The TSPLOST as proposed, will do nothing for traffic congestion. That is a fact. It will line the pockets of well-connected contractors and businesses telling us it will create jobs. Has anyone seen a list of all these so-called jobs? Are they government jobs or private jobs. Since Citizens for Transit Mobility is "hiding" their donor lists, you know something isn't honest. They are already breaking the law by refusing to disclose who is funding them. I say, if you start your entire campaign with a little dishonesty, it will only grow into the big lie from there. Never forget they promised to remove the toll on 400 and it's still there today. I am voting NO to this tax assault on my family.

Great commentary, Jim. Folks, it's time to stop talking and time to go a'voting. Early voting is open now at the Gwinnett County Board of Elections, 455 Grayson Highway, Suite 200, Lawrenceville, GA 30046 from 8 AM to 5pm Monday thru Friday through Friday, July 27th. You can also vote at this location on Saturday, July 21st. Four satellite locations will be open July 23rd. thru July 27th. from 9 AM to 7 PM for early voting. These locations will be at the Centerville Community Center, Dacula Park Activity Building, George Pierce Park Recreation Center, and Lucky Shoals Park Recreation Center. If you do not take advantage of early voting, please go to your precinct on Tuesday, July 31, 2012, and vote on this important issue. Please vote and vote how you please but please VOTE NO!

I am voting NO. In this economy the last thing we need is a tax increase! At this point, I am totally against ANY tax increase!

Good points, Finch and Tim. Here's my problems with this -
1. This will do nothing for traffic in the counties that will wind up contributing the most - Gwinnett, Cobb, north Fulton.
2. The government can't spend it's money wisely, at all, and depends on plans like this to increase the revenue flow. Sure wish I could use that tactic at work. "Hey, boss. It's like this...I have crap I need to buy, maybe a new car, and have no intention to stop wasting money on unneccessary stuff, so I need a raise. No, I have no idea just how much I need or what exactly I'm going to spend it on right now, so just open up the purse strings and let me at the money, wouldja?"
3. The corruption I already see as likely with this, and the way it's likely to go, I have no interest in funding this. This is going to be nothing more than an opportunity for politicians to line their pockets and help out their buddies.

So, sorry to be so cryptic and undecided sounding, but hopefully you can see which way I'm going on this....

At this point, I'm seriously considering taking a coin into the voting booth with me on this one.

I noted in the transportation plan the massive amount of dollars going to "studies." Talk about a platter of crap. What is the purpose of the Department of Transportation if they can't do their own studies? What do we pay them for?
You do know that the taxes WILL NOT COVER all those projects and federal dollars are being cut. So if the sales tax passes, there will be cuts to those projects. Note also that MARTA gets 52% of the funding. This is nothing more than a means to get the folks in Cobb and Gwinnett to pay for MARTA and pretty little parks for Atlanta. If the Atlanta Business Communtiy wants parks and better traffic flow - they should forfeit their tax freebies and pay for those amenities.

Vote Yes on this and the start of a new plan on improving transit issues in the Atlanta region! Not only our tax but everyone who visits for business or travel will be contributing to our future funding of these projects. It's a no brainer for us!

This plan will not - as studied by traffic experts - do anything to relieve traffic. We all want traffic relief, but unless you are willing to get on the bus and abandon your car, this plan will not accomplish that objective. How will building a "beltway" in Atlanta expand road capacity at Old Peachtree and Sugarloaf? What about on Highway 78 and Highway 124. No, this plan doesn't even cover the "building" of many of the projects - just the study to build the projects. Then who is going to pay to maintain the few projects that are being proposed? 157 projects is nothing in the scoop of what we need - and some of these projects are to paint Marta stations. Are the 300 new bus drivers going to be privately employed or government employees? Who pays for their pensions?

I'm tired of the tax payers being treated as children, expected to just do what the 'adults' say because they know best.
I'm voting NO.

If this TSLOST plan is so great, why doesn't it stand on it;s own merit? Why is the promise that it will create 200,000 jobs.

Anytime government or any other entity must justify a project by future jobs to be created I feel certain they are vastly overstating the impact, or just lying to mislead the public.

I work at a place on the Clifton Corridor and we are receiving emails from higher up urging us to vote but coming short of telling us how to vote. I am voting NO. No tax ever seems to go away and this only benefits certain areas and certain residents. The CDC is already too large and bloated anyway. They should downsize, not expand.

Having "educated" myself on what is hidden in the plan, there is no way to support this "job's programs" for the well-connected. Let each county have their own one cent t-splost and keep all the funds. Then the citizens of each county can decide what roads to widen and what type of mass transit they want, rather than having an unelected group of good ole boys deciding how to carve up our money for their own benefits. Gwinnett doesn't need Atlanta telling us what to do. I have yet to see a list of all these 200,000 fabulous jobs. Talk about throwing out something to see if it sticks.

OOPS = I stated in a previous post that MARTA gets 52% of the funding. They get 6%. Mass transit gets 52%. Want to make sure we are not promoting information that is not factually accurate like the "pro side" is doing.

This tax question is complicated, filled with concern about my tax bills, plus worries about how we can grow our regional infrastructure beyond today/tomorrow's gridlock. I have been stuck on the question lately... How about the millions of visitors we have visit our region, spending money at the mall, baseball, football, concerts, six-flags, conventions, etc. That is a lot of money from people who currently do not contribute to the support of infrastructure* (other than gas tax), BUT do their share of abuse of the infrastructure.

Transportation Leadership Coalition / TrafficTruth.net just made news today, as they have uncovered a list of some of the donors to Citizens For Transportation Mobility (who have apparently not filed with the ethics commission by yesterday's deadline). Here is the link: http://www.traffictruth.net/index.php/2012/07/press-release-tsplost-donors-uncovered/

Over the past 50 years in the older cities of the mid-western part of the U.S.  such as St. Louis, Detroit, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Cleveland we have seen that as a result of a failure to provide both for   proper transportation and  quality schools their growth has  become stagnant.  Corporations are shrinking or departing  and as a result  young adults are also  leaving .  This is a major problem for these cities as depicted in the latest National Census Report.
If one examines the growth patterns in metropolitan Atlanta it would be apparent to even the casual observer  that growth, if any,  has become miniscule! Corporations moving into the metropolitan area has slowed to a trickle, some companies are either shrinking or departing the area; unemployment is among the highest in the nation; and population growth has become stagnant. The issue of the quality of our schools is currently being addressed throughout the metropolitan area; the issue of transportation remains to be addressed.

Please vote ‘YES’ for the T-Splost…

Throwing money at something is not the solution. Atlanta schools spends more per student than any other school system in Georgia and look at how poorly they do. Corporations are not moving into the metro area because of over regulation and taxation. They move to Alabama instead. And who can afford to own property in Atlanta?

Not even those who oppose the passage of the T-Splost  deny that transportation is a major issue for the entire metropolitan  Atlanta. Not since the development of the Interstate Highway system has this city had the opportunity to address the issues of transportation which could  influence the growth of the entire metropolitan area. That was also 50 years ago! It is an illusion to believe that any alternative plan to that which is provided in the T-Splost  such as ‘toll roads’ could provide adequately for the growth of our city  which includes  the outlying communities as well.
 
Now is the time for each of us to invest not only in our future, but in the future of our children as well.  If the T-Splost fails to pass on July 31st the future growth of our metropolitan city will be imperiled. The opportunity is at hand to take the necessary steps to see that our future as a city is secure.
 
Please vote ‘YES’ for the T-Splost

We might be able to reverse this corporate flight by better advertising the $14 million dollar fishing museum that our past Governor assured us would make us Americas tourism destination. Speaking of the x-gov....wonder if any of this money will benefit his Savannah shipping/transit investments?

There is no debate about the need to improve the traffic issue. However, will adding more buses to our roads fix the problem? We all know how traffic flow frees up when the school buses are off the road during the summer.
In order for the buses to improve traffic, we would each need to abandon our cars and get on the bus. Ridership on buses is going down because it is impractical for the metro area to rely on buses.
Think about this. If each county kept all of their T Splost money, they would be free to come up with their own plans to improve the roads and schools in THEIR area. Gwinnett could have that mag-lev train to Athens, St. Simons and beyond. Cobb could have their bullet train to Washington D.C. or whatever they wanted.
The current plan places a group of unelected officials in charge of the money. What is in print right now, can change with the next legislative session. There is only one reason why the Secretary of State added "bait" language to the ballot - to manipulate you into voting for a fantasy. If you vote yes to this scam, you have locked up your tax dollars for ten years - there will be no additional projects proposed or implimented, Plus, federal dollars are drying up so in just a couple of years, you'll be hit with another vote to pay to maintain the roads.

VOTE "NO" TO T-SLOST

I received a call last night from Kennesaw State University conducting a study for Gwinnett County on the SPLOST Gwinnett County voted for a few years ago for parks and libraries. They wanted to know if I was going to vote to renew that tax. I asked WHY? If the parks and libraries have already been built, why renew the tax. Their response - to maintain them.

Just received a flier showing that Clarke Howard support this rip-off. Sorry Clarke, this is where you and I will disagree. You've gone to the dark side.

Where is the plan of attack? I need to see more clarity here before this is a yes. Come on!! Give me some information to say yes to, not just a bunch of "if's, ands, and buts!"

........and if IFs and BUTs were Fruits and Nuts, Every Day would be Christmas on this blog!

Educate and Please Vote YES....All the planning you need to read about comes from here at this time:
http://www.t-splost.com/

I say vote no so we can get a plan that really solves congestion not just a developers dream financed by the taxpayers.

As someone pointed out yesterday many of the proposed projects won't even begin for 7 years, other have already been funded by the GADOT.

TSPLOST 2012 is just a boondoogle

Back to the drawing board. But this time, think of what can be. Have a contest and allow the brightest minds to come up with a far-reaching 22nd century system for the metro area. It certainly will not have buses spread around the area nor will widening one corner of dirt off 285 and 400 do much for most citizens. The airport works because it has flights going everywhere not to a few select locations. Fixing the road system should do the same thing. People move to this area for the subsurbs - not fro the City of Atlanta. Heck, many of us live in gated communites to ensure we are removed from Atlanta. TSPLOST was nothing more than a means to save a dying city that has no purpose, no luster, no future.

If you want to think 22nd century the future maybe autonomus electric commuter vehicles which resemble SmartCars more that SUVs. Actually the renderings in Popular Science look more like two-person pods than cars.

Of course I'm still waiting for my flying personal transportation unit promised me in 3rd grade science class as demostrated by the Jetsons. If we could only get those then we wouldn't need to waste money on Trains, Trolleys, and Beltways. Roads would probably be lightly used by bicyclists for entertainment and exercise.