Politicians looking for votes in the upcoming local elections have been asking constituents about their most pressing issues. Traffic is on most of their lists.
So it is very welcome news that the U.S. Department of Transportation has approved $6 million for a new transportation center on Montague Avenue to serve Amtrak passenger rail, as well as Greyhound and CARTA buses, taxis and limousines.
Designed to look a lot like the handsome old Union Train Station in Charleston, which burned in 1947, it will replace the present Amtrak station, which is small, unattractive and inconvenient to access.
The DOT money, obtained with the support of Sen. Lindsey Graham and U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, will be added to $1 million already in the bank. About $10 million has been spent to buy and prepare the 36-acre site in North Charleston.
That leaves $475,000 which CARTA executive director Howard Chapman said should come from private investors. There will be room on site for a restaurant and other commercial uses.
When complete, the news transit center should encourage more people to use passenger rail and public transportation. It also should encourage more efforts by local and state leaders in pursuit of expanding and improving mass transit.
The center could become home for regional high-speed rail. The city of Charleston and the Department of Transportation are seeking $500,000 for a study of a high-speed rail corridor in South Carolina.
That conversation is a timely and worthy one to have, but to ensure the most effective transportation plan for the area, the discussion should embrace light rail for commuter use, as well.
With the new intermodal transportation center now moving forward, the Lowcountry has a good reason to get out of the driver's seat and take Amtrak or ride a bus, and to get serious about high-speed or light rail as a long-term commitment.
source: www.postandcourier.com
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