TOP GA Transportation Officials on Listening Tour? Or are they?

By Ariel Hart

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Monday, September 22, 2008

Top transportation officials plan to travel the state this week on a “listening tour” of seven Georgia cities. It’s part of statewide transportation planning initiated by Gov. Sonny Perdue.
The officials, including Department of Transportation Commissioner Gena Evans and Georgia Regional Transportation Authority Executive Director Dick Anderson, will meet in Atlanta on Wednesday from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Georgia World Congress Center.

The tour is an attempt to get citizen input “on what Georgians want in terms of future transportation infrastructure and how they believe it should be financed,” according to a DOT statement.

By the time the Legislature convenes in January, Perdue’s advisers hope to have a plan for transportation funding. The study is being conducted by the consultants McKinsey and Co.
Planners don’t know if the plan will call for a new tax.

This year Perdue came out against legislation that would have allowed counties to band together as regions, and vote in referendums to levy on themselves a 1-cent sales tax for transportation projects.

The measure failed in the state Senate by three votes.
For more information on the planning: www.it3.ga.gov.

WHEN AND WHERE

The cities and their meeting times are:
Macon: 4-7 p.m. today, Central Georgia Technical College
Savannah: 4-7 p.m. Tuesday, Coastal Georgia Center
Dalton: Noon-2 p.m. Wednesday, Dalton City Hall
Atlanta: 4-7 p.m. Wednesday, Georgia World Congress Center
Valdosta: Noon-2 p.m. Thursday, Valdosta Technical College (Evans not scheduled to attend.)
Columbus: 4-7 p.m. Thursday, Cunningham Center (Evans not scheduled to attend.)
Evans (metro Augusta): Noon-2 p.m. Friday, Columbia County Library (Evans not scheduled to attend.)

Do you believe the the transportation authorities really want to hear what you have to say?

Will you be in attendance???