ARC Cuts Transportation List Three Ways, Clifton Corridor MARTA Line Called “Prohibitively Expensive”
Decatur Metro | July 22, 2011The Transportation Executive Committee met yesterday in their first attempt to finalize the project list that will be put before voters next year when they go to the polls and decide whether they want to pay another penny in sales tax for transportation projects around the 12-county metro region.
As Mayor Bill Floyd said according to the AJC, “We’ve gotten to the crunch point.”
At yesterday’s meeting, the Atlanta Regional Commission provided the 6-member, 5-voting Transportation Roundtable Executive Committee with three sets of recommendations for the 2012 vote – one with an emphasis on roads(pdf), one with an emphasis on transit (pdf)and one that was “balanced” (pdf). While no final decisions were made yesterday – one sticking point according to Green Building Chronicle has to do with how transit operating expenses are being calculated – there’s already a definite “direction” being taken by the Exec Committee in whittling down the list. The AJC article on the subject says it best…
Roundtable chairman and Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson said nothing from the unconstrained wish list is completely off the table. But he also said that the $12.2 billion list has been well received by most roundtable members and “that’s the direction we’re going.”
That direction appears to involve handling multiple high-dollar requests by funding none of them in total. As the list shrinks, projects are either disappearing, or having their recommended funds slashed to amounts that could get them off the ground or leverage federal funds to finish them:
This goes for the $1.1 billion (or $1.4 billion depending on the day) Clifton Corridor MARTA line that would stretch from Lindbergh MARTA Station to Emory University/North Decatur Road. Al notes that ARC staff called the project “prohibitively expensive”, but they believed it should “still be advanced through pipeline in the event that other funding sources become available; recommendation is for funds to continue environmental, design and engineering work; capital cost is $1,003.8M and 20 years of O&M is $313.0M” According to the AJC article, that amounts to just a $50 million allocation in all three of the latest proposals.
A quick look at the project list shows a lot more money ($500-$700 million) going to the Beltline. I guess when you’ve only got $6 billion to spend, only one in-town transit project gets any sizable love.
Which sorta leads to this $6 billion question:
Is a $6 billion investment in transportation spread across 12 metro counties enough to have any sizable impact on transportation “problems” around Atlanta? Also, can the roundtable offset any potential backlash from in-town transit smoochers with enough additional support of those who just want a shorter commute?
Latest from Decaturish
Is much of anything left inside the perimeter?
So, if the Clifton line is cut, what Transit project for Dekalb county is left on the list? It appears to me that Dekalb county residents are subsidizing other county transit projects if this is excluded from the list. Dekalb county has already increased property taxes by a substantial amount this year. Dekalb and Fulton county residents already pay a penny sales tax to support MARTA, while other county residents take advantage of i for events. Taking the Clifton line off the list is going to make it very hard to convince Dekalb county residents to vote on this bill.
The President has given up on saving the social safety net (and taxing the rich!) and now this news. I am bummed.
True that. I just can’t watch the debt ceiling debate anymore. It’s disheartening.
Almost as disheartening as the NFL CBA talks.
Good question.
Actually the Decatur to Clifton Corridor bike/ped improvements of $10 million is still on the “balanced list”. Other DeKalb projects I see: pedestrian infrastructure improvements on Buford Hwy – $22 million, replacing the bridge on Clifton over the CSX rail line – $39 million, Corridor improvements on College Ave from Adair to North Clairendon – $8 million, improvements on North Druid from Buford Hwy to Lawrenceville Hwy, other resurfacing projects in DeKalb – $15 million, other pedestrian projects in DeKalb – $16 million.
Anyone see any more on the balanced list? Cause that’s only $110 million for the county – not that they want use thinking about it that way.
I am a supporter because of the potential for the Beltline to change development patterns inside I-285 Urban density and redevelopment is already happening just based on the dream of the beltline.
Is that really the case? I wonder if you what you are seeing reflects overall trends.
Anyway, Atlanta’s track record with transit-oriented development is awful. If Lindbergh ever was praiseworthy, that says more about the transit industry than it does about Lindbergh.
We already have a mature example of development-oriented transit: Atlantic (no)Station.
The trend it is and it needs to be encouraged
Personally, I can’t wait for the bridge replacement on Clifton without the additional improvements to reduce congestion there. That’s gonna be a fun few months!
Wow… the politics. Having dug around for details on the Clifton HRT extension, I think these cost figures are ridiculous.
My view continues to be that DeKalb and Fulton voters should reject the tax in 2012.
Is there a map somewhere of the route this line would take? Is it supposed to go above ground from Lindbergh to Emory?
There’s a map here. http://www.decaturmetro.com/2011/07/19/emory-officially-backs-clifton-corridor-transit-initiative/
Whether it would be elevated, at street level, or below ground is still undecided.
Way to lose my support, ARC morons.
I have to say as a transit supporter, at this point I would probably vote against this tax and not just vote against it but advocate against it. I’m trying to keep an open mind until I see the final list, but it ain’t looking too good!
The only way I would even consider voting for this is if the transit emphasis plan is adopted.
If not, then you are going to get a no vote from this liberal Democrat, Dekalb County resident.
Even with the transit emphasis plan, there is 0 in it for the City of Decatur.
It is interesting that there seems to be a lot of opposition from people OTP to the plan so far. Comments i have heard in various blogs the problem is the trasit projects. This plan is going down unless there is a major public sales job.
Our transportation troubles are being used against us by other cities when courting businesses. The list is becoming less and less sexy, especially for us intown, but what’s the alternative? Vote the tax down and go back to the drawing board, delaying action for who knows how much longer?
http://www.ajc.com/news/in-denver-a-metro-1040675.html
Whoops, my username’s link was wrong.