INDIANAPOLIS | U.S. Rep. Pete
Visclosky, D-Merrillville, preached South Shore expansion to the
choir this morning, receiving a friendly welcome from a state
legislative panel that is studying mass transit issues.
The reception was much chillier
two months ago, when the congressman spoke to a group of
legislative fiscal leaders.
The $1 billion plan to expand
commuter rail service to Lowell and Valparaiso needs $350 million
in support from Lake and Porter counties. That mean state lawmakers
must sign onto a $30 million annual tax hike at time when the
public is clamoring for tax relief.
"I have not been in Washington so
long as to assume that $1 billion in not a lot of money," Visclosky
conceded.
The Legislature's Joint Study
Committee on Mass Transit and Transportation Alternatives also
heard from state Transportation Commissioner Karl Browning, who
argued against the state taking a bigger role in public
transportation planning.
The committee, which is wrapping
up three months of testimony, plans to urge the Indiana Department
of Transportation to "provide stronger leadership" in the
coordination of mass transit.
