Myth#1: It is a good idea to create a taxing authority with no direct voter accountability. That means that an appointed, rather than an elected board will make decisions with no public input. Citizens will have access only through elected officials. Board members will likely be political appointees doing the bidding of their appointers with or without the will of the people.

Myth#2: The debate is about rail vs. auto. The issue is do we spend 100's of millions on a commuter rail first, or do we regionalize bus service for a fraction of the cost. It has been proven that rapid bus service accomplishes the same goals for a fraction of the cost to you. Busses to the outlying neighborhoods will not happen if all of the money is spent building light rail.

Myth#3: Transit Orientated Development (TOD) will only happen along rail lines. Cleveland, Boston, L.A. all have recent success in building transit orientated communities that attract 100's of millions in new investment using busses as the focal point, at a fraction of the cost to taxpayers. We can spur TOD without building additional infrastructure in the short term.

Myth#4: The RTA has to have a vague plan in order to be flexible. It is true the state has to provide a broad legislative framework for the RTA. The local Dane County RTA has to provide the details for the voters to know what they are voting for. Expanded Busses first? Or Rail first? When and who makes the decision to build trains? When the Milwaukee County Stadium taxing authority was created, voters knew exactly what they were voting for. No so, with this plan.

Myth#5: The "region" is larger than the County. The Metropolitian Planning District covers about 75% of Dane County. An RTA won’t have the authority to address the transportation issues of the larger region.

Myth#6: New development is a given along light rail lines. Commercial and residential real estate has been over built by 20 years. The Middleton – Sun Prarie corridor is no exception. Development has all but stopped. Transportation is only one factor that spurs development. A glut in space far outweighs new transportation in making development decisons.

Myth#7: There is enough population to support use. Dane county has a fraction of the population of any city or region that has light rail. Even if everybody used the system, it would never break even. Ongoing operation costs have not been added into the taxing equation.

Myth#8: It will only cost $255 million. Estimates range from $10 million to $100 million per mile for similar projects. There is no accurate way to estimate the cost. But once we start, we are stuck. And if light rail consumes all of the tax revenue, we all lose. $50 million would provide 100 new busses. For another $50 million we could subsidize the fares down to almost free rides for several years. Now that would change people's behavior and attitudes toward mass transit and deliver a product that is flexible and useful.

Is creating incentives to use mass transit more effective than punitive legislation? Parking fees are going up to curb downtown travel. Parking on streets is being restricted. Zoning laws are being written with less parking requirements.
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