Tinklenberg, Smith / Two Ventura stars leave office  http://www.startribune.com/stories/561/3244248.html Published Sep 22, 2002 As transportation commissioner, Elwyn Tinklenberg told Minnesotans not necessarily what they wanted to hear but what they needed to hear. His frequent explanations helped lift the interwoven issues of roads, transit, housing and development to the top of the state's agenda. The essence of Tinklenberg's message was two-pronged: If Minnesotans want more roads they must commit to actually paying for them; and they must realize that wider freeways alone won't solve metro traffic congestion, but that transit must play a larger role. That message is widely understood in states as diverse as Georgia, Texas, Colorado and Utah. Minnesota has been slow to accept it, largely because transportation has become a partisan matter. Independents, Democrats and many Republicans tend to agree with Tinklenberg, while GOP leaders insist that more roads can be squeezed from existing money and that transit is just a welfare benefit for people without cars. For his clarity and courage on these matters, Tinklenberg, who will leave his post Oct. 4, deserves the gratitude of Minnesotans. The preponderance of research and professional opinion nationwide bolster his views. Entrenched, military-_style_ bureaucracies like MnDOT's see commissioners come and go, often to little effect. But a new breed of engineers agrees with Tinklenberg that the interstate highway era is waning. A new world that demands quality-of-life for commuters and in-time delivery for products requires a nimbler solution than just adding pavement. The Minnesota Department of Transportation can no longer be just the highway department. Nor can it waste time and money on unnecessary process. Tinklenberg insisted on a faster track for road projects, trimming the average span by one-third. He failed on two important fronts, however. He couldn't convince the Legislature to adequately fund the state's needs or to develop a source of dedicated money for transit. In this regard, Gov. Jesse Ventura, while giving Tinklenberg rein to speak the right words, subverted his commissioner with political mistakes. Reducing license tab fees in 2000 made it harder to build roads the state needed. Vetoing local road and bridge projects in 1999 infuriated legislators who then vowed revenge against the governor's transit priorities. Indeed, opponents jeopardized a Minneapolis-Bloomington light-rail project, scrapped a Minneapolis-St. Cloud commuter-rail line and tried to eliminate HOV lanes and ramp meters. Disputes with the Department of Administration over highway contracts and a mishandling of inflation-adjusted cost projections for light-rail transit further forced Tinklenberg to devote as much energy to defending his agency as planning for the future. But the future is where the focus belongs. Transportation investments require a long view, a sustained commitment and a variety of choices. One day the retrogressive House leadership will be gone, Minnesota will enter the 21st century and El Tinklenberg will be recalled as a commissioner who told Minnesotans what they needed to hear. * Another Ventura commissioner worthy to be remembered will also depart state service next month. Revenue Commissioner Matt Smith is on his way to St. Paul's City Hall, to become the city's financial services director. Smith leaves a large legacy. He was the principal architect and chief lobbyist for the long-overdue tax reform of 2001