A series of statewide meetings designed to take the pulse of transit needs in Missouri kicks off in the St. Louis suburb of Chesterfield next Monday.
House Speaker Steven Tilley put the panel together in early March. Members include transportation, labor, business and political leaders. Committee co-chairman Bill McKenna was a member of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission from 2001 to 2007. He says there’s a benefit to holding the hearings even if they’re only used for education.
“I hope we have a report at the end that’s effective enough that it kind of moves the Legislature to take a look and say hey, this is a way to move our state forward," said McKenna. "We’ve got a lot of people unemployed, and we’ve got a lot of needs. It seems like we ought to put those two things together.”
McKenna says he hopes the conversations include one about funding transportation needs in the state.
