Motorists in metro Atlanta aren't just venting about the nation's second worst commute. They're willing to pay more at the cash register for buses and trains that could help alleviate it, according to an 11-county survey released Thursday.

Asked if they would support a 1 percent sales tax to fund a specific list of transportation projects, including rail and bus service, 58 percent of respondents said yes. That support held across the region, from inner counties such as DeKalb and Fulton to the suburbs of Henry and Fayette, the survey found. And it cut across gender, race, age and income level as well.

The survey of 4,123 registered voters was conducted in March for the Transit Planning Board, a two-year-old body of transportation planners and elected officials charged with developing a transit vision for metro Atlanta and finding ways to fund it.

"There's always been the north end vs. the south end, what there was downtown Atlanta vs. what's happening in Gwinnett County," said Clayton County Commission Chairman Eldrin Bell, chair of the transit board. "This puts many of those arguments to rest. Now we are a tapestry, a quilt if you will, of woven feelings about transportation."

The survey comes less than a month after a narrow, last-minute vote in the General Assembly killed legislation that would have created a ballot initiative to decide whether regions in Georgia can tax themselves to fund roads, rail lines and other transportation projects.

Many observers believe the measure got bogged down in Senate vs. House politics. But also working against passage was concern about how individual counties could opt out of a regional tax.

Gov. Sonny Perdue opposed the idea, arguing that new taxes would be unwise in a slowing economy and would unfairly burden rural residents who shop in urban areas. In addition, he said it would be a mistake to pump more money into a state Department of Transportation in need of a major overhaul.

Cheryl King, staff director of the transit board, said the new survey should help eliminate another lingering concern she heard from some legislators: that voters wouldn't rally behind a sales tax.

"There's no secret that the Atlanta region is different than other parts of the state," King said. "If our problem is so bad that we want to tax ourselves to take care of it, why shouldn't we be able to?"

The transit board is having public comment sessions on a wide-ranging plan that would roughly double the total amount spent on transit in the region to $54 billion from now through 2030. The plan calls for expanding MARTA in three directions, lacing the region with bus lines and adding light rail networks that link spots within metro Atlanta and connect it to more distant cities such as Athens and Gainesville.

The survey's question about a 1 cent-on-the-dollar sales tax put a time limit on the tax, making clear it would terminate without reapproval by voters. Thirty-six percent of respondents said they still opposed the tax, while 6 percent said they needed more information or were undecided.

Cobb County Chairman Sam Olens, who sits on the transit board, said the survey should light a fire under leaders at the state Capitol. "I think that what we've had from the state is a vision that if we do nothing, people will continue coming with those high-paying jobs," he said. "We have more darn plans ... What we need is construction."

THE NUMBERS SAY ...

About 58 percent of 4,123 voters surveyed in 11 metro Atlanta counties said they would support a sales tax of 1 cent on the dollar to fund a specific list of transportation projects, including rail and bus service. Here's the geographic breakdown. Chart doesn't include percentage of respondents who said they don't know or need more information.

Support Oppose

DeKalb....62..........32

Spalding..61..........32

Clayton...60..........36

Douglas...58..........36

Fulton....57..........35

Cobb......57..........37

Gwinnett..57..........38

Atlanta...56..........35

Cherokee..56..........38

Rockdale..56..........38

Henry.....54..........41

Fayette...50..........44

Source: Transit Planning Board