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DEL.ICIO.USWhy do metro legislators let state ignore our issues?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Not that long ago, accepted wisdom held that suburban Atlanta commuters would never abandon their cars and commute by a form of transportation as lowly as a bus. Now they’re doing it by the thousands, with standing room only on express buses between downtown and the suburbs.
The program has become so popular that this year, the Georgia Regional Transportation Agency requested $13.3 million from the state Legislature to buy another 28 coaches to expand service.
Of course, the request was denied.
Legislators did appropriate $7.3 million to build a horse barn and practice ring in Houston County, home of Gov. Sonny Perdue. They approved $4 million for a building at the Paulding County Regional Airport, in the home district of House Speaker Glenn Richardson, and $8 million to re-create the office of the late House Speaker Tom Murphy at the University of West Georgia.
But $13 million for new buses to ease the commuting crunch in metro Atlanta? Nah, waste of money.
Of course, that slight to the metro area pales in importance to the Legislature’s last-minute rejection of a regional transportation-funding mechanism. That proposal, if approved by voters statewide, would have given metro Atlanta the means to tax itself to provide the funding it needs and that the state refuses to provide. All this raises a question: How long will metro-area legislators put up with such treatment of their constituents? More importantly, how long will metro-area voters put up with metro-area legislators who put up with such treatment?
MARTA remains the only major transit system in the country forced to survive without financial aid from state government. State officials have also refused to move on a commuter rail line from Lovejoy to Atlanta, even with federal money already committed. The so-called Brain Train, a commuter line linking Athens and the University of Georgia to downtown Atlanta and its universities at Emory, Georgia Tech and the Atlanta University schools, has also been kept on the back burners.
But if our predicament has gone largely unnoticed at the state Capitol, it is making news elsewhere. In a recent ranking, Forbes magazine listed Atlanta congestion as the worst in the country.
As Forbes described Atlanta to its nationwide, business-oriented readership, “more people flood the roadways than the infrastructure can handle. Commuters spend 60 hours a year stuck in traffic, second only to those in Los Angeles. If that weren’t bad enough, Atlanta is so spread out that only 29 percent of drivers get to and from work in less than 20 minutes, the third-worst rate in the country, and 13 percent spend more than an hour getting to work, the fourth-worst rate in the country. The local train system doesn’t service the entire city, and thus fails to relieve the pressure.”
If you’re a business leader contemplating a relocation or expansion, would Atlanta still be on your site list after reading that?
Now, with $4 gasoline looming, the situation gets even more difficult. Atlanta already had one of the most expensive commutes in the country —- now, with a doubling of the price of gasoline, the impact on our economy doubles as well. And as Forbes points out, our lack of a rail infrastructure makes it hard to turn to alternatives.
A similar crunch is hitting the nation’s freight industry. Eighteen-wheelers run on diesel, which has risen in price even faster than gasoline, and congestion in cities such as Atlanta has made moving freight by road more and more expensive and time-consuming.
As a result, freight movers are turning to rail, which can move three times as much freight as a truck on the same amount of diesel. Rail-industry profits have doubled since 2003, pushing stock values up as well. The price of Union Pacific stock has risen 19 percent in the last two months, while CSX stock has risen 36 percent.
Of course, the factors that are driving freight traffic off the highways and onto rail —- congestion and high fuel prices —- apply to moving people as well, as the popularity of express buses demonstrates. But Georgia’s leadership lacks the vision to recognize that fact.
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By Paul
May 8, 2008 8:03 AM | Link to this
Well put, Jay. It seems like only an urban governor will be able to turn around this debacle. And even then I’m not so sure.
I hate it when people say “Atlantans won’t ride the trains, they’re not used to public transportation.” No, it’s just that they haven’t. New Yorkers didn’t ride trains in the 1700s, but seem to be okay with them now.
By West Cobb Dad
May 8, 2008 8:27 AM | Link to this
THE major problem with rapid transit around the metor area is actual travel time. I have a bus stop 1/4 of a mile from my house. No problem. But, for me to get to my old job (9 miles and 20-30 minutes away by car), I would have to ride 3 different buses (this is in Cobb) and it would take me on average 3 hrs round trip in time. I live 20 miles from work now and it takes me on a daily average 2 hours roundtrip. As for taking the bus, I average around 3 hrs round trip, but a cobb bus only goes and leaves from the Dunwoody station 3 times in the morning and in the afternoon. I miss the last one, I am stuck. CCT runs the bus from Marietta XFR station every 15 minutes starting at 5, every half hour starting at 6, and every hour starting at 7. If I take the last bus that leaves Dunwoody (6:20), I have to wait for the 8 o’clock bus and don’t get home until 8:30-8:45. Whereas if I drove home at 6:20, I am home by 7. Not enough continuos times, Not enough convenience. All of the express buses, by the way, go straight downtown. Not everyone in the burbs works downtown.
By Country Boy
May 8, 2008 8:33 AM | Link to this
Let the users pay for the damn bus. Most money appropriated for Atlanta projects just gets stolen by corrupt “officials” Let the government maintain roads and provide police services and that’s about it. Some people are tired of your liberal “I want my mommy” mentality
By Jim's a Cherry Picker
May 8, 2008 8:36 AM | Link to this
Hi Jay,
Boy, my head sure hurts from banging it against the wall.
Fortunately enough for me I live and work near Marta stations, so my truck is mostly for weekends. But this is all so frustrating it’s comical.
Kinda like reading a Carl Hiaasen novel.
By Robert
May 8, 2008 8:50 AM | Link to this
Thanks Jay for your excellent article. As a former road building advocate, I now see the folly of their logic. Obviously we need to maintain and expand our roadways. But the task of moving commuters en masse every day is clearly not going to be feasible indefinitely with the one-person-to-a-car model. The silver lining is that many people are giving up big houses in the suburbs for intown living as Atlanta’s quality of life improves each year. But that isn’t the solution for everyone.
It seems to me our leaders consistently reject mass transit because it won’t go everywhere people need it to go. No, you can’t build enough trains going enough directions in metro Atlanta to serve everyone, but the truth is that doesn’t matter. All we really need to do is relieve enough congestion to allow for a reasonable commute for those who must drive. Transit—whether bus, rail, or BRT—MUST be part of the solution.
By Brian
May 8, 2008 8:53 AM | Link to this
‘Georgia’s Leadership’? What an oxymoron.
Zell was the last ‘leader’ this state has seen and it hadn’t seen one for 30 years prior to him. Ivan Allen was our last great mayor…..nearly 50 years ago.
Maybe Sonny ought to lead a prayer service in front of the capitol asking for traffic relief.
By MADMOMMY
May 8, 2008 8:53 AM | Link to this
West cobb Dad,
If they would have given the additional money, they could have added more times and buses to make it more convient for everyone. I do not ride the bus because of my young daughter who needs a car seat, not to mention all the stuff that goes along with a baby. If I had to, I am sure I would, but I am not at that point yet.
We do need some answers, but the people under the gold dome just don’t seem to care about the little people or the fact that our whole system is about to crash all around us for lack of action- any action to help the situation.
More highways are not the answer, we need more options or else we will get left behind. Let’s get over our fears and start making some tough choices that need to be made.
All that “money” for “stuff” makes me sick. Why not just use their own money for pet projects and not my tax dollars.
By Ok "Country Boy"
May 8, 2008 8:54 AM | Link to this
Ok “Country Boy”, what do you call Perdue getting cupcake projects for his home town like a horse barn????? Wow, that’s a worthy and necessary expense right? I’m glad to see my hard earned tax dollars being spent on worthwhile projects! (sarcasm off)
By MADMOMMY
May 8, 2008 8:56 AM | Link to this
West cobb Dad,
If they would have given the additional money, they could have added more times and buses to make it more convient for everyone. I do not ride the bus because of my young daughter who needs a car seat, not to mention all the stuff that goes along with a baby. If I had to, I am sure I would, but I am not at that point yet.
We do need some answers, but the people under the gold dome just don’t seem to care about the little people or the fact that our whole system is about to crash all around us for lack of action- any action to help the situation.
More highways are not the answer, we need more options or else we will get left behind. Let’s get over our fears and start making some tough choices that need to be made.
All that “money” for “stuff” makes me sick. Why not just use their own money for pet projects and not my tax dollars.
By Michele
May 8, 2008 8:59 AM | Link to this
Country Boy, can you read? It appears you can since you managed to type your anti-liberal whining.
People ARE paying for buses. So many people are paying for commuter buses that there aren’t enough of them to move all the people who want to ride. Our government already subsidizes roads, which you are OK with, but for whatever reason you have a problem with other transportation options.
If you could stop with your liberal bashing for one second and THINK, maybe you could recognize the fact that our transportation woes are negatively affecting business and the economy, not to mention air quality and quality-of-life.
This issue has nothing to do with liberal/conservative and everything to do with common sense. WAKE UP!
By atlmom
May 8, 2008 9:05 AM | Link to this
country boy: YOU also benefit when people take mass transit. There are fewer cars on the road, so you do better.
Or, if you are saying you don’t live in the metro area - YOU also benefit when Atlanta does well. If businesses aren’t moving here, or they are relocating out of here, GEORGIA suffers. Atlanta is subsidizing the rest of the state, not the other way around.
There’s a reason that NewYork and other states subsidize their cities - they are all intertwined, and if the cities do well, the states do well.
By Brian
May 8, 2008 9:10 AM | Link to this
Countryboy,
You want mass transit to be self-sufficient? Fine. Sounds good to me, too.
But if we’re going to do that, let’s apply the same litmus test to roads. You want to drive on paved roads between Columbus and Albany? Macon and Savannah? Fine. Pay for it. I don’t drive between any of those places, yet my state gas tax and federal highway dollars go to fund those projects.
And oil and gas companies should have to be self-sufficient as well. No more cozy land lease deals with federal, state and local US gov’t entities. None with foreign governments, either, in exchange for foreign aid or military support funded with my tax dollars.
Where does that leave you now, countrydolt?
It’s only ‘liberal’ if you don’t like the idea.
By zeke
May 8, 2008 9:13 AM | Link to this
If Atlanta wants to waste money on buses, trains, beltlines or trolleys, make the Atlanta taxpayers foot the bill! PERIOD! Same for the sewer and water systems! They have spent money on other non essential socialist projects for 40+ years instead of the needed projects! It will not take long to wake up the voters and throw out those idiots they continue to elect! A pity it has taken so long to finally see what mayor Shirley can do! NOTHING, just like her predecessors who are elected simply because they are black! It is much better to elect capable, qualified people whether they are Asian, Latin, Caucasian or black! Those that can actually make decisions based on what is best for the taxpayers, not the race!
By Antwon
May 8, 2008 9:19 AM | Link to this
Why does the state’s leadership refuse to give us options? Transportation taxes, Sunday sales, voting whether we’d feel comfortable having idiots brandishing weapons on MARTA — these are all issues that the state feels we just shouldn’t even have a voice about.
Across the board, none of these folks c can think long-term and understand that the current rate of baby steps, and a supposed quick return on investment for their hare-brained ideas aren’t sustainable.
What do you do when times get tough? You do as much as you can with less. I’d say packing several people on a large transportation device falls in that category. But no…we have to recreate a gentleman’s office? For $8 million?
Maybe these buffoons think that if Atlanta were to crumble, oh it’d be OK, those folks would just move into my district. Tax revenues would go up! “Ain’t no industry located in ‘lanta, right?” Naw, just all your mistresses during the legislative session, fellas.
Atlanta is the heart of Georgia and with every dim-witted move these legislators make, they’re shooting arrows into it. But I guess with all the lack of entertainment out there in the sticks, ya gotta bring home some trite trinket to convince the folks you need to stay in office.
By Abomi Nation
May 8, 2008 9:21 AM | Link to this
Lets make a deal Country Boy.
Metro-Atlanta will pay for the fixes to our transportation nightmare all by ourselves. Of course in order to do that we will have to stop sending the obscene amount of our tax dollars to the rest of the state.
The fact is you liberal Country Boys have given yourselves an entitlement to our tax dollars. You liberal Country Boys can’t do without your welfare money.
Sound like a plan liberal Country Boy? Or is it Welfare Boy?
By Abomi Nation
May 8, 2008 9:32 AM | Link to this
Hey Zeke, how about the Atlanta socialist program that sends a huge amount of our tax dollars to the rest of the state?
How about we just shut that cash cow down right now?
By Brian
May 8, 2008 9:33 AM | Link to this
Zeke,
Hey brainiac, having METRO taxpayers foot the bill for much of this is EXACTLY what Jay is talking about…But the legislature, in their infinite wisdom, decided Metro Atlantans ought NOT to have the right to vote for a sales tax increase to fund said transit projects.
I’m not going to get into the Metro vs rural argument. It’s silly. I grew up in rural GA and commented that I left the South in 1993 when I moved to Atlanta. I get it.
I left the South for real and for good 5 years ago because of the incessant ‘rural vs city’, ‘liberal vs conservative’, etc, divide that has crippled GA.
All that being said, I wish most of your type would go hang out in the Garden of Eden with all the dinosaurs and such.
By BPJ
May 8, 2008 9:39 AM | Link to this
zeke & country boy:
As an Atlantan, I pay state taxes, just as you do. I don’t mind some of those taxes going to support the roads you use (I’m a native Georgian, I want the whole state to do well). But I also want some of my state tax money going to support transportation options my area needs. Do you really think I should just be a net contributor, whose taxes go to support your choices? If so, please admit it, and label yourself a socialist.
There’s more: even those who never ride rail benefit from it, as it takes cars (and trucks) off the road. If we actually build out the system, it will take a lot more cars off the road - more room for you.
By Jen
May 8, 2008 10:22 AM | Link to this
I don’t belive in Country Boy and Zeke. Because I don’t believe in them I am offended they are being forced into existence. They are infringing upon my right not to believe in them.
There ought to be a law!
By GaLiberal
May 8, 2008 10:23 AM | Link to this
The refusal to fund mass transit is just another symptom of the elitist entitlement mentality of Rethuglicons. They demand low taxes yet expect to have buses and roads provided so they can get to and from work. It’s amazing how many non-Fulton/Dekalb county cars I see at the North Springs MARTA station now yet these same people refuse to pay the 1% MARTA sales tax. Fulton and Dekalb taxpayers pay it for them. Provide me a service yet make someone else pay seems to be their mindset.
When the Democrats controlled the legislature funding these extra buses would have been a non-issue. Now the Rethuglicons see Atlanta as a cash cow to be milked dry. So what if some rich Atlanta liberal has to stand on the bus; we need $4 MILLION for our horse barn. Don’t forget the first thing the Rethuglicons did was “adjust” the road funding formula so that even more of the metro areas tax dollars were funneled to RoG road projects. Now they are taking what they want and the metro area gets their leavings.
When you vote Rethuglicon, you vote against your own best interests. And metro Atlanta traffic is living proof.
By goober
May 8, 2008 10:38 AM | Link to this
Antwon:
You got your body parts wrong, bubba. Atlanta is not the HEART of Georgia … it’s the rectum. Or, equally analagous, “wrecked ‘em!”.
By CW
May 8, 2008 10:47 AM | Link to this
There is a real lack of leadership in the Atlanta SMSA. State and local politicians have failed to address 1) transportation issues (we need the State to provide support to MARTA, light rail between Atlanta and neighboring cities, bus lanes to improve on-time performance, expanded MARTA rail, and more frequent buses), 2) water consumption issues brought on by over development (Gwinnett just approved a water park!), 3) education (Clayton County — the new joke in Georgia, Dekald County cannot pay its teachers) and health care (it took the Woodruff Foundation to do what no one else would; help keep Grady functioning for the State and Atlanta). Meanwhile the big debate in the State is whether we should have Sunday alcohol sales. I repeat, there is no leadership among our politicians.
By ATLborn
May 8, 2008 10:49 AM | Link to this
Great article Jay!!
Our metro tax dollars can go to building a Horse Barn in Perdue’s hometown or the “Hogline” rail in South GA but not to fix traffic congestion in the metro area. Unfortunately this sorta backwards thinking isn’t new, it was the same way under democratic leadership. The sad fact is the bumpkins in the legislature from outside of the metro area are resentful of the success of the Atlanta area and only want to pillage the revenue we generate here so they can distribute it to the boonies they come from.
It is sad that the state does not support MARTA. The MARTA rail line should be expanded to Gwinnett, Clayton, Cobb, and Fayette County so that we can releive traffic but the state refuses to support it.
We need to vote out the metro Atl state reps becuz they are not getting the job done for Atlanta. We also need to band together and vote for a governor that actually has (gasp) the vision to implement a solution that will relieve Atl’s traffic congestion. Whether that leader is a Dem or Repub, if he has the best interest of the metro area in mind we need to support his campaign for governor.
By gttim
May 8, 2008 10:57 AM | Link to this
“Let the users pay for the damn bus.”
Then lets let the users pay for the damn roads. Currently, less than 1/3 of road maintenance and building comes from gas taxes. So lets just triple that gas tax and pass some laws saying that general funds cannot be applied to road building. Then, since large SUVs, trucks and semis cause more wear and tear on the roads than smaller cars, and pay a much smaller percentage for those repairs with their gas taxes, lets surcharge all the larger vehicles. And why are my taxes paying to maintain the FAA, build and maintain airports, and security for the airline industry? I rarely fly! Let the flyers pay for all of that!
Damn CountyBoy, sounds like you didn’t get that free education my property taxes pay for. Speaking of which, since I don’t have kids, lets let those with kids pay for education! I don’t have to pay no more! And tax exemptions for having kids, which is a lifestyle choice, lets get rid of those as well.
You should read a few books C-Boy! You a missing the bigger picture! Taxes pay for lots of things, and while you may not use all of them, you probably get your return on those you do use. Think about it.
By RealityKing
May 8, 2008 11:08 AM | Link to this
But, but, Jay.., shouldn’t we want the commute from the suburbs to get harder and ever more expensive for the suburbanites? I mean, don’t we want to reduce the commutes, reduce the road construction, and thereby reduce the related CO2 output??
Most of these people moved out there in the first place to get away from the inner city poor and educate their children in better schools. But now.., I’m expected to pay to ease their commute back into the city for work?? No, no, no, I don’t think so…
And don’t even get me started on politicians spending my money on horse barns, regional airports, $300,000 public toilets, entitlements programs, farm subsidies, Art and Hippy Hall of Fames, etc, etc, etc, to seemingly infinity and beyond..
Ohhhh.., your question. Why do metro legislators let state ignore our issues? Answer, it’s called democracy Jay..
By Hillary
May 8, 2008 12:23 PM | Link to this
Oh Jay… You have been sticking your finger in the eye of the rest of the state, looking down your liberal nose at the rest of the people of Georgia ( and the suburban counties) for decades. Atlanta is not looking for partnership with the state or the metro, just funding. When you are arrogant, condescending and greedy, it’s not amazing that you don’t have many friends, especially not friends who will give you money. Jay Bookman might be able to inspire a feeling of thwarted entitlement ( not hard in the city of Atlanta) but he will never be able to advocate the hard choices that might lead to real cooperation in the metro or the state. Georgia needs Atlanta but the reverse is true too.
By Country Boy
May 8, 2008 12:31 PM | Link to this
Hey Zeke..isn’t it funny to watch these libs get all riled up. They just don’t get it. Memo to all you libs- We will do just fine down here on the coast,the mountains, or out in the country with or with out Atlanta. Grow up, the world doesn’t revolve around you.
By Jim Goldman
May 8, 2008 12:38 PM | Link to this
Zeke and Country Boy have hit the nail on the head and the liberals just can’t stand it. Atlanta has benn screwing up for years with their lack of forsight and now they want the rest of the state to pay for it.
By Jen
May 8, 2008 12:47 PM | Link to this
want the rest of the state to pay for it*
You mean with Atlanta’s money? You mean Atlanta wants to keep the money it generates for itself and not give it to the rest of the state? You mean Atlanta doesn’t want to give the state control over it’s money? You mean Atlanta wants a big slice of the pie it made?
And this is liberal HOW?
By Jim Goldman
May 8, 2008 12:59 PM | Link to this
Jen, Jen, Jen…Let’s take a quick look at what party has been running Atlanta for many many years. It sure isn’t the conservatives now is it? The liberal elite has been in charge. So now maybe you understand “liberal HOW” Go put on your tye dye skirt and attend another protest Jen.
By gttim
May 8, 2008 1:15 PM | Link to this
Jim, Jim, Jim. You better think about where all the money comes from! It isn’t from the trailer parks down south and it isn’t from the subdivisions up north. It is from Georgia’s economic engine- Atlanta. Without Atlanta, Georgia is merely Mississippi or Alabama. It is just another backwoods relic of another time. How about a little fiscal conservatism? Get the GOP controlled legislature to pass a law stating that all tax money has to be spent in the country or city it is collected in. Surely you have no problem with that? No money moves to people elsewhere. Everybody has to pay their own way! I think Atlantans and Greater Atlantans can live with that! You and CountryHick?
By Fulton
May 8, 2008 1:24 PM | Link to this
As usual, these country boys are unable to comprehend the larger picture and remain conveniently restricted by their limited scope. When I see keywords; liberal blah, blah, blah, same ‘ol rhetoric, I know there’s no need to get riled up over such nonsense. Ignore them, they will soon go back to the hills…
By Jay
May 8, 2008 1:58 PM | Link to this
This state is just so sad. I am new here, but I cannot understand the tremendous resentment for the city of Atlanta. It baffles me that people actually believe that they should only pay for things that they immediately benefit from and leave the rest of the state’s people out of their money. This goes completely counter to the very notion of collecting taxes and of government helping all people.
The important thing is that other southern states like Texas and North Carolina have moved into the 21st century and recognize the importance of supporting their large cities and their major populations. No one is saying to slight some people and completely help others. Why is it always an “all or nothing” approach taken by people in situations like this?
The state has problems in all sectors, and the purpose of government is to help towards solutions. When the government bans funds either constitutionally or via refusal to pass legislation to help those people, that to me is tremendously sad.
By Spence
May 8, 2008 2:05 PM | Link to this
Jim, Zeke, and Country Boy have done nothing but spout nonsense. They are probably the same poster. The DOT is the most incompetent government agency and it is run by the STATE.
Jay Bookman is right on the mark with this one. Why are we not holding our local elected officials accountable?
And why do we help elect politicians to state wide posts like governor, that are anti-Atlanta?
By GTT
May 8, 2008 2:28 PM | Link to this
Whoever gets the contract to recreate Murphy’s office – sit back and put $6 million in the bank. I will do all the work for $2 million. I am bonded and insured.
By RealityKing
May 8, 2008 2:40 PM | Link to this
“This goes completely counter to the very notion of collecting taxes and of government helping…”
BINGO!!
By Jay Bookman
May 8, 2008 2:49 PM | Link to this
Spence, you got my curiosity up. It turns out that Country Boy and Jim Goldman, who congratulated Country Boy for hitting the nail on the head, are indeed operating out of the same IP address. I guess Country Boy needed someone to tell you how smart he was.
By Brian
May 8, 2008 2:53 PM | Link to this
C-Boy,
Without the ATL, Georgia is just Mississippi.
You may (justifiably) get riled up about the corruption and waste that is so rife in the City of Atlanta, proper, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s the economic engine of the state.
Furthermore, if you believe that corruption is the domain of the urban politician or bureaucrat, you’re sadly mistaken. Corruption in urban politics is most-decidedly African-American, but an equal amount of corruption is found in rural politics, and committed by white politicians.