If Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are to further grow and develop into the type of attractive community that provides opportunities for all ages and incomes, it is important that public transportation grow as well. Port Authority's North Shore Connector, which will extend the light-rail transit system to the rapidly developing North Side, is the kind of project that urban planners and people of vision should support and embrace.

		Henry Nutbrown is the assistant general manager for engineering and construction at the Port Authority of Allegheny County.

This major transportation project presents an opportunity to demonstrate again the positive impact public transportation can have on economic development and our region's quality of life.

The plans to enhance Pittsburgh's North Shore as a vibrant cultural, business and residential destination have been well documented and, of course, have begun to effectively expand the city's central business district.

Already home to the Carnegie Science Center and Allegheny County Community College -- the former with ambitious expansion plans, the latter hoping to increase enrollment 22 percent in the next five years -- the North Shore in the last four years has welcomed Equitable Resources, Marriott's SpringHill Suites, PNC Park and Heinz Field. Del Monte Foods' new building will soon be complete, and ground has been broken for the Sports and Exhibition Authority's 1,255-space parking garage. Plans are also progressing for additional development, including an amphitheater.

In the near future, thousands of people who live, work, shop and spend leisure time on the North Shore will need efficient transportation options every day of the week. By extending our 25-mile light-rail transit system to the North Shore, Port Authority will be positioned to accommodate those people as well as provide a new option for thousands of others who already travel there -- all without adding traffic congestion.

By locating the North Side Station under the SEA garage (and closer to North Side neighborhoods than originally planned), Port Authority will further reduce traffic in the Golden Triangle by making it possible for those destined there to park on the North Shore and use T service to easily circulate to their destination. Because the garage will be accessible from major highways such as I-279 North, the HOV Lane, Route 28, the West End Bridge and Route 65, motorists will not add congestion to North Side neighborhoods or Downtown streets.

Extending the T to the North Shore also makes possible future extensions deeper into the North Side and to the North Hills, west toward Pittsburgh International Airport and to the east through the Strip District as an outgrowth of the extension to the convention center that is also part of this project.

Over the years Port Authority has received countless requests for rail service from residents living north, west and east of the city. The North Shore Connector is the first step toward realizing future extensions of the T in those corridors; in fact, the Southwest Pennsylvania Commission soon will study in more detail a connection to Oakland.

While some have suggested using this capital funding for other projects, such use is prohibited by the Federal Transit Administration. It wouldn't be advocated by Port Authority, its partners in the development of the North Shore and those who've supported the project for years.

We will be pleased to add the Steelers and Pirates to the list of almost 50 North American professional sports teams whose venues are served by light-rail transit. But people who continue to portray that aspect of service as the motivation for the North Shore Connector could not be more wrong. Any project with such a narrow purpose -- sporting events are expected to account for 12 percent of additional ridership generated by the project -- could never advance through the highly competitive Federal Transit Administration funding process.

Publicly funded transportation projects elicit a broad spectrum of opinion. While we value the public participation process, it is important to not lose sight of the depth of community support such projects as the North Shore Connector have had from their inception.

This project has long been supported by the FTA, PennDOT, Allegheny County, U.S. Sens. Arlen Specter and Rick Santorum, the city of Pittsburgh and stakeholders on the North Side, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, the Manchester Citizens Corporation and the Northside Leadership Conference, among others. The Northside Leadership Conference, an umbrella organization for numerous North Side neighborhood groups, was involved early in the planning process and contributed to the project's final design.

The North Shore Connector is the next logical step in the expansion of light-rail service. It will create and support local jobs, provide immediate benefits to public transit customers and, by making possible future extensions, set the stage for Port Authority to continue attracting new riders. It is an investment that will only appreciate over time.