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More than $50 billion in state and local transit funding measures will be on the Nov. 5 U.S. ballot, said Jessica Grennan, executive director of the American Transportation Association’s Center for Transportation Excellence Audience, speaking on a panel at an APTA conference in October. 1.
The track record of transit funding measures is strong. In the past five years, more than 86 percent have passed, and 26 of the 27 measures have already passed this year in previous elections, Grennan said. “Ballot measures are an important part of the transit funding landscape in this country.” According to APTA’s Transportation Excellence Center, 19 transit measures are on the November 5, 2024 ballot.
But Grennan cautioned that such measures are increasingly expensive to put on the ballot, where a minimum number of signatures from registered voters are required, and to communicate their value to voters. She expects high voter turnout this November, which means advocates need to reach more people.
“None of our election measures work alone,” he said, noting that competing measures and campaign spending for presidential candidates can influence voter response. “We have to find ways for the traffic to break up the noise,” he added.
Getting the message out to voters is essential to success, Tony Cani, public affairs strategist and founder of Slingshot Campaigns, explained at the conference. Telling voters that a transit measure will create jobs is a non-starter.
“We’ve done a ton of research and found that voters just don’t believe it,” he said. What does resonate with voters is the promise of less traffic congestion, time savings and safety. “When it comes to the message, we focus on the fact that people have more time to spend with their families,” Cani said.
Two panelists discussed their efforts to pass transit ballot measures in their communities. In 2018, Nashville, Tenn., sought to expand its transit system with an ambitious $5.4 billion plan centered on a new light rail line. Voters defeated the measure by a margin of 64% to 36%.
But a new mayor was elected in Nashville last year: Freddie O’Connell, former chairman of the Metro Nashville Transit Authority.
“He ran [for mayor] in transit,” said Amanda Vandegrift, deputy general manager of finance and administration for WeGo Public Transit, the transit agency’s new brand. O’Connell’s “Choose How You Move” program, which will be on the ballot of Nov. 5 for Davidson County voters, emphasizes more pedestrian infrastructure, 24-hour transit service, smart traffic signals to reduce delays and street safety improvements it’s really focused on the basics,” Vandegrift said.
The referendum on the November ballot is a roughly $3 billion plan funded by a half-cent sales tax that will expire when no longer needed, plus federal grants and fare box revenue. Observers see much less opposition to the current measure than in 2018.
The Central Ohio Transit Authority is asking voters to approve a 0.75 percent sales tax to fund an $8 billion plan to build three bus rapid transit corridors, investing in more than 500 miles of pavements, bicycles and footpaths in 2050 and increase the transport service by 45%. “This is really about supporting the increased housing that we need, as well as the workforce,” said Monica Tellez-Fowler, COTA’s president and CEO.
