FT 15.01 - Public Transportation Expansions/Connections Act (PASSED)

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Fremont Public Transportation Expansions and Connections Act of 2020

AN ACT to better extend the benefits of Fremont’s revolutionary high-speed rail system to all Fremonters and facillitate further expansion of enviromentally-friendly public transportation alternatives

Section I (Title)

i. The long title of this act shall be, the “Fremont Public Transportation and Connections Act of 2020”. It may be cited as the “Public Transportation Expansions/Connections Act” or as ”PTECA”.

Section II (Regional Service for FremontRail)

i. A sum of $YTBD shall be allocated for the construction of additional local stops and lines along major high-speed FremontRail lines across the territory of the Commonwealth.
ii. On the Northern Pacific Line, local stops shall be built at Vacaville, Roseburg, Kelso, and Tacoma. Additionally, the following shall be submitted to local residents for consideration.
a. The potential additions of local stops at Willows, CA and Albany, OR.
b. The potential extension of the Northern Pacific Line north to Everett and Bellingham.
iii. On the Central Line, local stops shall be built at Cheyenne, Fort Collins, and Lincoln. Additionally, the following shall be submitted to local residents for consideration.
a. The potential addition of a local stop at Grand Island, NE in lieu of Lincoln, NE.
b. The potential extension of the Central Line to Minneapolis, MN, with local stops in Des Moines, Mason City, and Rochester.
In conjunction with clause b), the creation of a spur line from Des Moines, IA to Dubuque, IA, with a local stop in Iowa City. Pending legislative action from Lincoln, this spur could continue on to Chicago from Dubuque.
iv. On the Transdakotan Line, the potential addition of a local stop in St. Cloud, MN shall be submitted to local residents for consideration.
v. On the main interior line, local stops shall be built at San Bernardino, Palm Springs-Palm Desert, Pueblo, and Colorado Springs, and a spur line to Tuscon shall be built from Phoenix. Additionally, the following shall be submitted to local residents for consideration.
a. The potential addition of a local stop at an undisclosed Central Valley, CA location, with a mass-transit alternative running from this stop to the cities of Fresno and Bakersfield.
vi. A new line, termed the Northwestern Interior Line, will connect the cities of Seattle and Eugene, with local stops in Ellensburg, Yakima, Tri-Cities, Spokane, Missoula, Butte, Pocatello, Twin Falls, Boise, and Bend. Additionally, the following spur lines shall be constructed to link the Northwest Interior Line to the Transdakotan Line and the Central Line:
a. A spur line from Pocatello to Salt Lake City, with a local stop in Ogden.
b. A spur line from Butte to Rapid City, with local stops in Bozeman and Billings.
vii. On all FremontRail lines, express lines shall be established, which only stop at major population centers. Express lines will make up about TBD% of rail traffic, with the remaining service stopping at all local stops.

Section III (Improved Local Public Transportation Infrastructure)

i. The Commonwealth of Fremont shall allocate 6% of carbon tax revenue each year to fund clean public transportation initiatives in major urban areas.
ii. Funds shall be allocated to individual cities based on an application process to the Fremont Department of Transportation. Funds shall be allocated based on population, logistics, need, cost effectiveness, and predicted reduction in carbon emissions. Currently ongoing construction and planning projects will recieve priority for funding. Additionally, construction that connects existing local public transportation networks to regional connectors (such as FremontRail) will be encouraged.
iii. The Department of Transportation will conduct oversight on the usage of these funds, and funds may be confisticated if the Department of Transportation deems they are not being effectively used.

Section IV (Protection for Endangered Habitats)

i. All transit options constructed within the purview of this act shall seek to avoid inflicting permanent damage to endangered habitats, as defined by the federal Subdepartment of the Interior and the relevant agencies of the several states.

Sponsor: Oregon Blue Dog, MFP (Meadowlark—Labor, Oregon)

The member from Oregon now has the floor to advocate.

[OBD]

Thank you, Speaker. Our region's FrémontRail system is excellent and provides unparalleled connections between our major cities - however, more rural communities have been left out of the economic benefits brought to many Frémonters by high-speed rail. Additionally, many cities in Frémont lack effective public transportation - my home city of Portland doesn't have this problem, but in other parts of the Commonwealth, lacking public transportation system force commuters to use less clean methods to get to work.

This infrastructure bill aims to address both problems, while working to maintain the environmentally-friendly policy that defines our great Commonwealth. Firstly, by adding local stations and express lines to existing lines, FrémontRail service could potentially be extended to over 20 smaller communities, servicing thousands more civilians, easing vacation planning, and encouraging economic growth. The addition of stops at Palm Springs-Indio in Southern California makes trips to that lucrative vacation region a breeze. And, the addition of stops in places like Kelso, Tacoma, and Vacaville will allow these locales to have closer economic ties with nearby cities, encouraging growth in both housing and general economic sectors. Additionally, this act provides new rail service to rural communities, and will allow them to tap into the economic benefits high-speed rail can provide. The extensions proposed by this Act will bring rail service to the Inner Northwest and the upper Mississippi region, as well as facilitating connections on major north-south and east-west arteries. It's imperative that we extend rail lines to rural areas so Frémont can become a more united and cohesive region.

This bill will also provide means to combat the dearth of clean transportation options in many metropolitan areas. By allocating carbon tax funds to aid local public transportation networks across the Commonwealth, we can encourage public transportation use in lieu of conventional options and thus help reduce carbon emissions further and ease the transition away from fossil fuels - a most appropriate use for the revenue we gain from the carbon tax.

Thank you all for your time.

[AustralianSwingVoter]

On the one hand this is an incredible waste of money but on the other hand we've already wasted billions on a high speed network that basically no one is ever going to use anyway because the distances are too long so the train isn't competitive with flying and the demand is too low so there's not enough people to use it anyway.

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Do you happen to have a price locked down that we can amend into the bill?

[OBD]

Do you happen to have a price locked down that we can amend into the bill?

There is no comptroller and the GM hasn't responded to my inquiry. Based on https://uselectionatlas.org/AFEWIKI/index.php/Central_and_Northern_Pacific_Railway_Act_of_2017, I believe that the extensions will cost around $4-5 billion dollars, but adding stations to existing lines should be much cheaper. Additionally, the FM told me that revenue from the carbon tax was $31bil last year, and 6% of that is a little short of $2 billion.

[AustralianSwingVoter]

Do you happen to have a price locked down that we can amend into the bill?

There is no comptroller and the GM hasn't responded to my inquiry. Based on https://uselectionatlas.org/AFEWIKI/index.php/Central_and_Northern_Pacific_Railway_Act_of_2017, I believe that the extensions will cost around $4-5 billion dollars, but adding stations to existing lines should be much cheaper. Additionally, the FM told me that revenue from the carbon tax was $31bil last year, and 6% of that is a little short of $2 billion.

Well 2 billion will get us a mile of Subway by MTA prices or 10 miles of Light Rail by Portland prices. Nowhere near enough to actually achieve anything.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

I don't think this is a waste of money at all, though of course the actual sum will be important. If this passes, it will need to be passed on to the game moderator to simulate the result of local consultations mandated by §2.

[Continential]

What about using tolls to pay for it.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

What about using tolls to pay for it.

Frémont abolished tolls last year, thank God. Never in a thousand years will I support their reintroduction —freedom of movement is a right, not a commodity!

[OBD]

Motion to table so I can make some important improvements to this bill. We have a really long queue...

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Seconding the motion as the author seems eager to do so. All members have 24 hours to vote on tabling the bill. A two-thirds majority of the sitting body is required.

[OBD]

Aye

[Continential]

Aye

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

Aye

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

[OBD]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

Agreed. However, I'll reiterate the issue is that the amendment I'm preparing that'll add detail to section III could take days to weeks of research to complete, and with the current legislative backlog I feel it's appropriate to table for now and reintroduce once my amendment is complete.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

Agreed. However, I'll reiterate the issue is that the amendment I'm preparing that'll add detail to section III could take days to weeks of research to complete, and with the current legislative backlog I feel it's appropriate to table for now and reintroduce once my amendment is complete.

Honestly, I do not consider there to be a "backlog" at all, especially if days or weeks is all you need.

[OBD]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

Agreed. However, I'll reiterate the issue is that the amendment I'm preparing that'll add detail to section III could take days to weeks of research to complete, and with the current legislative backlog I feel it's appropriate to table for now and reintroduce once my amendment is complete.

Honestly, I do not consider there to be a "backlog" at all, especially if days or weeks is all you need.

5 bills isn't a backlog?

I mean if you guys are okay with allowing this to take up a slot for that amount of time...

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

Agreed. However, I'll reiterate the issue is that the amendment I'm preparing that'll add detail to section III could take days to weeks of research to complete, and with the current legislative backlog I feel it's appropriate to table for now and reintroduce once my amendment is complete.

Honestly, I do not consider there to be a "backlog" at all, especially if days or weeks is all you need.

5 bills isn't a backlog?

I mean if you guys are okay with allowing this to take up a slot for that amount of time...

When we have four slots? No.

The thing is, we want there to be some backlog, as writing and researching bills takes time and we don't want to find ourselves in a situation where there is nothing in the queue. If things really starts getting backed up, we can always utilize the emergency slots.

[OBD]

Nay!

There are parts of this bill that need to be fixed, but that's exactly what the amendment process is for. This is a perfect opportunity for parliament to actually debate, instead of rubber-stamping bills after three or four posts like we normally do.

Agreed. However, I'll reiterate the issue is that the amendment I'm preparing that'll add detail to section III could take days to weeks of research to complete, and with the current legislative backlog I feel it's appropriate to table for now and reintroduce once my amendment is complete.

Honestly, I do not consider there to be a "backlog" at all, especially if days or weeks is all you need.

5 bills isn't a backlog?

I mean if you guys are okay with allowing this to take up a slot for that amount of time...

When we have four slots? No.

The thing is, we want there to be some backlog, as writing and researching bills takes time and we don't want to find ourselves in a situation where there is nothing in the queue. If things really starts getting backed up, we can always utilize the emergency slots.

Alright. I'm willing to keep this bill on the floor, then. Sorry for the indecision.

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

The ayes are 3, the nays are 1, and 1 is not present. A majority consisting of 4 or more ayes was required for tabling, however, this quota was not met. The bill is not tabled, and debate shall resume.

[OBD]

As of right now, I've completed research for Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and Sacramento. Many of the plans here are partially funded, so our funding will help expedite these projects and hopefully get them done before 2040 (which was the original finish date for many of them). This amendment includes all feasible projects I could formulate, so some things could definitely get removed in the future (and I expect such removals to occur on some level). Looking forward to feedback.

Amendment to Section III
(note - this will completely replace Section III)
i. The Commonwealth of Fremont shall allocate $YTBD in funding to the following projects:

ii. In Seattle, cover the remaining required funding and expedite construction for all currently planned Light Rail projects, including:
a. extending the Orange (Tacoma) Line to Tacoma Community College
b. extending the Green (current) Line to Ballard and the Tacoma Dome, and adding a stop in Midtown.
c. creating the Blue Line, running from Mariner to Redmond along the Lynnwood/Northgate Extensions and a new alightment through Bellevue.
d. creating the Red Line, running from West Seattle to Everett along the existing line and the Lynnwood/Northgate Extensions
e. creating the Purple Line, running from South Kirkland through Bellevue to Issaquah
f. extending the Sounder Commuter Rail to Dupont
g. Creating BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) service along the I-405 corridor from Burien to Lynnwood, and from Shoreline to Bothell
h. New park-and-rides should be constructed at major transportation hubs whenever feasible.


iii. In Portland,
a. The Southwest Corridor Light Rail Project linking the Tualatin area with PSU
b. The Columbia River Crossing Project, which will refurbrish the I-5 bridge into Vancouver and add a light-rail connection to Clark College via Vancouver (pending the consent of Vancouver’s government).
c. An Airport Express Line along existing rails that makes no stops in downtown Portland, to shave time off the lengthy commute.
d. A comprehensive commuter rail system, constructed on portions of the Pacific Northwestern and Union Pacific Railroads, consisting of the following lines:
e. The Westside Line, running from Forest Grove to Beaverton, with stops in Hillsboro and Aloha.
f. The Yamhill Line, running from Newberg to Portland, with stops in Sherwood, Tualatin-Durham (intersection with WES), and Lake Oswego.
g. The Upper Wilamette Line, running from East Portland to Canby, with stops in Milwaukee, Clackamas, and Oregon City. Additionally, a spur of this line shall link Lake Oswego and Milwaukee.
h. The Columbia Line, running from East Portland to Troutdale, with stops in St. Johns, Kenton, 42nd and Columbia Blvd (NE Portland), and Parkrose/Airport.
j. New park-and-rides shall be constructed at stops along these commuter lines whenever feasible.

iv. In San Francisco-San Jose,
a. a Silicon Valley extension from Warm Springs station to Cupertino, via San Jose and Santa Clara/Mineta Airport.
b. an extension of the Yellow Line from Antioch to Brentwood.
c. an extension of the Blue Line from Dublin to Livermore.
d. an extension of the Orange Line from Richmond to Vallejo.
e. a second Trans-Bay tube line, running from Daly City to MacArthur, via the Golden Gate Park district, Union Square, and Alameda.
f. completing the Central Subway extension to the SF North Beach through Chinatown, and work to add dedicated right-of-ways for MUNI Metro lines.
g. completing the Fort Mason streetcar project, linking the E Line’s northern terminus to Fort Mason.
h. reconstructing the Dumbarton Rail Bridge and extending Caltrain from Redwood City to Fremont.
j. expediting the electrification of the CalTrain network and increasing frequency to match the BART system.
k. the creation of a Napa-North Bay local rail, with a line running from Sonoma to Napa and a line running through Vallejo, Fairfield, and Vacaville, with the two lines intersecting at Napa Junction.
l. continued development of the SMART system, with eventual service from Larkspur Ferry Terminal to Sonoma and Cloverdale
m. New park-and-rides shall be constructed at major transport hubs whenever feasible.
 
v. In Sacramento,
i. the construction of a new line to Sacramento Airport via Natomas
ii. extending the Blue Line south to Elk Grove and north to Roseville via Citrus Heights
iii. extending the Gold Line west to West Sacramento
iv. constructing a commuter line from Vacaville to West Sacramento, via Davis.

(cities that will eventually get plans)
vi. In Los Angeles,
viii. In Phoenix,
ix. In Denver,
x. In Minneapolis-St. Paul,
xi. In Las Vegas,
xii. In Salt Lake City,

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

As of right now, I've completed research for Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and Sacramento. Many of the plans here are partially funded, so our funding will help expedite these projects and hopefully get them done before 2040 (which was the original finish date for many of them). This amendment includes all feasible projects I could formulate, so some things could definitely get removed in the future (and I expect such removals to occur on some level). Looking forward to feedback.

Amendment to Section III
(note - this will completely replace Section III)
i. The Commonwealth of Fremont shall allocate $YTBD in funding to the following projects:

ii. In Seattle, cover the remaining required funding and expedite construction for all currently planned Light Rail projects, including:
a. extending the Orange (Tacoma) Line to Tacoma Community College
b. extending the Green (current) Line to Ballard and the Tacoma Dome, and adding a stop in Midtown.
c. creating the Blue Line, running from Mariner to Redmond along the Lynnwood/Northgate Extensions and a new alightment through Bellevue.
d. creating the Red Line, running from West Seattle to Everett along the existing line and the Lynnwood/Northgate Extensions
e. creating the Purple Line, running from South Kirkland through Bellevue to Issaquah
f. extending the Sounder Commuter Rail to Dupont
g. Creating BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) service along the I-405 corridor from Burien to Lynnwood, and from Shoreline to Bothell
h. New park-and-rides should be constructed at major transportation hubs whenever feasible.


iii. In Portland,
a. The Southwest Corridor Light Rail Project linking the Tualatin area with PSU
b. The Columbia River Crossing Project, which will refurbrish the I-5 bridge into Vancouver and add a light-rail connection to Clark College via Vancouver (pending the consent of Vancouver’s government).
c. An Airport Express Line along existing rails that makes no stops in downtown Portland, to shave time off the lengthy commute.
d. A comprehensive commuter rail system, constructed on portions of the Pacific Northwestern and Union Pacific Railroads, consisting of the following lines:
e. The Westside Line, running from Forest Grove to Beaverton, with stops in Hillsboro and Aloha.
f. The Yamhill Line, running from Newberg to Portland, with stops in Sherwood, Tualatin-Durham (intersection with WES), and Lake Oswego.
g. The Upper Wilamette Line, running from East Portland to Canby, with stops in Milwaukee, Clackamas, and Oregon City. Additionally, a spur of this line shall link Lake Oswego and Milwaukee.
h. The Columbia Line, running from East Portland to Troutdale, with stops in St. Johns, Kenton, 42nd and Columbia Blvd (NE Portland), and Parkrose/Airport.
j. New park-and-rides shall be constructed at stops along these commuter lines whenever feasible.

iv. In San Francisco-San Jose,
a. a Silicon Valley extension from Warm Springs station to Cupertino, via San Jose and Santa Clara/Mineta Airport.
b. an extension of the Yellow Line from Antioch to Brentwood.
c. an extension of the Blue Line from Dublin to Livermore.
d. an extension of the Orange Line from Richmond to Vallejo.
e. a second Trans-Bay tube line, running from Daly City to MacArthur, via the Golden Gate Park district, Union Square, and Alameda.
f. completing the Central Subway extension to the SF North Beach through Chinatown, and work to add dedicated right-of-ways for MUNI Metro lines.
g. completing the Fort Mason streetcar project, linking the E Line’s northern terminus to Fort Mason.
h. reconstructing the Dumbarton Rail Bridge and extending Caltrain from Redwood City to Fremont.
j. expediting the electrification of the CalTrain network and increasing frequency to match the BART system.
k. the creation of a Napa-North Bay local rail, with a line running from Sonoma to Napa and a line running through Vallejo, Fairfield, and Vacaville, with the two lines intersecting at Napa Junction.
l. continued development of the SMART system, with eventual service from Larkspur Ferry Terminal to Sonoma and Cloverdale
m. New park-and-rides shall be constructed at major transport hubs whenever feasible.
 
v. In Sacramento,
i. the construction of a new line to Sacramento Airport via Natomas
ii. extending the Blue Line south to Elk Grove and north to Roseville via Citrus Heights
iii. extending the Gold Line west to West Sacramento
iv. constructing a commuter line from Vacaville to West Sacramento, via Davis.

(cities that will eventually get plans)
vi. In Los Angeles,
viii. In Phoenix,
ix. In Denver,
x. In Minneapolis-St. Paul,
xi. In Las Vegas,
xii. In Salt Lake City,

I don't mind these additions.

[KoopaDaQuick 🇵🇸]

I know this might be broken record-ish of me, but Meepcheese, do you have a price that you could maybe add to replace the $YTBD? I just want to know how much this is gonna cost before we see any more amendments or votes.

[OBD]

I know this might be broken record-ish of me, but Meepcheese, do you have a price that you could maybe add to replace the $YTBD? I just want to know how much this is gonna cost before we see any more amendments or votes.

Still no figures yet, sorry. I'll probably send them over to the Comptroller once all the amendments are complete.