Solving the transportation crisis

THE CHINESE SYMBOL for crisis is a combination of the characters for danger and opportunity. As we begin to address the looming transportation crisis, there is both danger and opportunity for the Commonwealth.

Crumbling roads and bridges and the massive Big Dig debt are huge challenges that will not be solved easily, and will require shared sacrifice. Fixing these problems will require creativity and a willingness to think in new ways. The danger lies in solutions that reflect old thinking or offer only a short-term fix.

Several times during my tenure as speaker, challenges to the Commonwealth have been so vast and complex they could be solved only by breaking the traditional political mold.

In 2006, we rewrote the national storyline on healthcare, passing landmark legislation to provide health insurance to nearly every man, woman, and child in the Commonwealth. It happened only when bipartisan leaders, hospitals, insurers, unions, CEOs, and ministers were willing to stop reaching for sound bites and worked together for a bold solution. Since then, more than 430,000 people have been newly insured and we now have the lowest rate of uninsured in the nation.

Last year, we replicated that model with nation-leading energy reform. Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray, and I, together with our colleagues in the Legislature and stakeholders, worked for 11 months with disparate groups that for decades have fought over environmental issues.

Our actions led the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters to say that we "led the nation on clean energy, global warming, and land protection this year." Both achievements are now considered the model for President-elect Barack Obama's policies on healthcare and energy.

Now we must take that same approach to problem solving and apply it to the transportation crisis.

First, the proposed toll increases are not the place to start. Drivers from the North Shore and west of Boston - the only toll-payers in the state - should not have to pay up to $1,800 each year to drive to work.

The Transportation Committee holds a hearing on two gas tax bills tomorrow. Neither is perfect, but they are a start. In combination with other measures, they can form the basis of an alternative to the short-term thinking that got us in a mess so dire the independent commission we asked to analyze our transportation woes said in its report: "We need to grasp the enormity of the problem that we face, recognize that 'business as usual' will not suffice, and work together to develop sustainable solutions for our transportation system."

So what should our ultimate solution contain?

Before we raise any taxes or tolls, we must act on deep and meaningful reform. We cannot ask more from people without showing them we are serious about meaningful change. We should merge transportation agencies to root out inefficiency. That means one transportation agency managing our systems, not four.

We also need to reform an out of control pension system within agencies like the MBTA - which itself is facing the looming repayment of some $8 billion in debt, far greater than the current Big Dig debt crisis. Next, we need to level with people and explain that the $20 billion cost of maintenance without any enhancements can't be achieved with reforms alone. Additional revenue will be needed and everything should be on the table. A gas tax is a better option than a huge toll increase. It is a much fairer and more equitable way to address revenue needs.

And with respect to tolls, we need to have an honest conversation about how we situate them. Does it make sense to have them just on bridges and tunnels? Should we consider adding them in other places, such as at the borders? Should we embrace open road tolling to allow drivers to continue at highway speeds?

As with healthcare and energy reform, the challenge to find meaningful solutions for our transportation system will be challenging. But with the cooperation of the governor, Senate, and House, we can craft a creative and effective solution.

This is our challenge. If we work together, it represents a tremendous opportunity.

Salvatore F. DiMasi, a Democratic state representative from Boston, is speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.