clipped from www.oregonlive.com

U.S. transportation secretary calls Portland's streetcar, light rail a "model" for nation

by Dylan Rivera, The Oregonian

Tuesday April 14, 2009, 10:36 AM

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The Portland Streetcar zips east on Northwest Lovejoy Street. An eastside extension of the line would cross the Broadway Bridge and run to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.

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U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told a national television audience this morning that Portland's light rail and streetcar systems are a model for the nation and he would soon come to Portland to "make some announcements."

On C-SPAN's "Washington Journal" this morning, LaHood also called Portland a model for reducing pollution, "getting people out of their cars" and creating "livable" communities.

The hint about a Portland announcement could mean approval of federal money for the Portland Streetcar's eastside extension, which would be the first streetcar project with substantial federal funding. As The Oregonian has reported, the Bush administration resisted the project for several years.

The Portland Streetcar Loop project would extend the line from the Pearl District, across the Broadway Bridge, and south to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. A federal transit grant could fund $75 million of the $147 million extension.

LaHood said that Portland's streetcar and light rail systems are a model for efforts to reduce the pollution that automobiles generate.

"They developed a streetcar system and we're going to be going to Portland and meeting with those folks and making some announcements," LaHood said.