CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte leaders know that in order to grow, there is a need to financially support that growth, which is why a sales tax increase may be necessary to fund the city's transportation plans.
"I have not seen a great city survive without a great mobility system," Mayor Vi Lyes said.
City leaders say in order for the proposed $13.5 billion transportation plan to move forward, City Council needs to ask voters to approve a 1-cent sales tax increase. Before the issue can go on the ballot for Charlotte voters to decide, the city must get approval from the General Assembly, and that could be problematic.
House Speaker Tim Moore went on record earlier this year saying Charlotte's mobility plan pays too much attention to things like the light rail, bike lanes and buses, rather than spending money on widening roads.
"When it comes to transportation, we talk about capacity and lanes," Moore said. "Those things. Not bike lanes."
The position immediately put Moore at odds with Charlotte leaders who want to reduce the Queen City's dependence on cars and roads.
In an effort to compromise with Moore's comments, City Manager Marcus Jones raised the possibility of considering a plan that would front-load funding on roads immediately and then shift attention to other mobility areas further down the line to get approval from Raleigh.
The city said this would be a tweak to the plan and it would not change the overall allocation of funding, just the timeline. Causing items like the proposed Silver Line light rail project to be delayed.
Contact Richard DeVayne at rdevayne@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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