Subways, Buses and Bike Lanes Scored Billions in Local Ballot Wins
Voters overwhelmingly supported local measures to improve mass transit from Arizona to Tennessee.
A passenger enters a train at the Berryessa Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station. Voters in a number of jurisdictions from Columbus, Ohio, to Denver, Colorado, approved local funding for mass transit.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergWhile most of the country was transfixed by the presidential vote earlier this month, voters in Nashville quietly supported a major transit plan by a 2-to-1 margin after roundly rejecting a similar one in 2018 by the same margin.
It was part of a wave of mass transit-oriented measures that passed this election season, even as Republicans — who tend to oppose mass transit — won many up-ballot races. Of the 26 transit initiatives, 19 passed for communities including Columbus, Ohio; Maricopa County, Arizona; and metro Denver, Colorado. All told, the initiatives along with other wins earlier this year will raise roughly $25 billion, according to the American Public Transportation Association. The widespread support reflects the broader reality that “people want to have good transit, they want alternatives, they want their workers to be able to get to their jobs reliably,” said Beth Osborne, vice president for transportation and thriving communities at Smart Growth America.