Missouri Bicycle News

Proponents of Amendment 3, which will appear on the Nov. 2 ballot statewide, say the measure would provide more funding for state roads without tax increases. If that sounds too good to be true, it is. The truth is, the $187 million it allots for roads would come from Missouri's schools, from health care for kids and seniors and from programs for children in foster care. These critical human services would suffer.

The timing of the loss of $187 million couldn't be worse, coming on top of the most significant fiscal crisis in Missouri since the Great Depression. Missouri's schools already are underfunded by $600 million. More than $58 million already has been cut from mental health, limiting access to care of thousands of children and adults. Some 88,000 students in Missouri's state universities already are paying higher tuition because of dramatic cuts to higher education.

And Amendment 3 would take away even more money.

• Missouri's highways are in very bad shape and need to be fixed. Roads in Missouri have been chronically underfunded and fixing this problem will not be painless.
  
  
• Missouri voters should carefully evaluate both the pros and cons of Amendment 3 before voting.
  
  
• Whatever plan is put into place to fix Missouri's roads, years of neglect of the needs of bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users must end. The legitimate needs of these transportation users be taken into consideration on every new and reconstructed road in Missouri.