From: "Friends of Transit" To: Subject: Articles on MAG Transit Plan Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2003 12:39 PM "Here is a copy of a news release sent from our Friends at the Arizona Consumers Council regarding transit investment in the MAG Plan." ARIZONA CONSUMERS COUNCIL Non-profit Statewide Consumer Advocacy www.azconsumerscouncil.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, Sept. 29, 2003 Contact: Diane Bacon, (602) 670-3701 Jessica Catlin, (480) 784-4890 Arizona Consumers Council Vows to Protect Transit in MAG Plan, Will Be a Watchdog for More Transit Investment Phoenix, Ariz. - Arizona's nonpartisan consumer watchdog group today called the Maricopa Association of Governments' (MAG) transportation plan a "good start" and vowed to fight off attacks on the mass transit dollars included in that plan. MAG recently approved the 20-year transportation plan and dedicated 32 percent of the total funding to mass transit options. "Just last month with the breakdown of the Kinder-Morgan pipeline, consumers all over the Valley saw a first-hand example of why we need a more comprehensive transportation plan with more options," said Diane Bacon, president of the Arizona Consumers Council. Some Arizona State Legislators have attacked the MAG transportation plan for including too much funding for transit and not enough for freeways in their own districts. Bacon said, "This regional transportation plan is about moving people around, not about moving political grab-bags around." The City of Phoenix is moving ahead with developing a transit system after voters there overwhelmingly approved a .4% sales tax increase in 2000 to fund a comprehensive transit system. The MAG transit plan would enable other cities in Maricopa County to link with this system. The Arizona Consumers Council has been a voice for Arizona consumers since 1966. It is a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, affiliated with national organizations such as the Consumer Federation of America and Consumers Union. ###