Let the people that use it fund it!! I am taxed enough!!!

If I was allowed to vote.....I'd vote no. Much as I like trains they will not work anytime soon for the Triangle. Both work and home locations are way too spread out for it to make sense at almost any level. More buses would be better but I see no reason Bus riders should have to be subsidised by taxpayers. Most Buses in the UK outside the big cities are privately owned and operated. Raleigh is not a big city in the European sense with highly populated areas and a compact downtown.

Remember back when you were deciding to relocate to NC? As a native, I'm curious why most of you who relocated, are proceeding at breakneck pace to recreate in NC the exact environments you fled? Most folks are aware of their impact on the available resources. I checked into the bus routes last year when gas went to $4. The nearest bus stop was 5 miles away, and there was no parking available at that location. The 20 mile bus ride would take 4 hours? I think the route would take me from North Raleigh through downtown and then out to RTP. In other words, "You can't get there from here".

PS: Good luck with that.

A vote against mass transit is a vote for longer commutes, more traffic, and more inefficient land use wasted on roads and parking lots.

I know this requires thinking, but bear with me. If everyone who rode the bus drove instead, the ensuing gridlock would be more widespread for more hours. And there would be more demand for parking and gas, driving up prices. Improved rail would improve rail freight, taking more trucks (and their wear and tear) off the interstates as well.

A road has *never* paid for itself. Everyone pays for roads, through the extra time it takes to get from place to place. All for the "freedom" of single-serve transportation for the select few.

Also, the overwhelming majority of bus riders are going to work. Buses enable the poor to get a job, since there are none within their communities.

Atlanta's lack of control over adjacent counties led to its sprawl, and those other cities don't have rail. By working together, the Triangle is doing better.

patrick85ed it's thinking like yours that has put us in the mess we're in. You really should open your mind up. Mass transit means no more car registartion, tags, taxes, fuel, maintenance costs, insurances, etc. For me that's nearly well over a $10,000 a year savings. For someone who can't afford a car, it means they can get a better job. In the end it means you have less homeless (or it should). Police should be required to ride the train and the status should be very much publicized to show that it is safe.

I already have a 50MPG diesel car (no hybrid hype for me) that I hate driving into work. I love the leather seats and all, but I hate the cell phone yackers, and the women who backup up their suv on the highway shoulder because they missed an exit.

Give me a train any day of the week. FAR better solution. Don't get me wrong, I think better road designs and better fuels are essential, but you are wrong in thinking it's the only way to go.