Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
So we should just sit around and "twiddle our thumbs" while sitting in traffic? IMO, it is you Cobb and Gwinnett County residents who complain the most about traffic, yet you all want to do nothing about it. Would you rather sit in traffic or be at home with your family? Just a legit question.
Nothing is free in this world; therefore, you (US, WE, metro Atlanta) will have to pay to alleviate traffic. Either we approve the tax or the city/county/state will just create more toll roads and increase property taxes. This has been stated as well that if we do not approve this measure then property taxes will increase and so will toll roads because one thing the area cannot afford to do is to just sit and stagnate.
Why do you all think a lot of companies are chosing to move to Charlotte and Dallas? Are some of you that blind? I mean really........
It boggles my mind that we are still arguing over a penny sales tax when some cities have approved a nickel for transportation (i.e. Portland and Denver). You get what you pay for! It is that simple.
I didn't say I wanted to do nothing, but doing the wrong thing or something ill conceived isn't necessarily the best action. Let's not confuse activity with achievement.
The lesson is the longer you wait the more expensive it is to build a transit system.
We all know that, that is why it is imperative to build it now instead of waiting to the last minute. If you start now, the less expensive it will be down the line (That's pretty simple to understand).
All of the projects approved for metro Atlanta should be completed within 10 years.
So we should just sit around and "twiddle our thumbs" while sitting in traffic? IMO, it is you Cobb and Gwinnett County residents who complain the most about traffic, yet you all want to do nothing about it. Would you rather sit in traffic or be at home with your family? Just a legit question.
I don't complain about traffic and frankly do not find the traffic in Atlanta bad at all. I just love how I get attacked for asking what is in it for Cobb County voters like myself. I see the link to the project list and will review it. I think the traffic aspects are way overblown in Atlanta.
What I do not appreciate is all this "we" and "all" and collectivism that I see on the forum. I also do not agree with the "we gotta do SOMETHING" or the world will fall down. Yeah, just like the stimulus and other boondoggles that HAD to be passed or the world would end. Sometimes it's better to do the right thing that just anything that will make it out of committee.
I didn't say I wanted to do nothing, but doing the wrong thing or something ill conceived isn't necessarily the best action. Let's not confuse activity with achievement.
What other alternatives do we have? Let me answer this for you >>>>>>>>> NOTHING!
So we can sit around and do nothing or start with what we have on the table and build on it from there. Sitting around and hoping for a better solution is ludacris, IMO! We need to start moving now to avoid the higher costs from waiting, worse traffic later, and to increase employment in metro Atlanta presently.
I don't complain about traffic and frankly do not find the traffic in Atlanta bad at all. I just love how I get attacked for asking what is in it for Cobb County voters like myself. I see the link to the project list and will review it. I think the traffic aspects are way overblown in Atlanta.
What I do not appreciate is all this "we" and "all" and collectivism that I see on the forum. I also do not agree with the "we gotta do SOMETHING" or the world will fall down. Yeah, just like the stimulus and other boondoggles that HAD to be passed or the world would end. Sometimes it's better to do the right thing that just anything that will make it out of committee.
No one is "attacking" you! We are simply debating with you.
This is not a stimulus but rather another incentive for companies to move here instead of to Charlotte, Dallas or Houston, IMO.
You may think metro Atlanta does not have bad traffic, but companies looking to relocate here have that down as there number one issue (Gridlock slows economy too *| ajc.com).
Location: Mableton, GA USA (NW Atlanta suburb, 4 miles OTP)
11,334 posts, read 26,083,811 times
Reputation: 3995
Quote:
Originally Posted by midgeorgiaman
An increased gas tax would be a better option...the more you drive, the more you pay. About as fair as it gets.
Absolutely. Georgia needs to raise taxes on gasolene, anyway. Though isn't there some sort of formula that was threatening to kick in due to the recent market price increases?
Absolutely. Georgia needs to raise taxes on gasolene, anyway. Though isn't there some sort of formula that was threatening to kick in due to the recent market price increases?
Plus an increase of electric and hybrids will impact the gas taxes collected.
Just because a project is not in Cobb County does not mean it won't benefit residents of Cobb County... this goes for the entire metro area. That's why it is a regional referendum. I see plenty of Cobb County plates here in Buckhead everyday where I work... same goes for Gwinnett.
$6 billion of the money will be spent on regional projects and another $1 billion will be divided up to each county and city to spend on local projects... so Cobb (and other places) will getting more than what you see on the regional list.
You are absolutely right that we need to envision things regionally, however I feel a need to issue one strong word of caution.
This argument is also often used for more funds to be used closer in-town and less funds further out, especially N. Fulton, Gwinnett, and Cobb.
While intown Atlanta gets a net-increase in it's daytime population, Cobb and and Gwinnett stay fairly neutral. In other words we export as many workers as we import. Other smaller suburban and exurban counties around us are heavier exporters.
I just mention this not to dispute your point at all, but because we still need to look at how we allocate money, where, and what people it affects... even when thinking regionally.
I mention this in this particular case, because I see it as critical that Cobb and Gwinnett get their fair share, not just from their large population, but also from the many workers they pull in. It is one reason traffic is so heavy along the northern freeway corridors.
We allow for this zoning, because it allows more people within the region to live closer to their job. The problem is while many people will work somewhere for a long time... inevitably someone is Gwinnett will get a really good job offer in Cobb and vice versa.
Absolutely. Georgia needs to raise taxes on gasolene, anyway. Though isn't there some sort of formula that was threatening to kick in due to the recent market price increases?
I agree. That, plus the referendum would go a long way in providing the necessary funding. As I stated earlier, the sales tax plus the fuel tax increase will be shared by not only us who live here in the metro, but also by visitors, and travelers simply driving through who stop and buy gas and eat while traveling through. Anytime you can share the expense with others who don't even live here, I think it's a great thing.
While I understand neil0311's concern for Cobb's part of the pie, I have to respectfully disagree with him (I'm not attacking you) in that we are indeed in this together because if a company looking to relocate to Atlanta and bring jobs here doesn't come because I-75 through Cobb is gridlocked, we all lose, not just Cobb. Same is true if a company gets scared off because of Spaghetti Junction in DeKalb being backed up, or I-85 through Gwinnett taking 45 minutes to an hour to navigate just a few miles. Bottom line, it's not just the immediate neighborhood or county that loses, we all lose. I think the point that's lost on some folks is that when perspective companies come to scout whether or not to locate in Metro Atlanta, we are judged collectively as a Metro area on our ability to perform, or not to perform, regardless of where the actual problem/issue may be.
Is the referendum perfect, no, it's far from it, IMHO. Again, just one man's opinion, but I feel that we are spending too much money on the Beltline, and some other projects which IMHO are more urban renewal type projects, as opposed to being a project to relieve gridlock. The money being spent on the Belt line could be used to improve traffic flow on a lot of major thoroughfares in virtually all of the ten counties. Atlanta needs better transportation options for travel from one suburb to another. I also agree that the spending should be skewed more to the North Metro, since that's where the bulk of the residents live and the bulk of the traffic is, but at the same time, we can't neglect the needs of the Southside residents.
My $.02 worth!!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
) in that we are indeed in this together because if a company looking to relocate to Atlanta and bring jobs here doesn't come because I-75 through Cobb is gridlocked, we all lose, not just Cobb. Same is true if a company gets scared off because of Spaghetti Junction in DeKalb being backed up, or I-85 through Gwinnett taking 45 minutes to an hour to navigate just a few miles. Bottom line, it's not just the immediate neighborhood or county that loses, we all lose. I think the point that's lost on some folks is that when perspective companies come to scout whether or not to locate in Metro Atlanta, we are judged collectively as a Metro area on our ability to perform, or not to perform, regardless of where the actual problem/issue may be. 
