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Session 1861 <br />November 18, 2002 <br /> <br />Mr. Wagner observed that the vote was unanimous. <br /> <br />CITIZENS' COMMENTS: <br /> <br />Jane Mendelson,110 Arundel Place, St. Louis (63105), said she <br />represented the Coalition for Responsible Transit and had come to alert <br />the Council to a new alternative transit plan to be featured in the press. <br />This group contended that the current plan will not serve those that need it <br />the most, i.e. north St. Louis residents who are less likely to own cars. <br />They proposed that an alternative they called "Bus Rapid Transit" should <br />be used along Forest Park Parkway. <br /> <br />Pat Fitzgerald, 6374 Pershing Avenue, and from the same organization, <br />explained that a Forest Park Parkway Rapid Transit Bus would employ <br />high tech vehicles, prepaid boarding tubes in the median, separate loading <br />lanes, simplified routing, limited stops, advanced signal priority, and traffic <br />management at heavily traveled intersections. <br /> <br />Tom Currier, 23 Wydown Terrace, Clayton, and also from the Coalition for <br />Responsible Transit, stated that costs would be modest. He stated that <br />this alternative would add 5 additional miles to the current cross county <br />extension, save over $200 million and satisfy the need for a regional <br />strategy for access to jobs. <br /> <br />Councilmember Wagner inquired if the alternate routing would be within <br />the current budget. Mr. Currier replied that it would. He also said that <br />savings would also come from the east/west sharing of the railroad "right <br />of way" between St. Charles Rock Road and Lindell Boulevard. This "right <br />of way" currently belongs to the Terminal Rock Railroad. <br /> <br />Mr. Wagner asked about Terminal Rock Railroad's response. According <br />to Mr. Currier, they stated that they were willing to have discussions with <br />Bi-State but made no commitments. <br /> <br />Councilmember Welsch inquired about Bi-State's response to their <br />position. Mr. Currier said that Mr. Barry Selsy had publicly stated his <br />contention that the plan was infeasible because of conflicts between the <br />freight use and Metrolink. He said that his coalition had consulted the <br />Federal Register and learned that, in 2000, the FTA and the FRA had <br />jointly filed an understanding about how shared "right of way" was to be <br />handled. By restricting freight traffic to the third shift, several other cities <br />were now utilizing this option. <br /> <br />Ms. Welsch wanted to know the reaction of other communities. Mr. <br />Currier said they had received a positive response from the Mayor of <br /> <br /> <br />