Atlanta, GA – Transit advocates were happy to see a jump in overall support for MARTA from 30 percent to 47 percent in Gwinnett County on Tuesday. Among Democratic voters in Gwinnett, the support exceeded 70 percent.

“This is a major improvement,” said Lee Biola president of Citizens for Progressive Transit. “Transit definitely has momentum on its side.”

The numbers represent a shift from 1990, when Gwinnett voters declined to join MARTA with only 30 percent in favor.

“Gwinnett voters may or may not want MARTA to be the agency that provides them transit,” said Biola. “But this vote, combined with previous polls, shows that Gwinnett voters want some form of expanded rail and bus service."

A poll by the regional Transit Planning Board taken in March showed that 57 percent of Gwinnett voters would approve a one cent sales tax to pay for bus and rail projects. But 20 percent said they would be less likely to do so if the money went to MARTA.

Tuesday’s ballot questions were not legally binding and would not, by themselves, have brought Gwinnett into MARTA. As a consequence, MARTA and Gwinnett had not put together a detailed agreement that could have addressed voter concerns.

Many bloggers and other commentators expressed concerns about MARTA taking Gwinnett tax dollars to Atlanta. A formal MARTA-Gwinnett agreement could address that issue while also reassuring Fulton and DeKalb residents that their money would not be spent on Gwinnett. A clear agreement on what would be built could sway the remaining 3 percent of voters needed for approval in a future referendum.

For years, Gwinnett residents have put up with traffic congestion that causes parents to miss their children’s soccer, swim team, baseball and football games. Families have experienced increasing difficulty getting home in time to eat dinner together. Involvement in neighborhood activities has suffered. Now, rising gas prices are hitting Gwinnett households hard.

“More and more people are ready to invest in a better system,” said Biola. "Voters do not like having to drive everywhere and they need options that can save them time and money."

Q: WHAT’S THE FASTEST WAY TO RAIL IN GWINNETT?

A: A VOTE FOR MARTA ON JULY 15

YOUR VOTE IS NEEDED!

Gwinnett Republican Ballot*
��Would you support the extension of the MARTA rail line into Gwinnett County which would include an additional one cent sales tax?

Gwinnett Democratic Ballot*
��Would you support a 1% sales tax increase to extend MARTA into Gwinnett County?

Polls open 7am-7pm on Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Find your polling place:

http://www.sos.georgia.gov/elections/polllocator


*Please note both questions are non-binding. Checking “yes” only results in an opinion about the possibility of rail transit in Gwinnett County. But a "YES" vote on the ballot questions could persuade politicians to allow a real vote later.

According to a survey conducted on behalf of the Transit Planning Board, the majority of registered voters in the 11-county metropolitan Atlanta study area expressed highly favorable views towards transit and are supportive of funding strategies that will make expanded regional bus and rail service a reality in the foreseeable future.

Such support bodes well for regional transit efforts being led by the Transit Planning Board. Most recently, these efforts have been focused on gathering public input for an expanded regional transit network, known as Concept 3.

See "Concept 3" plan, give comments: http://tpb.ga.gov

Voters strongly agree with the statements about the benefits of, and need for, increased transportation options. Consider the reaction of voters to the following statements:

• Increased investment in public transportation would strengthen metro Atlanta’s economy, create jobs, reduce traffic congestion, air pollution and fuel consumption (85% agree, 12% disagree).

• Metro Atlanta needs to continue funding road construction, but also needs to spend additional money on new public transportation options (80% agree, 17% disagree).

• My community needs more sidewalks and bike lanes (77% agree, 21% disagree).

• My community needs more transportation options like commuter rail service, light rail, buses and trolleys (74% agree, 23% disagree).

In contrast, less than half of voters agree with the statement:

Atlanta, GA – Citizens for Progressive Transit expressed disappointment over the Georgia State Senate’s failure to achieve a two-thirds majority on a new transportation funding measure, but also expressed confidence that transit expansion plans will continue.

“This is a setback, but while we did not get two-thirds in the Senate, we still won overwhelming majorities in both chambers,” said Lee Biola, president of the transit advocacy group. "This is proof there is broad consensus about how to resolve our transportation problems."

Biola credited hard work and good faith negotiations between members of the business community, county commissioners, transportation contractors, engineers, environmental organizations, and transit advocates that got as close as possible to a solution that would give Georgians a way out of traffic and rising gas prices.

The coalition, known as Get Georgia Moving, forged a new consensus about what transportation funding should look like. The plan would have made possible significant expansions in Georgia’s mass transit system.

The plan called for counties to create a transportation project list and submit it to voters along with a sales tax to pay for it. Voters in various regions of the state would have been able to accept or reject the tax increase and project list.

“Fortunately, having the counties come up with a project list is not something that requires new legislation,” said Biola. “There is no reason counties can not come together now and create a project list for voters to approve and then get the legislature’s blessing next year.”

Counties in the Atlanta region are already close to completion of a transit expansion plan through the efforts of the regional Transit Planning Board. The Transit Planning Board was created by the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) and the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA). Public hearings on “Concept 3,” the Transit Planning Board plan, are currently underway in all Metro Atlanta counties.

MARCH 17, 2008:

STAND UP FOR CLEAN AIR, LESS DRIVING, EXPANDING PUBLIC TRANSIT

Breakfast, Citizen Lobbying, and Rally.

8:30-10:00am:
Breakfast, Citizen Lobbyists Training
Central Presbyterian Church
(201 Washington St SW Atlanta, GA 30303 - 1 block from the Georgia State MARTA Station)

10:00am-12:00 noon:
Citizen Lobbying at State Capitol

12:00-1:00pm:
Rally at State Capitol

1:30-2:30pm:
Debrief & celebration at Irish Bred Pub
Located in Underground Atlanta (74 Upper Alabama St SW Atlanta, GA 30303)

RSVP TO ERIN GLYNN

E-mail: erin.glynn@sierraclub.org

Phone: (404) 607-1262 x229

LOOK UP YOUR STATE SENATOR AND STATE REPRESENTATIVE:
http://www.votesmart.org

Directions to Breakfast/Training at Central Presbyterian: Exit the Five Points MARTA Station to Underground Atlanta. Walk through Underground Atlanta along Lower Alabama Street past Johnny Rockets to exit onto plaza of Georgia Depot. Walk across plaza to Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. Walk left on Martin Luther King up toward Capitol. Central Presbyterian Church is at corner of MLK Drive and Washington Street.

Try the A-TRAIN Trip Planner at: http://trip.atltransit.com