In the Portland, Oregon area, west-side light rail was built over the objections of local residents, who voted it down. That thumbs-down vote marked the beginning of the end for residential input, as the governmental agencies decided to find ways to build more light rail without the inconvenience of voters telling them not to do it. The west-side line was opened in 1998.
West-side light rail was built over the objections of the Federal Transit Authority, as well, although FTA's objections were unrelated to the mode of transit.
The FTA didn’t like the route, because it was run through a lot of empty area. Why? Because planners hoped that developers would build high-density housing along the line, thus justifying the route as time went on. It was a grand experiment in metropolitan planning.
Metro planners then cajoled and forced various city governments to redo their zoning laws to make the high-density developments more train-dependent. They specified an extremely scarce supply of parking.
And the developers? They stayed away in droves. As a landowner put it, “it’s never been developed” because of that very “mandated lack of parking.”
Portland-area governmental "planning" brain-trusts have nonetheless continued to find creative ways to build light rail against the wishes of the FTA and local residents because, after all, they're from the government. They know best. The Left always does.
