What Do You Know, There is a Difference

When they ran against each other for governor of Maryland last time, Martin O'Malley and Robert Erlich agreed on almost everything. I could only identify one important distinction: O'Malley ran as a strong supporter of Maryland's "Smart Growth" plan, which aims to discourage development in rural and exurban areas and promote growth within existing cities and dense suburbs. Now they have taken opposing stands on one of the biggest issues facing the state government over the next decade: whether to build two major public transit projects. The Baltimore Sun:

If O'Malley is re-elected, he will almost certainly keep Maryland on a course toward construction of two long-sought but expensive light rail systems — the $1.8 billion Red Line in Baltimore and the $1.6 billion Purple Line in the Washington suburbs. As governor, Ehrlich supported the planning process on both lines, but has turned against them as proposed by O'Malley. The Republican has vowed to scuttle light rail on both lines, saying rapid bus lines are his preferred choice. . . .

For Ehrlich, the transit issue has complicated his relationship with business leaders, who tend otherwise to be receptive to Republican appeals. In the populous suburbs of Washington, the influential Greater Washington Board of Trade is an enthusiastic supporter of light rail on the Purple Line. The Greater Baltimore Committee is equally committed to O'Malley's plan for the Red Line.

The Board of Trade, which supported Ehrlich in his 2002 and 2006 runs for governor, cited the Purple Line last week when it threw its endorsement to O'Malley. The GBC does not endorse candidates, but has expressed misgivings about Ehrlich's stance on the Red Line.

I am a huge supporter of public transit myself, so this gives me another reason, beyond simple prejudice against Republicans, to vote for O'Malley.

The thing that depresses me most when I contemplate the vast sums we have squandered on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is how much public transit we could have bought with that $700 billion dollars: high speed rail up and down the east and west coasts, major upgrades to the rail systems in every major city, and much more. But the money's gone, the budget is on the verge of crisis, and there won't be a major federal investment in transit for at least the next decade. What an opportunity thrown away.