Anchorage Daily News

The mayors of Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough vowed Friday to work together to improve mass transit for the thousands who commute between their communities.

About 14,000 people commute daily between Anchorage and the Mat-Su. That number is projected to rise to 30,000 within 15 years, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich said.

The doubling of gas prices since 2003 is creating major new costs for commuters. Driving a car or truck between the Valley and the city "is just becoming cost-prohibitive," said Mat-Su Mayor Curt Menard.

The existing Anchorage Share-a-Ride van service has a waiting list of 600 people.

Park-and-Ride lots in the Valley are overflowing and people are parking on road sides, Menard said.

Begich and Menard signed an agreement Friday creating a Regional Transit Authority, and pitched light rail as a possible mass transit solution within the next couple of years.

Alaska Railroad officials said Friday that once the equipment is in place, the railroad would be able to offer light-rail passengers a 55-minute commute between the Palmer-Wasilla junction and downtown Anchorage.

In recent years, the railroad has spent more than $70 million to improve its track between the city and the Valley, said John Binkley, the railroad's board chairman.

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