Back in the fall of last year, our chapter attended the DeKalb County Transportation Investment Act public meeting. DeKalb County, already receiving more funds than it will contribute, is starting to turn into the hotbed of controversy for the TIA decision. As outlined in the most recent post on The Transport Politic, the issue as to whether a rail extension from Indian Creek station has some up in arms. This smear campaign planned by DeKalb County NAACP could really push the TIA to fail. It certainly is going to be an uphill battle as we head towards the July 31 vote.
I heard the DeKalb NAACP chair on WABE a couple of days ago. It is hard to believe that someone so terribly misinformed can affect positive transportation policy.
The fact is, the improvements he wants are not critical for the region from a congestion mitigation or air quality improvement perspective. Are they desired? Yes. Should they come ahead of Cobb Parkway, Buford Highway, or the Clifton Corridor? Heavens, no.
I seem to have missed this post back in March. Here’s a tidbit that I’ve learned while interning at GRTA this summer, studying the regional transit projects on the referendum list:
Just because heavy rail on the I-20 East corridor is not funded by this tax does not mean that it won’t be built. In fact, the stated purpose in providing $225 Million of sales tax money for “transit centers” and bus rapid transit in this corridor is to “increase transit market share” so that heavy rail will be feasible later. The proposed transit centers are also strategically placed so that they can be upgraded to heavy rail stations in the future.
MARTA has identified heavy rail as the recommended alternative in the I-20 East corridor, but there is a lot of work to do, and money needed, before that expansion can occur. The $225 Million can get that work going, and it could potentially be leveraged to attract federal investment in the rail expansion sooner rather than later.
Links for reference:
I-20 East Referendum Fact Sheet: http://documents.atlantaregional.com/TIA/PDF/TIA-M-023.pdf
MARTA’s I-20 East Alternatives Analysis:
http://itsmarta.com/I20-east-corr.aspx