Transportation

Pat Meehan believes that in order to ensure the future prosperity and continued economic development of the United States we must make it a priority to reinvest in our transportation system.  Over the last few decades we have failed to make significant improvements to our roads, bridges and transit systems which have resulted in congestion and grid lock in much of the nation.  The movement of goods and services has slowed to a crawl, our economy has suffered and jobs have been lost.

Locally we need to look at ways to increase capacity on our roads, reduce traffic by improving existing bus and transit systems, and move forward with projects like the R6 extension which will provide commuters with alternate ways to access jobs.   We also need to look towards the future and provide financial and regulatory incentives for capital intensive projects such as high speed rail which can go a long way in reducing the current air traffic congestion that clogs our skies and delays us from getting to the places we need to go.  There needs to be greater connectivity between our ports and freight rail system which will allow goods to flow more quickly and efficiently throughout the country.

With the current funding structures in place we cannot even maintain our existing systems so it is natural wonder how we can afford to make these investments.  Pat Meehan believes we can’t afford NOT to.  If we want to remain competitive with other industrialized nations we need to streamline archaic regulatory structures and reduce the red tape that often delays projects for several months if not years, driving up costs.   Pat Meehan will not support any effort to increase fees or taxes without guarantees that revenue raised locally goes towards projects in our communities.  He will not support any proposal that sends tax payer dollars to Washington for the purpose of distributing them to other parts of the country.  There should be no free rides; everyone should pay their fair share of the systems they use but nothing more.