Voters still want MoDOT to honor highway promises

To the editor:

Aug. 6 was a great day for Missouri. Despite all of the Missouri Department of Transportation scare tactics and guilt trips, voters said no to Proposition B. MoDOT officials asked for our trust. They wanted us to forgive them for the failure of the 15-year plan and promised that, if Missourians passed Proposition B, they would make improvements. MoDOT just doesn't get it

I was particularly offended by the commercials blaming the taxpayers for the high rate of fatalities on Missouri highways. MoDOT diverted money that could have been used for highway repair to build a bike trail across the state, a commuter train for St. Louis and various other projects that had nothing to do with our highways.

What MoDOT doesn't realize is that Missourians still want those promises honored. We are still paying for the last tax increase passed for the 15-year plan. When will bureaucrats and politicians realize that tax increases are no longer the solution for governments financial woes?

If history is a teacher, then it stands to reason that further tax increases will do nothing to repair our roads in Missouri -- or anywhere else for that matter. I don't think we have heard the last of MoDOT. They will undoubtedly try again, and again I will oppose them. I only hope that Missourians will be wise enough not to believe MoDOT's future attempts and empty promises. For now, I am satisfied to quietly celebrate.

CLINT E. LACY

Marble Hill, Mo.