The Atlanta-to-Macon passenger rail line presents a unique opportunity to address a gap in housing options offered in Georgia.

The new preference among Millennials, and a segment of aging Baby Boomers, is for live-work-play environments referred to as “walkable urban” development. This type of development relies on a variety of transportation choices: rail and bus transit, bike, car, truck and walking.

“The Millennials are asking for something different,” said Rick Porter of Richport Properties, speaking at a gathering this week at the Henry County Chamber of Commerce of business and government officials who support the rail line.  “We’re still going to build houses for them, but many of them want something different. As we go forward with our strategy, we have to offer options. The market is ahead of us now, and as it comes back, the underlying demographics will be very powerful.

“We have the unique opportunity in this corridor, with the rail strategy, to offer the choices people are asking for.”

The commuter rail line would be a community-building, unifying effort connecting central Georgia and metro Atlanta, proponents say. The line, approximately 100 miles, would pass through three regional commission areas: the Atlanta Regional Commission, the Three Rivers Regional Commission, and the Middle Georgia Regional Commission.

All three districts would be responsible for a portion of funding. Each of the three districts has included the rail line on their initial project list to be considered by voters in 2012. The project must be included on the unconstrained project list that will be approved by the Georgia Department of Transportation in the coming weeks.

Proponents believe that the 100-mile project, designed as a first step in a regional rail link, would add some much-needed splash and punch to a T-SPLOST list that could potentially be loaded with road widenings and intersection improvements.

The line has widespread support along the Atlanta-to-Macon corridor. It is also supported by Norfolk Southern; Jacoby Development Inc., developers of Aerotropolis near Hartsfield Jackson International Airport; and Cousins Properties, which is involved in developing the Atlanta Downtown Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal (MMPT).

Participants in the May 23 conference on the Atlanta-to-Macon passenger rail line represent a varied group of supporters. Elected officials included State Rep. David Knight (R-Griffin), Macon Mayor Robert Reichert, Griffin Mayor Joanne Todd and Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson.

Business leaders who came to support the line included Scott Condra, senior vice president of Development for Jacoby Development Inc; Terrance D. Harps, president of Global Concessions Inc.; William Tate of Norfolk Southern; Rich Porter of Richport Properties; Chip Cherry of the Macon Chamber of Commerce; Kay Pippin of the Henry County Chamber of Commerce; Yulonda Darden Beauford of the Clayton Chamber of Commerce; and Ray Christman of the Livable Communities Coalition.

There’s a process in place that will determine which transportation projects will be funded in Georgia through 2012.

The Transportation Investment Act (TIA), established by the General Assembly in 2010, allows voters to decide the future of Georgia’s transportation. The TIA divides the state into 12 regions, and each region will vote on whether they want to add a penny sales tax for 10 years to fund transportation projects in their own region. All money collected in a region will stay in that region.

The TIA created a regional roundtable in each of the state’s 12 regions, and the Roundtable’s main objective is to create a list of projects to be funded by the tax if it passes. This list will be constructed by the Roundtable’s Executive Committee, which will be reviewed and approved by the full Roundtable before going to voters in July, 2012.

Georgians for Passenger Rail is supporting an initial passenger rail line from Macon to Atlanta. This would be the first segment of an eventual rail line that will link cities around the state and region. Because this rail line will pass through 3 of the state’s 12 regions — Atlanta, Three Rivers and Middle Georgia — all three Regional Roundtables must support the proposed rail line.

The Atlanta region consists of 10 counties: Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale. Click here for more information on the Atlanta Regional Roundtable and to see a list of its members.

The Three Rivers Regional Commission is a 10-county regional planning commission that covers west central Georgia, and includes Butts, Carroll, Coweta, Heard, Lamar, Meriwether, Pike, Spalding, Troup, and Upson counties. For more information on its Roundtable and members, click here.

The Middle Georgia Regional Roundtable consists of 11 counties in Central Georgia including Baldwin, Bibb (including the city of Macon), Crawford, Houston, Jones, Monroe, Peach, Pulaski, Putnam, Twiggs, and Wilkinson counties. For more information on the Middle Georgia Roundtable and its members, click here.

What’s Next for the Regional Roundtables?
In June, after considering all the projects and measuring them against the criteria, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) gives its “unconstrained” list, meaning no financial limitations, to each Roundtable’s Executive Committee for its consideration.

In August, after evaluating the region’s needs and soliciting public opinion, each region’s Executive Committee will submit a financially constrained list to its Roundtable. This is a list of projects that could realistically be funded by the expected tax revenue. Then, in October, each Roundtable submits its final list to GDOT.

Voters get their say in July, 2012, when the public will vote on the referendum in the general primary election.

What Can You Do to Help?
Let everyone know you support passenger rail. The Atlanta Regional Roundtable is soliciting opinions on project. Click here to take the survey. You will see “Complete this brief survey” on the right in the beige column. In the place to comment on projects outside your area, please write: “I support the Macon-to-Atlanta rail line as the first step in a state and regional rail network.” The survey is open until May 15.

It all comes down to an audience of one: Todd Long, the governor-appointed Director of Planning for Georgia’s Department of Transportation.

Long, initially appointed by then-Gov. Perdue in 2010 and reappointed by Gov. Deal this year, has been assigned the task of evaluating, rejecting and accepting proposals for next year’s transportation referendum.

Projects have been solicited from local jurisdictions and are now being evaluated per regional criteria. Long, in tandem with the regional round table members across the state, is currently reviewing a draft list from each district. An “unconstrained” list will be approved within the next few weeks, and the final “constrained” list of viable projects will be released in October. Click here for more information about the process and criteria.

How it All Started: The Transportation Investment Act of 2010

The Transportation Investment Act of 2010 created 12 special tax districts based on Regional Commission boundaries. Each of the 12 regions where voters approve will raise a 1-percent sales tax for the next 10 years. The transportation tax is also known as T-SPLOST for transportation, special-purpose, local-option, sales tax. In order for a transportation project to be funded through 2022, it must be on this list presented to voters in the applicable region.

The Macon-to-Atlanta Passenger Rail Line

Georgians for Passenger Rail believes that a fully developed passenger rail system is an economic development issue that reconnects Georgia’s communities, enhances quality of life and leverages environmentally friendly means of transportation.

We support the proposed Macon-to-Atlanta rail line as the first step in a state and regional network, a step we feel is necessary to keep Georgia competitive. Today, Georgia’s transportation investment is less than the national average as a share of its GDP. We devote fewer resources per capita to transportation than any state except Tennessee. The lack of investment and improvement to these assets has clearly eroded the state’s transportation performance on measures that drive economic competitiveness.

The Macon-to-Atlanta rail line must be included on the project list in three transportation districts: Atlanta, Three Rivers and Middle Georgia. It is truly a regional project, one that links prosperity around the state.

What Can You Do to Help?

Let everyone know you support passenger rail. The Atlanta Regional Roundtable is soliciting opinions on project. Click here to take the survey.

You will see “Complete this brief survey” on the right in the beige column. In the place to comment on projects outside your area, please write: “I support the Macon-to-Atlanta rail line as the first step in a state and regional rail network.” The survey is open until May 15.