Barbara Lee’s Statement on the Reopening of the MacArthur Maze
(Washington, DC) – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) released the following statement in anticipation of the reopening of the MacArthur Maze only 27 days after a fire caused by a crashed tanker truck closed the I-580 and I-880 interchanges:
“Across the board, the I-580 collapse demonstrated how government should work in responding to an emergency situation. From day one, local, state and federal governments forged a cooperative partnership with transit operators and the private sector to expedite the reconstruction effort and help commuters navigate around the collapse.
“Caltrans deserves a lot of credit for ensuring that the reconstruction of the I-580 connector was completed in the fastest, fairest and safest way possible.
“I want to particularly highlight the work of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in coordinating mass transportation services across the Bay Area. I also want to commend the work of AC Transit, BART and the ferry boat operators for their work in deploying resources to handle the increased ridership in their systems. I hope that people who got a taste of these transit services over the last month liked their experience and will continue to use these vital services in the future to help reduce congestion on our roads.
“As the reconstruction ends, our job at the federal level to reimburse the state continues.
“Just yesterday the House of Representatives voted to include an additional $871 million to top up the Federal Highway Administration’s Emergency Relief Program.
“This money will not only reimburse California for the $343 million backlog in completed reconstruction projects, but will also provide an additional $25 million specifically to pay the state back for the re-construction of the MacArthur Maze.
“At the same time though we must also go back and fix the law that governs the Emergency Relief Program for the future to ensure that states are eligible to apply for reimbursement for all costs related to mass transportation and travel information services that are provided to cope with such emergencies.
“Currently as written the program can only reimburse the states for the costs incurred to run expanded ferry boat systems during an emergency declaration. In a region as diverse as ours, with so many different modes of transportation we must ensure that all mass transit operators are eligible for reimbursement. I will be working with my colleagues Senator Boxer, and Rep. Tauscher to make sure that we make this change as soon as possible.
“Transit and mass transportation are an important part of our transportation infrastructure. I hope that as the legislature finalizes the budget this year that they will see fit to reject the Governor’s misguided attempts to balance the budget on the back of mass transit.
“I want to thank commuters for their patience over the last month as we've all had to deal with this collapse and again I want to thank Caltrans, C.C. Meyers and all the contractors for working with a real sense of urgency. I also want to especially recognize Mayor Dellums and his work in highlighting the added congestion and pollution problems that the connector collapse brought to the citizens of West Oakland. I look forward to working with him to address these ongoing traffic and air quality issues in this vital part of my district.”
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