Tom Thunstrom
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Comments
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On the article Video: Local Republican Representatives Speak Out on Tolls
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On the article Video: Local Republican Representatives Speak Out on Tolls
Tom Thunstrom
3:48 pm on Friday, June 10, 2011
ReplyThere's a few problems with simply throwing down some overhead wires on the BNSF line. For instance, many 422 commuters work in jobs that are generally in KOP, Main Line, and in areas where existing rail infrastructure does not exist. It's not convenient to ride the train from Royersford to Berwyn or Wayne given the rail grid.
The idea of tolling 422 without using the PTC as the administrative arm is somewhat short-sighted -- it's another bureaucratic agency that is being developed and tasked to manage money. Is that the wisest use of funds?
We all know the commute sucks but to be honest, there are bridges and roads throughout the region that are failing miserably (just look at the one in our backyard). I'd rather see a gas tax hike or a sales tax hike with those monies earmarked to transportation. This way the state is paying to repair what is a statewide problem. Once those monies are used on repair, then let's address traffic issues throughout the state with the leftover cash. Instead of penalizing regional residents for using a highway that was designed with the intent of siphoning traffic off of Ridge Pike, it's better to tax us for driving anywhere...regardless of route and destination. In the end, tolling 422 likely dumps a percentage of traffic into Ridge Pike, Germantown Pike, and Route 724.
Do we need to address the transportation and road issues in this state? Absolutely. It's more than just Route 422.
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On the Blog Post Where do I live, anyway?
Tom Thunstrom
5:38 pm on Tuesday, May 17, 2011
ReplyI like the idea of calling it Spring-Ford...all of this patch's area is within the S-F District. For those like me in Upper Providence (who split mailing addresses between Royersford, Collegeville, Phoenixville, and Oaks depending on zip code), the township identity isn't used as much (how many folks use "Upper Providence, Montgomery County, PA in our mailing labels)!
Spring-Ford is our greater community...and tends to be representative of the area this site serves...which also includes Upper Providence. There's a good chunk of Upper Prov readership on this site (you see occasional commenters from U-P)...wouldn't mind seeing more U-P news even if it overlaps with the Oaks section of the township.
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On the article GlaxoSmithKline: We're entitled to a fair assessment of our property
Tom Thunstrom
5:15 am on Tuesday, March 29, 2011
ReplyI'm really interested in hearing the district (or board's) .02 on Glaxo's assertion there were delays in the process. Seems like there are going to be a lot of budgetary hammers dropping locally, not just in SF...gonna be ugly for a while...
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On the article Snow and Ice, Neither Are Nice
Tom Thunstrom
7:16 pm on Sunday, January 16, 2011
ReplyWill do.
In the interim, feel free to check out two articles I did a while back on phillyweather.net about the computer guidance. One talks about what's out there and the other talks about how to understand some of the computer model maps out there.
http://philadelphiaweather.blogspot.com/2007/09/weather-101-what-are-computer-models.html
http://philadelphiaweather.blogspot.com/2008/01/weather-101-how-to-read-computer-model.html
Tom Thunstrom
3:56 pm on Friday, June 10, 2011
RE: Dharma...a 3rd lane that's "toll only" would be a good idea. Minneapolis does this with one of their highways and it works relatively well. If folks want to use it they pay a sliding toll based on congestion and time of day (more expensive in the morning, cheaper at night and on weekends).