September 2011

Officials Reach Agreement on Supplemental Funding for ATT Phase E Projects

In a September 14th meeting, the Durham-Orange Transportation Advisory Committee considered several options for additional funding and have opted to use ~3.5 million$ from a reserve fund which had been set aside to cover cost overruns, small and county transportation projects, and initiatives for Triangle Transit. An earlier proposal to reallocate funds that had been set aside for future sidewalks in Durham was turned down after serious concerns expressed by Durham representatives. Officials from the two counties agreed it made sense to use the reserve given that the tobacco trail’s completion has been threatened by a budget shortfall. “It’s a regional project that affects the central part of the State, and we need to move forward,” Durham City Councilman Mike Woodard said, after Mayor Bill Bell and Councilwoman Diane Catotti had also signaled support for using the money. The decision must now be approved by the Durham/Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization. Some changes to the specifications for the bridge are being considered such as allowing the contractor to have 18 rather than 9 months to assemble components for the bridge. No date has been set for start of the second bidding but if MPO approval can be settled in 30-60 days this could happen by the first of the year. It now appears construction will not start until sometime in the Spring. For more detail on the meeting please see the September 15th Herald-Sun article.

Public Workshops for Croatan Bicycle Plan and Trails Plan

The counties of Carteret, Craven, Jones, Onslow, and Pamlico (and local municipalities) invite area residents to attend any of four public open house workshops for the Croatan Regional Trails Plan and the Croatan Regional Bicycle Plan. The Workshops will  utilize an open house format; workshops will be held in Jacksonville and Beaufort on September 13th, in New Bern on the 14th and in Grantsboro on the 15th. Please see their Flyer for the specifics on addresses and times.

NC DOT Survey on Transportation Priorities

This survey asks respondents to identify priorities for transportation investments, and requests input on funding. You can find it at a link to the online version: https://www.ncdot.gov/performance/reform/2040Plan/.
Please share the survey with your employees, friends, family, clients, members - anyone and everyone. The survey will close on September 30, 2011 at midnight.