Transit Archives - Georgia Public Policy Foundation

Tag: Transit

AJC Publishes Op-Ed on Atlanta, MARTA TSPLOSTs

posted 3 months ago on April 3rd, 2017 by admin 2 Comments

The Sunday edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on April 2, 2017, published an op-ed by Foundation Vice President Benita Dodd on the new transportation special purpose local option sales taxes for MARTA and Atlanta. Her op-ed is published in its entirety below; the AJC link is here: http://www.myajc.com/news/opinion/opinion-look-future-not-past-gain-most-from-atl-splost/5h0CTF5gG9cK2ppp2ZRL4O/. OPINION: Look to future, not past, to gain most from ATL T-SPLOST By Benita Dodd April marks the full implementation of two transportation special-purpose local option sales taxes (TSPLOSTs) overwhelmingly passed by Atlanta voters in November 2016. A 0.4-cent, five-year Atlanta TSPLOST to raise $300 million has joined the 0.5-cent, 40-year TSPLOST begun in March to raise $2.6 billion for MARTA projects. The massive support is no surprise, given lofty campaign promises… View Article

Friday Facts: February 17, 2017

posted 4 months ago on February 17th, 2017 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday! Events February 22: Register by MONDAY to join the Georgia Public Policy Foundation and the Institute for Justice for, “Bottleneckers,” Wednesday’s Leadership Breakfast and Book Forum with Dick Carpenter, co-author of, “Bottleneckers: Gaming the Government for Power and Private Profit.” Cobb County’s Georgian Club, 8 a.m. $30. C-SPAN BookTV will be recording this event. Information and registration here. March 23-24: The Heartland Institute hosts the 12th International Conference on Climate Change at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C. The theme of the two-day conference is “Resetting U.S. Climate Policy.” Quotes of note “[U]nlike much of the Left, most conservatives handle despair like mature adults. Most obviously, we didn’t riot. In fact,… View Article

Georgia’s New Toll Lanes Help ‘Reverse’ Traffic Congestion

posted 5 months ago on February 3rd, 2017 by admin Leave a Comment

By Benita M. Dodd On Saturday, January 28, the reversible express toll lanes on I-75 south of Atlanta opened. The lanes’ direction was northbound, as signs on I-75 South showed. In a milestone event that occurred quietly on Saturday, January 28 Georgia entered the ranks of the few, the proud, the innovative states as a 12-mile stretch of reversible toll lanes opened on I-75 south of Atlanta. Just four other states boast reversible toll lanes. A little history: Georgia has known tolls since the 19th century (at least). Few metro commuters realize the toll origins of the roads they travel: Johnson Ferry and Paces Ferry (crossing the Chattahoochee) and Bell’s Ferry (crossing the Little River in Cherokee County), to name… View Article

Friday Facts: January 13, 2017

posted 5 months ago on January 13th, 2017 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday! Events January 26: The National School Choice Week Leadership Breakfast is keynoted by education expert Dr. Ben Scafidi, who will unveil his study on the real numbers of Georgia’s public school spending and staffing. The topic is, “National School Week: Where’s The Money?” Cobb County’s Georgian Club, 8 a.m. $30. Information and registration here. February 22: Join the Georgia Public Policy Foundation and the Institute for Justice for a Leadership Breakfast and Book Forum with Dick Carpenter, co-author of, “Bottleneckers: Gaming the Government for Power and Private Profit.” Cobb County’s Georgian Club, 8 a.m. $30. Information and registration here. Quotes of note “To be upset by academic standards is to invest… View Article

New Year, Same Old Streetcar Named Disaster

posted 6 months ago on December 30th, 2016 by admin 3 Comments

By Benita M. Dodd Atlanta’s Streetcar System, three years later, still is nothing to brag about. Today the city of Atlanta begins Year 3 of operating its much-ballyhooed Atlanta Streetcar System, and so far, all that can be discerned is a lot of bally hooey. This month, the Atlanta City Council approved the final payment to URS for the design-build of the 2.7-mile Atlanta Streetcar project, making the total payment $61,630,655. That was, according to Public Works Commissioner Richard Mendoza, “$6 million less than URS originally submitted.” Not exactly. The 2014 URS contract authorized by MARTA (the transit authority designated to receive the $47.6 million federal grant for the Streetcar), was $59 million; the original URS contract, based on… View Article

Atlanta Business Chronicle Quotes Foundation on Toll Lane Network

posted 8 months ago on October 17th, 2016 by admin 1 Comment

Dave Williams of The Atlanta Business Chronicle quotes Foundation Vice President Benita Dodd extensively in an article in the October 14-20, 2016, edition about the express toll lanes under construction on Atlanta’s north and south side. The article is published in full below and can be found online here (subscription required). State teeing up toll lane network for metro Atlanta By Dave Williams Highway technology that Georgia transportation planners are counting on to help ease metro Atlanta’s chronic traffic jams will roll out along a 12-mile stretch of Interstate 75 starting in January. For up to 90 cents a mile, harried motorists heading to work, an important business meeting or to see their kid’s ballgame will be able to move… View Article

Friday Facts: September 30, 2016

posted 9 months ago on September 30th, 2016 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday! November 11: John Stossel of “Stossel” on Fox Business Network is the keynote speaker at the Foundation’s 25th Anniversary Celebration Dinner and Freedom Award on Veterans Day. The Freedom Award recipient is Dr. Michael H. Mescon, “The Pied Piper of Private Enterprise” (Wall Street Journal). Cobb Galleria Performing Arts Centre Ballroom. $125 per person Early Bird Rate through September 25. Click here for information; reserve your seat here. (Checks accepted, too!) Quotes of Note “One of the few bright spots for black children in American ghettos have been some charter schools that have educated these children to levels equal to, and in some cases better than, those in affluent suburbs. You might think that this would be… View Article

Friday Facts: September 23, 2016

posted 9 months ago on September 23rd, 2016 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday! Sunday’s the deadline for the Early Bird Rate! Reserve your seat at the Foundation’s 25th Anniversary Celebration Dinner and Freedom Award on November 11, Veterans Day. The keynote speaker is John Stossel; the Freedom Award recipient is Dr. Michael H. Mescon, “The Pied Piper of Private Enterprise.” Cobb Galleria Performing Arts Centre Ballroom. $125 per person Early Bird Rate through September 25. Click here for information; reserve your seat here. (Checks accepted, too!) Quotes of note “The problem of black education begins long before college.” – Walter Williams “I am not among those who fear the people. They, and not the rich, are our dependence for continued freedom.” Thomas Jefferson “The probability that we may fall in… View Article

Friday Facts: September 16, 2016

posted 9 months ago on September 16th, 2016 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday: Happy Constitution Day AND Citizenship Day! Just nine more days of Early Bird Rate for the Foundation’s 25th Anniversary Celebration Dinner and Freedom Award on November 11. The keynote speaker is John Stossel; the Freedom Award recipient is Dr. Michael H. Mescon, “The Pied Piper of Private Enterprise.” Cobb Galleria Performing Arts Centre Ballroom. $125 per person Early Bird Rate through September 25. Click here for information; reserve your seat here. (Checks accepted, too!) Events September 21: Health Connect South 2016, an annual event that connects more than 400 health leaders, innovators and students, takes place at the Georgia Aquarium. Georgia Public Policy Foundation members receive a discounted admission price. Click here. Quotes of … View Article

Friday Facts: September 9, 2016

posted 10 months ago on September 9th, 2016 by admin Leave a Comment

It’s Friday! Events September 21: Health Connect South 2016, an annual event that connects more than 400 health leaders, innovators and students, takes place at the Georgia Aquarium. Georgia Public Policy Foundation members receive a discounted admission price. Click here. November 11: Tickets and sponsor opportunities are available for the Foundation’s 25th Anniversary Celebration Dinner and Freedom Award, which honors a notable Georgian. The keynote speaker is John Stossel; the Freedom Award recipient is Dr. Michael H. Mescon, “The Pied Piper of Private Enterprise.” Cobb Galleria Performing Arts Centre. $125 per person Early Bird Rate through September 25. Click here for information; reserve your seat here. (Checks accepted, too!) Quotes of Note “People who are… View Article