In response to "Why the North Shore Connector Makes Sense," Midweek Perspectives, Sept. 28:

The Port Authority's Henry Nutbrown recently tried to justify the misuse of tax dollars to build the North Shore Connector. Not a single one of his arguments withstands careful scrutiny or logical analysis.

The argument that plans to enhance the North Shore have begun to expand the central business district is bizarre. Given the fact that much of Downtown is in serious decline and in need of a lot of help, it boggles the mind that anyone would believe that creating additional government-directed and -subsidized competition for Downtown office and retail space is a good thing.

According to master plans for the North Shore, there will eventually be $200 million in new construction between the stadiums. And according to the Federal Transit Administration's November 2003 Summary Description of the project, by 2030 there will be 16,000 daily boardings and 4,400 new daily riders. One must question why the taxpayers should spend well over $300 million to build this connector if it will serve new development of only $200 million, especially since much of that development is already occurring without the tunnel. But, more importantly, conservatively estimated, the operating and capital cost per new rider for the first 20 years is a stunning $15 to $20.

Mr. Nutbrown touts the fact that the project advanced through a highly competitive funding process. What he does not tell us is that, in order to move the project from not recommended to recommended, the Port Authority had to reduce the original cost from $390 million to $363 million by eliminating a station and raising the boardings estimate by 60 percent. During the interim since November 2003, the project cost estimate has risen from $363 million to $393 million and it has become apparent from the first round of bids that the connector will never be built for $393 million.

Indeed, the history of tunnel construction suggests that substantial cost overruns can be expected. With the country facing huge expenses for rebuilding following Katrina, it is unlikely that the FTA or Congress will be receptive to appropriating any more funds for the project. That means Pennsylvania and Allegheny County taxpayers will be on the hook for what could be tens of millions of dollars.

And can we dispense with the canard that the North Shore is the jumping off point for future extensions to the airport or to the North Hills? Where are the plans for such extensions? No one ever says how far in the future it will be before these projects might be undertaken. As far as alleviating traffic is concerned, regional transportation planners must be aware that the really bad bottlenecks are not associated with the North Shore. How does a tunnel under the Allegheny River help someone driving in from Churchill on the Parkway East?

Finally, the argument that the connector will make it easier to get to ball games is unworthy of reasonable people. There are 15 football games, almost all on weekends. Fans are getting to the games and there is no need to further subsidize them. There are 81 baseball games. If South Hills residents ride the light rail into Wood Street, they can walk to PNC Park in minutes.

Given the more pressing transportation needs of the region, one has to be amazed that a project which wasn't even on the list of the region's priorities before stadium construction began, suddenly became the top-priority project in southwestern Pennsylvania. Unfortunately for its proponents, the flimsy, after-the-fact justifications for the connector are all too apparent.