SAN ANTONIO — With more than 1 million people expected to move to Bexar County in the next 25 years, now is not the time to sit idly when it comes to this region's pressing transportation needs.
Even if this stunning growth projection falls short, anyone who has been forced to sit in traffic on U.S. 281 understands the high costs of congestion and sprawl.
We simply cannot continue to rely on vehicles and asphalt to meet our transportation needs.
Consider the bind the state finds itself in for road maintenance and construction. Voters this fall may endorse a plan that provides $1.7 billion a year to the State Highway Fund, and Texas still will need to invest $4 billion more a year just to keep up.
This region must be aggressive in encouraging infill, improving bus service and, yes, building light rail service that provides meaningful connections between key institutions.
With the recent streetcar plan getting derailed by vehement public opposition, light rail is a touchy subject.
Supporters of the downtown streetcar are a bit sheepish about bringing up light rail, which is far more dynamic and costly.
Meanwhile, critics of the streetcar often cite light rail as a way to highlight the streetcar's inadequacies without actually endorsing rail.
Case in point, former San Antonio City Councilman Carlton Soules, now running for Bexar County judge.
“If maybe we had looked at something along the lines of airport to downtown, I think that would have been palatable to a lot of people, especially on other sides of town,” he said of the streetcar at a recent editorial board meeting.
Does that mean he supports light rail?
“No. I want to clarify, if it's cost-effective and makes sense, we need to look at all of our options,” he said.
The question shouldn't be if it's cost-effective, but how it will get done.
A credible light rail system would get people out of their cars, link key points in the community and have a dedicated funding source. And yes, it would be approved by voters.
Ignoring the need for rail here would be penny-wise and pound-foolish.
A May vote is set on a city charter amendment that will require a public vote prior to using city streets for any rail project.
That election will set the stage for more conversation on rail, and proponents of sensible transportation planning must use the opportunity to highlight the best way forward.
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