Contact: Wayne Flaherty, KKTIK

(913)-831-2140

• Define light rail as the 60 mph, 50 ton trains used in transit systems in dozens of U.S. cities (not conventional streetcars or the mythical "Fast Streetcar" of Kansas City fame)
• Determine the approximate length of each route using a scale and by driving selected routes to confirm the validity of scaled distances.
• Add route lengths to get a total system length of approximately 148 miles.
• Add route lengths for each state, and discover Missouri has 82 miles and Kansas has 66 miles.
• Multiply total system route length times $80 million per mile construction cost to get a total cost of $11.8 billion.
• Missouri cost $6.5 billion and Kansas cost 5.3 billion.

NOTES:

1. Cost Calculations: The $80 million/mile cost is based on past costs for light rail and steadily increasing construction costs. KC Star estimates of sales tax revenues $134 million per year would require 88 years to pay off the $11.8 billion debt assuming no interest at all. Adding a nominal 40% bonding costs drives the total payoff to $4.7 billion (interest) plus $11.8 billion (principal) for a grand total of $16.5 billion. That changes the 88 years to 123 years. Lest anyone doubt the $80 million figure, the Federal Transit Agency found the average light rail construction costs for 19 cities in the years 1999 thru 2000 to be $70 million per mile.

2. Current Costs: On November 02, 2007, a Los Angeles Times article reported the city was told their 8.6 mile Culver line could not be completed without another $145 million. The original estimate of $640 million put the cost at $74.4 million/mile. The increase drives the cost to $785 million or $91.2 million/mile. Construction costs rose at 11% per year instead of the predicted 3.5%. Unfortunately, this has become the norm for light rail projects &endash; underestimate the cost and overestimate the ridership. The cost of $50 million/mile currently being quoted by Kansas City light rail proponents has not been achieved in years.

3. Operating costs: Operating costs for the proposed KC regional system can be extrapolated from the highly praised Hiawatha line in Minneapolis. This one 11.6-mile light-rail line costs more than $20 million a year to operate.

Farebox revenues cover only about a third of that. Half the rest is paid by the state of Minnesota and most of the other half comes from Hennepin County property taxes. That places the operating cost at $1.7 million/mile per year. At that rate, the proposed KC regional light rail system would cost $252 million/year to operate or, put another way, the proposed 1Ú2 cent sales tax wouldn't even pay the operating costs, let alone the principal and interest on the bonds.

4. Inconsistencies: Some Kansas routes in the plan were measured to the spine, rather than to the state line. That extra distance is offset if you assign one half the cost of the airport line from the junction of highway 635 and I-29 to the airport. That way Missouri and Kansas pay their own costs and split the cost where the routes run together. These kinds of estimates are acceptable when discussing a proposal. A multi-year design is required to make even an educated guess at true costs.

All the above estimates omit one important factor &endash; ridership, a number described by the term boardings (the number of times a rider boards a public transit vehicle). The importance of this factor is best illustrated by local transit system figures:

While contributing 45% of the costs, Kansas would carry only 9% of the total public transit in the region. Even ridership increases bordering on miraculous, would never bring Kansas ridership to a point of equality with Missouri. While the need for better public transit is immediate and very real in local Missouri, it is but a futuristic dream in local Kansas. As one evaluates any regional transit plan, it is wise to keep in mind what you hope to achieve with that plan &endash; not some grandiose blue sky hope but a real, down to earth, measurable objective.

The Star plan has identified routes that seem most in need of good, reliable public transit service. A thorough examination of the feasibility, viability, and practicability of a single transit solution may prove it to be unworkable. If so, maybe the best idea is to ask each state to identify their transit goals and proposed solutions to those goals. If a state's plan is workable in that state, it can be readily merged across the state line with Documents of Understanding. There are only a few places where a regional transit system would connect anyway.

Alice Amrein of the JO and Marcia Bernard of the UG certainly know best what Kansas' transit needs are as does Mark Huffer at Missouri's KCATA. Each of them is better able to provide the cost/benefit figures for their systems that should drive the decisions of any public agency. It is far better to have neighbors discussing transit documents of understanding than squabbling over how to allocate some regional sales tax. The two states have different transit problems that require different solutions that only they can provide. Regional transit can become a reality using cooperation; we don't need the coercion of a regional sales tax. Don't take my word for it; analyze all the regional transit plans for yourself. Working independently and pooling our analyses we will identify the good and bad in any proposal.

Wayne Flaherty, Secretary

Keep Kansas Taxes in Kansas Committee

P. S. What about streetcars? First, fast streetcars and light rail streetcars do not exist. All streetcars generally have the same speed, size, and operating capability. The special streetcars referred to in Kansas City are for the purpose of getting the expensive light rail tracks to facilitate a conversion to actual light rail vehicles at some future date. Streetcars weighing only 50,000 pounds need only a one foot excavation for track installation. Light rail vehicles weighing 50 tons need an excavation of several feet. This difference in track installation costs is the major factor in making light rail cost from 3 to 4 times more than streetcar installation costs. The most expensive streetcar installation cost is currently under $25 million/mile, about one third that of light rail. The KC Star regional plan would still cost $3.7 billion total using only standard streetcars at $25 million/mile. Using the 1Ú2 cent sales tax, the no interest principal of $3.7 billion would take 27.6 years to pay off. Adding 40% bonding costs, the $5.2 billion principal plus interest would take 38 years. Operating costs for streetcars are slightly higher than for buses.

What about a multi-modal system? Using streetcars to feed a light rail line from the old Municipal Airport to KCI would allow both vehicles to utilize their best characteristics, speed for light rail and collection for streetcars. It would allow Wyandotte County access to Municipal without entering downtown KCMO traffic. Johnson County could use express buses to reach KCI until ridership increases enough to warrant hard rail transit.

Contact: Citizens Transportation Committee,

Larry Thrasher, Chairman (816) 863 3689

Contact: Citizens Transportation Committee

Chairman Larry Thrasher (816)-863-3689 or Secretary Wayne Flaherty ... (913)-831-2140

Consider this: