Local News

Raleigh Voters Consider $45M in Road Bonds Next Week

Posted Updated

RALEIGH — You may have heard about some general information about Raleigh's $45 million road bond proposal. There are some certain Triangle highway hotspots that are targeted for bond relief.

For many frustrated drivers, it is hard to put a price on fixing the dreaded exit ramp form the Inner Loop of the Beltline to Wake Forest Road. If it is the morning rush or the lunchtime jam, it seems like there is always too many cars and not enough exit ramp.

Raleigh says it can solve the problem by giving the interchange a massive face lift, if voters approve the $45 million road bond next Tuesday.

"We've got to make the roads necessary and make it easier," says city councilman Marc Scruggs. "We just flat need to move traffic, and that's what this city council is just adamant in doing."

The Wake Forest Road/I-440 interchange is one of 17 road projects included in the bond. Another hotspot includes the Capital Boulevard exit onto the Outer Loop of the Beltline.

With the bond money, the city says it can relieve congestion with another lane on Capital and another ramp lane.

The bond also includes money to widen lanes and ramps on the Beltline/Six Forks Road interchange. Bond backers do not think they will have to beg for support.

With Raleigh's growth speeding along, groups like the John Locke Foundation and the Sierra Club have questioned road bonds in the past, but not this time.

The city is still worried about voter perception with many different bond issues on the ballot. Raleigh voters will have at least four bonds on the ballot. Voters will have to deal with bond traffic as the city tries to deal with road traffic.

Raleigh road bond supporters have another concern. The road bond is at the bottom of the ballot, and backers are worried many voters might just skip it altogether.

 Credits 

Copyright 2024 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.