As we enter this holiday season, we are always thankful for traffic. Traffic at Crabtree mall. Traffic at Southpoint mall. Traffic on 440 and traffic on Highway 1. To paraphrase Mariah Carey, all we want for Christmas is traffic.
Lol, not. We therefore note that the Wake County transit referendum was approved by voters on November 8. This referendum will raise the sales tax by half of one cent to fund a 10-year expansion of the county’s public transportation system. As a county that already spends enough time in traffic, we think less traffic would be nice.
The initiative will generate $2.3 billion to create a commuter train from Garner to Durham, with stops along the way for NC State, downtown Cary, RTP, RDU airport, and Duke University. Also new will be Bus Rapid Transit, a series of dedicated bus lanes with special priority at intersections to get people to work on time.
Bus Rapid Transit will run on some of Raleigh’s most congested streets: Western Boulevard, Capital Boulevard, New Bern Avenue, and Wilmington Street. These special buses will also run to downtown Cary, WakeMed Raleigh, and Garner. By giving people more transportation to work, and less traffic on the road, the state should hopefully see a rise in income tax.
The referendum voters passed will also allow the county to apply for state and federal grants, which would alleviate costs, as well. A stronger public transportation system could better enable workers to connect with employers, which could in turn attract companies to expand or relocate in the Triangle.
Ten years is a long time to wait for the completion of a project, so it’s hard to get pumped for something a decade out. However, the more we near its conclusion, the more people will have moved to the county. By the time these services come online, our roads might be bursting at the seams.
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