Want a new train line from the 2012 transportation referendum? A wider highway? New sidewalks? The project had better be on a list submitted to the Atlanta Regional Commission by the end of the day Wednesday.
That is the deadline for cities and counties throughout the state to file wish lists for a regional transportation referendum in 2012. Like Georgia’s other 11 regions, 10-county metro Atlanta will vote on a list of projects within the region and a 1 percent sales tax to fund them.
In metro Atlanta, all projects head first to the Atlanta Regional Commission, which is assembling all the local lists into one regional list for the state transportation planning director, Todd Long.
Long will weed out projects that don’t comply with rules set for the referendum. When he’s done, sometime around June 1, 21 local elected officials have the tough job of deciding what projects get on the ballot.
Only a half-dozen small cities have submitted lists so far, so the ARC is prepared for a deluge at the end of the day, said Transportation Planning Chief Jane Hayse.
“We’re getting some via hardcopy, some via email, so we’ll just see what we get in,” Hayse said.
ARC staffers have read news stories about local governments approving suggested projects, and they know big things are coming, including new MARTA train lines, major highway widenings and even sidewalks.
REFERENDUM 2012
Would a new burst of transportation funding ease your commute and reshape your region? Or would a regional 1 cent tax to generate the money be one tax too many? As voters approach a referendum on regional transportation projects and the tax to pay for them, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution will follow the story with in-depth coverage you won't find anywhere else.
COMING THURSDAY
The metro Atlanta transportation wish lists are in. What are some of the biggest-ticket items?
About the Author
