and opponents of a transportation funding bill will be stepping up their lobbying efforts now that the Minnesota House and Senate have both passed it. The Senate passed the bill with enough votes to override a gubernatorial veto. The House came up one vote short.
There are renewed calls for the Hastings bridge to be replaced, after a new MnDOT report downgraded the bridge's condition. The span is slated for replacement, but not until next decade. Replacing the bridge would cost nearly $100 million, and at this point that money isn't available.
The condition rating of the Hastings bridge,
already one of the lowest-rated bridges in the Twin Cities region,
has been lowered even further, according to a state Transportation
Department inspection report.
Go Deeper.
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