Thomas Wheatley reports that after 3 years of gridlocky nothingness, the issue of transportation funding has finally made it out of  committee and will be voted on by the state House and Senate tonight.  Wheatley lays it on the table…

It’ll be up to the voters to ultimately vote on the measure in 2012. So don’t get too excited if it does pass. Money won’t start trickling in for another few years.

Senate President Pro Tem Tommie Williams of Lyons said the revenue generated from the one-cent sales tax can’t be used to pay for the operations of existing transit projects. New transit projects, however, can tap the cash to run trains and buses. That means MARTA’s current financial woes won’t be helped by any new cash. Should the transit agency expand, however, that’s a different story.

The proposal also gives MARTA a three-year reprieve from using half of its revenue for capital improvement projects, even when it can’t afford to operate day-to-day.