It has been just over 120 days since the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (stimulus) was signed into law. A big portion of the stimulus dollars went to transportation infrastructure with a focus on "ready-to-go" projects that could begin work quickly. Minnesota received about $600 million and had unprecedented flexibility to use the funds on many types of projects ranging from walking, biking, transit, rail, road repair, and more.

So how have we done? A nationwide report The States and the Stimulus has been released by Smart Growth America to evaluate how the stimulus transportation money is being spent. Looking closer to home, a companion report Minnesota and the Stimulus (pdf)--released jointly by Transit for Livable Communities, 1000 Friends of Minnesota, the Alliance for Metropolitan Stability, and Fresh Energy--answers the basic question: Did Minnesota use the federal stimulus to create jobs, catch up on needed repair, and expand travel options?

For Minnesota, the answer is that the stimulus spending has been mixed. Mn/DOT focused on road maintenance in Greater Minnesota--using the stimulus to effectively begin to address a backlog of repair projects that was starting to erode the integrity of the system. In the Twin Cities, too much of the money was spent on highway expansion while necessary maintenance projects were put off and a chance was missed to spend more to support transition of pedestrian facilities to meet the needs of people with disabilities as well as to grow transit, rail, and other transportation choices. 

Also, the process for determining the allocation of stimulus money lacked transparency and meaningful public input. While Mn/DOT and the Transportation Advisory Board (TAB--the decision maker in the Twin Cities) certainly had to work in a tight time frame, they needed to do more to elicit, acknowledge, and respond to public input. Mn/DOT held one public open house to answer questions about the stimulus (they did not seek input on projects or priorities) and the TAB held one session for public  comment, which overflowed the Metropolitan Council chambers with people interested in voicing their concerns. In the end, it is not clear whether there was ever any public input on the projects in Greater Minnesota and the TAB never publicly responded to the comments made at their meeting.

So what can we learn from the stimulus in Minnesota? The report offers five key lessons:

• Implement a transparent and accountable process for setting and implementing priorities.
• Ensure that existing infrastructure is brought to a state of good repaid and improved safety.
• Respond to the growing desire of residents and communities to have safe and accessible networks for walking and bicycling.
• Accelerate planning and development for an expanded statewide system of local, regional, and intercity transit and also high speed rail, so Minnesota won't be caught flat-footed when new revenues, like the Stimulus, become available in the future.
• Ensure that transportation investments create jobs and build a transportation system that provides access to economic opportunities for everyone throughout the region.

These lessons should be taken to heart as Congress prepares a new federal transportation bill and as Mn/DOT, the Metropolitan Council, and TAB work to support a 21st-century transportation system in Minnesota and the Twin Cities.