Podcast #20 – The State of the State’s Transportation with Rep. Ron Erhardt

The podcast this week is a conversation state Representative Ron Erhardt of Edina about the state of the state’s transportation system. Representative Erhardt, who chairs the Transportation Policy committee in the House, was recently elected to represent Edina as a DFL Democrat after serving many years representing Edina as a Republican. He was forced into switching parties after voting in 2008 for a controversial over-ride of then-Governor Tim Pawlenty’s veto of a state transportation funding bill. This places Representative Erhardt in the unique position of chairing a House transportation committee as both a Democrat and a Republican.

st paul university ave lrt

University Ave LRT with the state capitol in the background

I sat down with him last week in his new office in the State Office Building on St Paul’s Capitol Hill to talk about his history fighting for transportation funding in Minnesota, and what to expect from the coming 2013 legislative session in transportation policy. I hope you enjoy the conversation.

The link to the audio is here. Subscribe to the whole shebang on iTunes.

Bill Lindeke

About Bill Lindeke

Bill Lindeke has been blogging about sidewalks and cities since 2005, ever since he read Jane Jacobs. He's a PhD candidate in geography at the University of Minnesota, working on his dissertation about bicycling, cities, and affect. He was born in Minneapolis, but has spent most of his time in St Paul and serves there on the Saint Paul Planning Commission and Transportation Committee. He loves jazz, philosophy, and good news radio. Follow him on Twitter @BillLindeke or on Facebook.

3 Responses to Podcast #20 – The State of the State’s Transportation with Rep. Ron Erhardt

  1. Brendon Slotterback
    Brendon Slotterback January 23, 2013 at 3:46 pm #

    This is a test comment.

    • Bill Lindeke
      Bill Lindeke January 24, 2013 at 12:21 am #

      agreed

    • hokan January 24, 2013 at 4:58 am #

      Yep, I understand. Some of my comments seem to have gotten lost too.