Norman Mineta, possibly the most important transportation policymaker of the last 20 years, closed the 2007 CCAPA Conference on Wednesday with a speech that was less than inspiring.

Not that Mineta wasn't entertaining. He told a number of humorous and self-depreciating stories from his 40-year career in public service. But he was speaking to a group dedicated enough to stick around for the fourth and final day of a very full conference. I think they were counting on more from a guy who understands both politics and policy.

Mineta was the mayor of San Jose before heading to Congress for more than 20 years. In the House, he was the lead author of the ISTEA and TEA-21 legislation that overhauled federal transportation programs and spending priorities. He was Commerce secretary during the last year of the Clinton Administration and then was the lone Democrat in the Bush cabinet, serving as Transportation secretary from 2001 to 2006.

Fairly early in the 25-minute presentation, it appeared Mineta would talk about details. He clearly knew what the planners had been focused on for four days, and he contended that nothing has a greater impact on qualify of life than the ability to get from point A to point B.

"You simply cannot have a conversation about transforming the urban fabric without discussing transportation," Mineta said. "Those areas with the strongest transportation systems will thrive the most."

Mineta then candidly described President Bush's insistence that the 2005 transportation bill not include any gas tax increase. The president even scratched Mineta's plan for a CPI inflator that would not take effect until Bush was out of office. The former Transportation secretary did not criticize Bush directly but he did say, "Our current approach is broken."

He said he we need more public-private partnerships and market-based initiatives — and leadership from groups like the American Planning Association. And that was about it. The audience asked no follow-up questions.

A few final notes from the conference …

Co-Chairs Juan Borrelli and Hing Wong announced that 1,800 people attended this year's conference, the most ever …

… The final half-day of the conference was quite well-attended. In past years, the final session has drawn some embarrassingly small "crowds." This year, however, conference organizers cleverly saved the CEQA update panel for the final morning …

… As usual, though, the room for the CEQA update was not large enough to accommodate everyone. It almost never is …

… The feather boas handed out by one consulting firm were a bit hit. Twice, I found feathers floating around on Caltrain passenger cars in the evening …

… The 2008 CCAPA conference is scheduled for September 21 through 24 at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in, yes, Hollywood.

- Paul Shigley