01.11.07
AAS Needs This Kind Of Transportation Coverage
Pat Driscoll at his SAEN blog Move IT! - add it to your list - is doing dome great work on transportation issues. Unlike Mike Krusee’s PR man Statesman reporter Ben Wear. Check out his latest, Dressing Down. Here’s a little bit:
State Sen. John Carona, chairman of the transportation committee, has already filed two bills this session that splash mud on toll-road prospects, but have you heard his stinging comments on how the highway department does business lately?
[…]
“My concern is that this kind of arrogant and uncooperative attitude seems to be growing at TxDOT. I hear a level of complaints and a higher volume than at any point in my near 19 years now in the Legislature.”
“I do think some of it has to do with the current makeup at the commission over there and the operating practices that go on over there.”
“That attitude’s going to have to soften and you all are going to have to become a more cooperative agency.”
“I think you’re a good agency but the public perception is that things have changed in an unfriendly fashion over there or a high-handed fashion and I think that we owe it to all of these people who come before this group today to try to do better than that.”
“That’s all I’m asking but that’s also what I’m expecting.”
Come on Ben. Are we always going to have to look to San Antonio paper for reporting on what the other bodies’ Transportation Committee chair has to say?
Sen Carona has filed two bills this session relating to transportation. Links to those bills are here - SB 165 (indexing the gas tax) and SB 149 (ending non-compete agreements/CDA’s). If this kind of thing is important to you let him know you like what he’s doing.