Waterloo’s mayor says for his city to continue to grow, its transportation issues need to be addressed in the years to come.
In his 2030 vision plan for the city, Mayor Quentin Hart points to barriers in transportation as one of the biggest challenges for Waterloo’s future. Hart says a primary focus of his next term as mayor will be to bring free public transportation to the city’s residents.
“We’re working on a transportation study to see if we can provide free, fair public transportation for citizens within our city,” Hart says, “and to see if we’re making sure we are meeting all the demands of our workforce.” Despite fully-staffed police and EMS departments and an 80% occupation rate in downtown commercial spaces, Hart says the city still has some issues to address.
“I’ve listed a lot of shiny projects,” the mayor says, “and I’ve listed all of those things that have happened over the past year, but we are working to make sure we eliminate those barriers that keep people from having as much success as they possibly can.” In addition to the mayor’s plan to bring free public transportation to Waterloo, he wants to implement a citywide mental healthcare system, and offer internet service as a city utility. Waterloo is Iowa’s fourth largest city by square mileage, and the eighth most populous.
(By Grant Winterer, Iowa Public Radio)