Georgia Lawmakers Won’t Even Let Atlanta Vote on Transit Expansion

Once again, state lawmakers in Georgia have undermined urban transport in Atlanta. A bill to allow residents Fulton and DeKalb counties to vote on a half-cent sales tax to fund transit died in the Georgia Senate this week when leaders refused to bring it to the floor for a vote.

A successful referendum would have raised $8 billion to expand the MARTA transit network. But for now there’s still no relief in sight for Atlanta’s stifling traffic and car dependence.

Polling by the local chamber of commerce revealed strong public support for the MARTA expansion proposal. But Georgia lawmakers won’t even give voters the opportunity to decide for themselves.

The bill was not taken up on the last day it could be considered by the House and Senate this legislative session. “It’s dead,” Republican Senator Brandon Beach of Alpharetta, who sponsored the legislation, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

The news means “the future of metro Atlanta’s public transit is uncertain,” writes alt weekly Creative Loafing, which relays rumors that resistance from lawmakers in North Fulton County ultimately spiked the bill.

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed does hold some leverage in the situation. Reed said yesterday that “the issue is not over” and that he would block revenue raising measures for road expansion unless the MARTA ballot issue is allowed to proceed, according to the Saporta Report.