In response to increased traffic flow, Gov. Jim Hunt has established the Transit 2001 Commission, a focus group of 25 North Carolinians charged with developing a comprehensive plan to improve the state's public transportation system.
Chaired by Wake Forest University President Thomas Hearn, the commission will present a recommendation to the governor and General Assembly by the end of 1996. The commission will focus on alternatives to automobile use, Hearn said.
"We have now an almost exclusive reliance on highways and cars and we are approaching a situation where our highways will be built out, meaning there will be no way to expand them," Hearn said. "If we don't find alternatives, we will find that, as the state continues to grow, we are in a situation which is not conducive to the kind of quality of life we want in the state of North Carolina."
The commission is composed of representatives from the General Assembly, the North Carolina Board of Transportation, universities, local governments, human services departments and the business community. Included on the commission are Durham mayor Sylvia Kerckhoff, state Senator Wib Gulley, D-Durham, and political science professor David Price.
Commission members noted that their primary task will be to find ways of improving access to existing public transportation outlets while creating new transportation programs where necessary.
"The commission will look at the problem of access to existing public transportation providers, the problem of urban areas outpacing regional areas in terms of transportation accessibility, and the problem of ever-escalating costs," said commission member Edward Smith, former chair of the Governor's Advocacy Council for Persons with Disabilities.
Smith said he has high hopes for the commission. "With this commission, we have a rare opportunity to look at where the existing transportation framework is going and effect the necessary changes, and I think it will be taken very seriously by the governor and the General Assembly," he said.
While plans are still tentative, the commission will most likely hold five or six public meetings, the first of which will be held on Nov. 21, said David King, deputy secretary for transit, rail and aviation in the Department of Transportation and an adviser to the commission.
King said that the commission will create committees at this meeting which will serve as the commission's working bodies. Supported by Department of Transportation staff, these committees will present recommendations to the entire commission, which will in turn develop a comprehensive 10- to 20-year plan.
The commission will seek input from agencies currently involved in transportation issues as well as the general public, Hearn said.
"We will hold forums around the state where interested citizens will be able to come and speak directly to the commission and its staff," Hearn said. "We will have bottom-up participation in all our deliberations."
Although the entire state needs to address such areas as bicycle use and pedestrians, different areas of the state have different needs, Gulley said. In the Triangle area, the primary concern is the area's rail line, a topic that is currently being addressed by the Triangle Transit Authority, he said.
"The Triangle area has a strong need for something like a regional rail system. We can no longer separate Durham's transportation system from Raleigh's or Cary's. Many people live in one area and work in another; we need to look at the area as a whole," Gulley said.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.