TCI Regional Policy Design Stakeholder Submissions

We NEED a mass-transit policy and implementation to reduce our carbon footprint and to make daily life more manageable for people. This is not rocket science! look to the rail systems all over Europe. Look to the advances in transportation being made by China. Because of the oil/gas lobby, we are the only developed country that is so dependent on autos for transportation.

I am now on the verge of chronic bronchitis due to living in the Connecticut river valley in Massachusetts. We get air pollution from New York and states west like Ohio. I am also developing asthma and my doctor says he is seeing more and more of this. Our lungs can't take it. We need clean transportation NOW!

Clean, nom-polluting public transportation would be a wonderful step forward
in so many ways. We could always support our rail system also. We need to take
steps to protect our precious environment... now. Thank you

Dear People, I strongly support modernization of the North South corridor of the Eastern United States. Having enjoyed the privilege of riding on high speed trains in Spain and France, I strongly support the creation of a high speed train corridor for the Eastern United States. In my experience the trains are faster and far more comfortable than traveling by plane or car. It is way past time for this country to invest in infrastructure that benefits all citizens. Thank you for your time.

It is vital that our transportation policies reflect the reality of our world. The transportation sector is a major contributor to climate change and to air pollution. There have been many days in southwestern Pennsylvania in the past few weeks with air quality alerts, and vehicles are a significant contributor to that problem. We owe it to our residents in Pennsylvania to solve these problems by taking action on transportation infrastructure and on transportation policies. I, for instance, intend my next vehicle to be a plug-in electric car (I currently drive a hybrid). But, I do worry about the infrastructure that would make that choice easier. Charging stations are few and far between in Pennsylvania. Long distance travel is a problem! I have solar panels on my house, but the electric grid generally in Pennsylvania needs to move faster toward renewable sources and away from fossil fuel generation of electricity so that charging an electric vehicle truly is a environmentally better choice no matter where it is charged. And finally, we need to move away from fuel taxes as the major source of funds for the transportation sector. As electric vehicles become more common (and they will!), revenues from other sources will be needed to support our transportation system. Let's move forward with intention by planning for a new, clean transportation system in Pennsylvania.

I strongly believe that the T.C.I. Tax will not substantially affect carbon emissions or air quality, and that it will only serve to add an unnecessary burden to consumers. There are far more effective methods to reduce emissions than to add more taxes into the price of fuel.

One of the principal missions of the federal government is to provide for the safety and security of US citizens. Conventional thinking is that the biggest threat is always from the "outside", hence the disproportionate amount of spending on the military. By now it should be pretty obvious that the largest threat to our way-of-life is climate change/disruption; in fact, this has been recognized by the Pentagon as far back as 10 years ago.

We need to divert money from military spending to repair and upgrade energy and transportation infrastructure in this country. This is typically seen as an "expense" but in reality it is an investment in the future.

One of our countries largest source of global warming emissions (regionally and nationally) is pollution from the transportation industry. As a concerned citizen, I urge NY State to help create a plan that would create an enforceable limit on transportation pollution and invest in clean, modern mobility solutions across the region.

I grew up in the pre-EPA pollution when “smog” was a household word, and saw the visible difference in the air when anti-pollution protections were put into place. Clean air is our most basic need. Please go forward with more protections, and reverse this backward trend into allowing more poisons into our every breath!