BIKE: Austin Commuter rails

[Joe Moore]

I am finding it quite informative reading Mike's and David's E-mails
discussing the pros and cons of a light rail system.
I consider myself to be a typical voter, and after reading the last few
E-mails, I will still vote against the forthcoming light rail initiative.

One of the reasons I moved to Austin 10 years ago was to live in a "lower
density" city that has a high quality of life.  My family and I am not the
type of people who like to live in "high density" enviroments. The type of
housing densities described in Mr. Dobbs E-mail that are required to make
mass transit successful.  My residence was chosen such that I could commute
to work on my bicycle, yet be within 20 minutes of the majority of my
shopping and recreational activities.  More traffic on the existing road
infastructure wont adversly affect our life style for years and years.  None
of the light rail plans I've seen would benefit me or my neighborhood, so
why support it!  If taxes continue to rise faster than my income, I
definetly will move farther out from Austin and find a less expensive place
to live.  If I have to move farther out of the city because of continuing
property tax increases, toll roads and too many people, then I will gladly
add to the urban sprawl, traffic, and an increased use of gasoline to
support the lifesytle I want!

My property taxes have risen over 30% in the past 3 years!  Gas could go to
$5.00 per gallons and based on how many gallons our family burns a year,
this still would not match my property tax increases!  I would rather pay
less taxes and let the road system become more crowded. Crowded to the point
that commuters would actually consider using alternate forms of
transportation such as bicycles or car pools!

Joe