Issue Position: Transportation

Issue Position

In order to reverse the flow of jobs out of CT, our transportation system must support rail commuters, drivers, bicyclists, pedestrians and telecommuters.
As has been chronicled throughout recent news media, Metro North and Amtrak have cost workers and employers tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue. Our rail corridor, the busiest commuter corridor in the country, is in desperate need of repair. The repeated bridge failures in Norwalk and purchase of train-cars unsuited to New England weather have undermined people's faith in public transportation. Derailments and shocking safety lapses have cost lives.
Compounding these rail failures has been worsening traffic on our regional highways, specifically Interstate 95 and the Merritt Parkway. Our commerce and commuters are burdened with few good options and our economy and health suffer as a result.
The solutions to our traffic and transportation challenges must be developed from the Federal Government down, and from the local level up. As an elected official in
Fairfield:
I served as a key adviser to the Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee, which created a Master Plan for Fairfield and advocated before Town Plan and Zoning. As a result, our Town now has rules in place for better walking, bicycling and parking; and requirements that public sidewalks comply with ADA standards.
I voted with the Board of Selectmen to make the Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee permanent, a key long term component for sound planning in our Town.
I participated in housing and transit oriented development workshops to help Fairfield address long term business development and housing needs. Policies promoting sensible growth around transit centers can help Fairfield attract jobs, build our tax base and create walkable communities desirable to families, commuters, seniors and the disabled.
As a town leader, I have served as a liaison between both the Town's and Board of Education's Human Resources Departments and the CT Department of Transportation, to encourage employees to take advantage of vanpools, carpool coordination, trip planning and multiple commuter resources the CT DOT provides.
We need a transportation system that is reliable, flexible and effective; one that will transport employees to jobs and attract employers to Connecticut. We need a system that works for people of all ages and abilities. Connecticut's future depends on it.

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