Rep. Ryan calls bike paths “cosmetic” and worthy of “Golden Fleece” award
Yeah, the Gitchi-Gami State Trail on the North Shore of Lake Superior was totally a waste of money. Photo by Eric Chandler.
U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) yesterday announced his “Golden Fleece” award recipients, an effort to put the spotlight on wasteful federal spending, ala Sen. Bill Proxmire before him.
Most of the “winners” deserve the public spanking they got. But then I read this in Ryan’s press release:
“At a time when the nation’s roads and bridges need attention – as demonstrated by the recent collapse of a bridge in Minneapolis – the federal government continues to divert large amounts of money to bike paths and other cosmetic projects that could be funded locally.”
First, I doubt that bridge and road maintenance money is lacking because of spending on bike paths. Second, I believe local communities do pony up to build bike paths, but often they can’t afford to fully fund such projects. Most state and federal grants for trail development require local matching funds anyway.
Lastly, I bristle at the suggestion that bike paths are unnecessary or “cosmetic” projects.
“Funding for trails: The anti-pork pork” was the headline for my column in the September 2005 issue of Silent Sports. I heralded the $286.4-billion, five-year federal transportation bill for its inclusion of a tiny percentage of trail development money. Minnesota garnered $120 million (including $16 million to complete the Mesabi, Munger and Gitchi-Gami paved trails) and Wisconsin got $40 million (including $25 million for Sheboygan County to create alternative transportation facilities).
Ryan might view these projects – including another $25 million for an alternative transportation pilot project in the Twin Cities – as pork benefiting U.S. Rep Jim Oberstar (D-Minnesota) and U.S. Rep Tom Petri (R-Wisconsin) who played key roles ushering the funding bill through Congress.
But I still contend this is “anti-pork pork” because it is money spent to encourage people to commute and run errands while simultaneously exercising which helps trim some of the pork they’d otherwise carry around.
Besides, given the state of the world today, any effort to get people to cut back on their production of greenhouse gases ought to be rewarded and replicated, not ridiculed.
– Joel Patenaude