ozone:
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Overall I see light-rail is an economic and social net loss. What do you think would happen if it were shut-down tomorrow?
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1) You would have to add a lot more parking. If this light rail system mostly serves commuter function, you would have to add a lot more parking downtown, either with surface parking lots or structured parking that costs between $30,000 - $50,000 per space. Either way, this would make downtown Sacramento a lot less dense, less walkable, and fewer properties from which to collect property taxes.
2) Congestion on I-80 and Hwy 50 would increase. You may be correct that light rail only captures a small percent of the overall daily trips but many of these are probably peak period commuting trips. When highways are congested, each additional vehicle you add to the road creates a greatly disproportionate amount of additional congestion.
3) Air quality would be adversely affected. The Central Valley already has some of the nation's most polluted air and adding thousands of more vehicles to the roads every single day, especially if they are idling in traffic, would worsen air quality.