Public invited to Mass Transit Forum May 7

May 7, 2008

6:15 pm

With Central Indiana gas prices approaching $3.50 a gallon, Ehren Bingaman, executive director of the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority (CIRTA), hopes to see a full house at a community forum May 7 in Noblesville.

“High gas prices have ignited public interest in mass transit,” said Bingaman. “When people are seeing the affects of fuel costs on their household budget, they’re much more motivated to talk about and plan for options.”

The May 7 session is at 6:15 p.m. at the Hamilton County Government Center.

It is part of a series of community events CIRTA is hosting throughout the region to gather input from residents throughout Central Indiana. After a presentation about what CIRTA is doing to improve and expand mass transit, attendees will have an opportunity to provide feedback and suggestions.

“Transit saves people gas money, makes commutes more productive, improves air quality, reduces accident risks and connects our workforce to jobs. But the overriding factor for why Central Indiana needs an improved transit system is competiveness,” said Ehren T. Bingaman, CIRTA executive director.

Business leaders have cited mass transit as one of the two most critical issues facing economic development in the region, second to health care, according to a July 2007 study by Inside Indiana Business and Ice Miller.

Christine Altman, CIRTA board chairwoman and a Hamilton County Commissioner, says the region needs mass transit if it wants to be competitive for jobs, businesses and big-name events.

“If we’re going to remain competitive as a region and pursue events like the Super Bowl and Final Four and win major economic development coups like Honda and Medco Health Solutions, we need a better mass transit system, and we need to find a way to pay for it,” Altman said. “It’s not an option if we want to remain a major economic player.”

Indianapolis’ metro area is competing with such cities as Denver, St. Louis and Charlotte, all of which have attractive, affordable and dependable transit systems.

CIRTA was created by state statute in 2004. Its mission is to develop a comprehensive system of transportation alternatives for Central Indiana residents. CIRTA is governed by a 16-member board of directors who represent all nine counties in the region (Marion, Hamilton, Hancock, Shelby, Johnson, Morgan, Hendricks, Boone and Madison), as well as municipalities and the labor organization for transportation workers.

“We want people to understand that transit is a viable alternative,” said Bingaman. “We have a choice about our future in Central Indiana: We can invest $1 billion for another lane of I-465 or we can invest in a future that’s cleaner, safer and better for our regional economy.”

For more information, please visit www.cirta.us.