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It's mostly roads, which is no big surprise. But it does include money for BRT from Midtown to Cobb and Acorss the Northern Arc of 285. Perdue also says he is supporting commuter rail.
Perdue unveils $15.5 billion transportation plan
By DUANE D. STANFORD
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 04/14/04
Gov. Sonny Perdue unveiled a six-year, $15.5 billion statewide transportation plan Wednesday morning during a hastily convened meeting of the state's major transportation agencies, boards and legislative committees.
The governor's "Fast-Forward" transportation plan would complete 18 years of work in a third of that time, Perdue said Wednesday.
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About $7.9 billion is to be spent in metro Atlanta, with the remaining $7.6 billion being spent across the rest of the state.
The plan would incorporate $3 billion in GARVEE bonds, which borrow against future federal grants. The GARVEE loans will pay for the expansion of HOV lanes in metro Atlanta as well as interstate and interchange improvements throughout the state.
The bonds are similar to the $4.5 billion in GARVEE bonds proposed by former Gov. Roy Barnes; that proposal drew a lawsuit from opponents of the controversial Northern Arc highway that would have traversed north metro Atlanta. The state Supreme Court later ruled the financing tool was legal. The GARVEE bond program proposed by Perdue, however, will be smaller and less costly because the loans will be for shorter periods of time.
The largest chunk of the plan — about $11 billion — is funded through the state's regular transportation program.
The balance, about $1.5 billion, would be funded with general obligation and revenue bonds. That money would pay for arterial road improvements in metro Atlanta and convert rural roads to four-lane highways as part of the Governor's Road Improvement Program, or GRIP.
In advance of the plan's formal announcement, the governor called the state's leading decision makers Tuesday and told them to be at the Capitol for a 9 a.m. meeting that was not advertised to the public or the press. Perdue held a press conference an hour after the meeting in which he presented a scaled-down version of the earlier presentation.
During the meeting, state Rep. John Noel (R-Atlanta) questioned Perdue about his plan's lack of money for commuter rail. Perdue said his plan would help leverage as much as $1 billion in federal transit money.
The state Department of Transportation has asked for Perdue's support for a $106 million plan to jumpstart the state's delayed commuter rail program by building a line from Atlanta to Lovejoy in south Clayton County. Perdue said Wednesday he supports negotiations with Norfolk Southern over use of its tracks for the proposed Lovejoy line.
Perdue also signed an executive order creating the Governor's Task Force on Local Transportation Strategies, which will help local governments better coordinate their road and transit needs with the state, said Perdue.
The governor's "Fast-Forward" plan also includes:
• $286 million for train-like bus rapid transit systems along I-285 between Cobb County and Doraville and I-75 from Midtown Atlanta north through Cobb County.
• $211 million to expand the Navigator Intelligent Transportation System — which includes cameras and other traffic-monitoring devices — to all congested freeways in metro Atlanta.
• $25 million in additional operating funds to expand the state's Highway Emergency Response Operator, or HERO, program.
• $16 million to add freeway ramp meters to control the flow of traffic onto interstates, which the governor said can reduce peak-hour delays by as much as 7 percent.
• $116 million for traffic signal upgrades, including synchronizing signals on principal roads.
• $2 million toward a new fare collection system for MARTA.
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