T-SPLOST redux

Every which way but loose?

As the results of the July 31 T-SPLOST vote percolate, many wonder about Atlanta's transportation future.

Emory University asks "What's next for the Clifton Corridor?" According to Betty Willis (Sr. Associate VP for Governmental and Community Affairs), the Clifton Corridor light rail project "is further along than other transit projects in the region" and "remains a top priority in the ARC and MARTA regional transportation plans for the future." With Governor Deal in charge of prioritizing regional transit projects, and his stated interest in the Clifton Corridor as an employment and research center, VP Willis conveys hope that Clifton Corridor projects are delayed rather than throttled. VP Willis was also interviewed by the student newspaper.

The "What's next..." article encourages alternative transportation whenever possible, and highlights Zimride, a "private ride-sharing network" that serves specific work hubs. Emory,  GA Tech and Kennesaw State are part of this project; all validate user identity via their respective .edu emails.

In Advice for Passing a Massive Infrastructure Referendum, The Atlantic Cities notes that Atlanta's transportation shortcomings are shared by other cities, and extends comparisons to how other cities (e.g. Denver) adopted different strategies to advance transportation overhauls that initially faced T-SPLOST-level defeats.

The Atlanta Regional Commission website does not volunteer a post-mortem, but their Plan 2040 (pdf) is available online.

T-SPLOST defeated

The T-SPLOST vote was defeated across all ten counties that voted on it. In DeKalb, the vote was 52% against and 48% in favor. The vote sought a 1% sales tax over 10 years to focus on transportation projects around the metro Atlanta area. Detractors argued it didn't sufficiently address their given concerns (traffic vs. transit), that certain regions were underserved, and questioned if a 1% tax is the best way to address local transportation problems.

A team of AJC reporters sums up both the election's results and behind-the-scenes tensions leading to the T-SPLOST vote:

"Kasim Reed, who fought years for the referendum as a legislator and as Atlanta mayor, rallied supporters gathered at a hotel in downtown Atlanta. "The voters have decided," Reed said. "But tomorrow I'm going to wake up and work just as hard to change their minds." 

Gov. Nathan Deal's office told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he would now take a central role in transportation planning for the state's metro areas, and he would not support a sequel to Tuesday's referendum. . . ."

"Re-playing 40 years of Atlanta history, controversy built instantly around the proposed expansion of mass transit. Some loved it, some hated it. ... Deeper insecurities were at play as well. A poll conducted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution last year found that 42 percent of respondents believed new mass transit brings crime." Continue reading @ AJC.

Jim Galloway at the AJC reports on what the Governor's above comment means:

"... traffic planners in regions across the state will be quickly asked to resubmit lists of road and rail proposals that require state and federal funding – figuring in an 8 percent decrease in federal funding. The governor has veto power over each list."

"The governor will not move forward without the consent GDOT,” Riley said – very carefully. Deal will court approval from the DOT board, but he intends to keep the initiative. The governor recently appointed a trusted aide, Toby Carr, as the DOT’s planning director, giving him another layer of control over what transportation projects are funded. 

So the Atlanta Regional Commission will soon have to clear its wish lists with the governor. ARC Chairman Tad Leithead said he’ll be happy to do so. “I think the entire state would welcome anything the governor does to keep transportation moving,” he said."

Local election results

In addition to the T-SPLOST vote, other races were closely watched in our neighborhood. Commissioner Kathie Gannon was re-elected and so were Burrell Ellis (CEO) and Claudia Lawson (tax commissioner).  For Board of Education elections results, see below. All images courtesy of the AJC.

Image courtesy of the AJC.

And on a topic near and dear to our neighborhood: a non-binding referendum on whether the county should allow cell phone towers to be built on school property drew a clear answer:

Image courtesy of the AJC.

T-SPLOST: hyperlocal and blue chip support

Johnathan Shapiro at WABE, our NPR & PBS radio station, interviewed MANA president Sharon Johnson and other locals in Much at Stake for Clifton Corridor Rail In Upcoming T-SPLOST.

Elsewhere, the Atlanta Business Chronicle lists close to two dozen local businesses that have made substantial contributions to the T-SPLOST campaign.

The AJC continues coverage as well.

AJC on T-SPLOST's impact on Atlanta's long-term economic health

Need, impact, numbers, debate: the AJC discusses how different constituencies view the T-SPLOST vote coming up on July 31.

Also, the AJC has indexed all its stories on the T-SPLOST at http://www.ajc.com/news/transportation-referendum/

The Economist on T-SPLOST

The Economist takes a look at our very own little T-SPLOST melodrama:

...The vote raises important questions: what does metro Atlanta want to look like ten years from now? What government functions do citizens believe important enough to voluntarily tax themselves to fund?...

and highlights a new and sinister angle to the debate: some local politicians are claiming it's all a United Nations plot to force everyone to walk and ride bikes. Read the whole thing here. If you too are concerned about "the tyranny of bike lanes," follow their link to The Atlantic Wire article by that title.

PolitiFact on T-SPLOST

Hat tip to Decatur Metro for this link to PolitiFact.com's fact check on the TSPLOST:

Your PolitiFact Georgia scribes have completed nine fact checks on the referendum July 31, which has made bedfellows out of earstwhile enemies... read on @ PolitiFact.com 

For other truth-o-meter readings on sundry statements by Georgia politicians, bookmark the PolitiFact Georgia page.

T-SPLOST: how will local governments spend their share?

In Public ‘in the dark’ on T-SPLOST $1B, the AJC explores the question of how local governments will use a sizeable chunk of money that is allocated to them:

Each of the region’s counties, cities and towns would get a share of the $1 billion to spend on transportation. But unlike the regional $6 billion fund, there is no requirement to list a single project for the $1 billion local fund. In many cases, voters at the polls July 31 will have no way of knowing where the projects are that the local money would build. . . . The Atlanta Regional Commission has been working for months to get the local governments to assemble lists. Its referendum website has a place for counties and towns to post their discretionary project lists. A few have. Most have posted nothing. Some have generic transportation Web pages.

So... off to the Atlanta Regional Commission's website, and in particular, their T-SPLOST section. A small link at the bottom shows plans for DeKalb (pdf). There are other maps/presentations at the ARC's website so make sure you visit.

Below is some detail for our area. Looks like ours side of Clairmont gets nothing, but Buford Highway gets some pedestrian improvements, thank goodness. There are also improvement plans for North Druid Hills Rd.

Red = roadway projects, Blue = transit projects, Green = Bike/Pedestrian projects
from http://www.metroatlantatransportationreferendum.com/documents/project_maps/DEKALB_V2.pdf

And here, a screen capture of the GoogleEarth Flyover Tour of projects for the inside the perimeter central region. For the whole presentation, go to http://vimeo.com/36774786. Clifton Corridor improvements are highlighted ~6:36 minutes into the video, the Lindberg/Emory rail around 6:5,1 and the image captured below, showing cycling/pedestrian improvements within City of Decatur, around 7:40.

Screen capture from Central Subregion Referendum Tour http://vimeo.com/36774786

Emory "Tired of Traffic" T-SPLOST website

FYI, Emory University has launched a website (called "Tired of Traffic") with information about the July 31 vote on transportation initiatives.

Screen shot captured from  http://www.gca.emory.edu/transportation/index.html

Should you visit, note project map link on the left margin, and related resources on the right margin.

Perspectives on July 31 T-SPLOST

The AJC has a nice summary of how people in different counties perceive the coming T-SPLOST vote, see Will sales tax shorten Atlanta commutes, reduce traffic?

Sierra Club says no to T-SPLOST

Not green enough? Sierra Club wants more emphasis on mass transit.
Image source: GA Sierra Club website.

In a press release today, the Georgia Chapter of the Sierra Club urges a "no" vote on the July 31 T-SPLOST. Sierra Club argues that, as proposed, the budget is "business as usual" in its emphasis on roads at the expense of support for MARTA, pedestrians and cyclists.

Even the transit expansion projects that Sierra Club supports in concept, including the Northwest corridor, are vaguely defined and underfunded. Other transit projects, like the continuation of GRTA bus service, reward the state for not coming to the table to continue commuter bus service, instead electing to rely on the region step in and assume responsibility. 

Other supporters of the regional T-SPLOST argue it will be make-or-break for MARTA, but passage would not address MARTA’s most pressing need, which is to raise service up from the skeletal current levels. Because the legislature didn’t suspend or remove the 50/50 split this year, further deterioration of MARTA service remains a real and unacceptable possibility. The current suspension expires just after regional T-SPLOST revenue would flow, so the supplemental capital funding would have limited impact on MARTA’s operational budget. . . . Read the full press release @ Sierra Club.  

See other posts on this topic on this website.

Additional press on MARTA expansion plans

Rather than passively waiting for the T-SPLOST vote next July, MARTA board members have chosen proactive optimism:

The board green-lighted a plan to seek $1.6 billion in federal funds to build the Clifton Corridor light rail from the Lindbergh Center station in north Atlanta to the Avondale station east of Decatur and also create an all-day express bus service from south DeKalb to job centers in the metro area. 

In a surprise move, the board also approved seeking federal money for a heavy-rail extension from the Indian Creek station to the Mall at Stonecrest, a move largely seen as an attempt to mollify angry south DeKalb residents. Those residents and their politicians have threatened to try to derail the regional transportation sales tax referendum because its project list doesn't include rail for them. continue reading @ AJC

The Atlanta Business Chronicle also reports on the Board's decision, adding that although T-SPLOST penny tax is only a "downpayment" on this massive project, voter support improves the odds of receiving federal funds in the future.

The penny tax would raise $6.14 billion over 10 years for highway and transit projects of regional significance, including $700 million for the Clifton Corridor rail line and $225 million for transit improvements along the I-20 corridor. . .

The Clifton Corridor light-rail line would extend 8.8 miles from MARTA’s Lindbergh Center station to the Avondale station. Part of the proposed alignment would run in the median of Clifton Road near Emory University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

The I-20 project would connect MARTA’s Indian Creek station with the Mall at Stonecrest via heavy rail. Bus rapid transit service, a step up from regular buses, would operate between downtown Atlanta and a new MARTA station on Wesley Chapel Road. continue reading @ Atlanta Business Chronicle