Voters to Decide on a Transit Plan for North Carolina's Research Triangle Area

"Wake County residents will decide in November whether to increase the local sales tax by a half-cent to pay for what county leaders are calling a transformational transit plan that would connect the Triangle with more buses and trains," reports Paul A. Specht.

The Wake County Transit Plan proposes $2.3 billion "to beef up bus service across the county and bring commuter trains to the area by 2027," according to Specht. If voters approve the project, the sales tax "would account for about $1 billion of the project’s cost in the first decade. A new vehicle registration fee and federal funds would cover the remaining $1.3 billion."

As for the details of the plan that would be funded by the sales tax, vehicle registration fee, and federal funding, the plan would increase bus frequencies, add 20 new miles of bus rapid transit service, and a partnership with Wake's neighbors in Durham County to launch 37 miles os rush-hour commuter trains.