AG 1999 06 21 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Further, within the county, by 1996 Concord had surpassed Kannapolis as the most populace municipality with a population of 42,550 compared to 35,300 for Kannapolis. With a total population of almost 78,000 however, the area exceeds both Gastonia (62,000) and Hickory (56,300 including Conover, Newton, Long View & Hildebran), each of which have viable transit service in place. The other townships in the 1-85 and US 29 corridors (and including US 601) also define the largest and fastest growing corridors in the county. What this means is that the transportation infrastructure (primarily highways) has had to accommodate an increasing number of persons taking increasing numbers of trips. Major employers could play a major role in defining new services and participating in their support. Major employment sectors in the area include: textiles, cigarettes, plastic fabrication, health care, hosiery, infant's wear, poultry and coffee. Potential Services On_~e of the first opl~ortunities~ which shguld be addre.~ed_ is the start-up of the Charlotte/Concord commuter bus service in February of 1999. This service will serve the ~rb~nized area with commuter service to and from the Concord Mills area, the University City area and downtown Charlotte. Access to the service will be provided in the Cloverleaf Plaza area of Kannapolis and at the Northeast Medical Center/Carolina Place Mall area in Concord. To make the most of this opportunity, providing feeder bus services to identified commuter bus stops, in addition to park and ride lots, could increase system ridership through neighborhood stops and transfers. Higher density areas, such as apartment complexes, could yield a number of riders/commuters that might otherwise not have access to the service. Thee., funding for the first three years of operation of the Charlotte/Concor~/Kannatmlis ¢91'nmuter bus service is a l~Firne example of several agencies working tol}ether to meet com, q,~3Ill~Y..l~. The service is being funded jointly by the North Carolina Department of Transportation and the cities of Charlotte and Concord. T_he NCDOT is nrovidin~ funding in t.he amount 9f75% of costs for the 1" },ear, 50% for the 2"'~ year and 25% for the 3'~. C,,harlotte and Concord are splitting the annual balance 50-50. Funding The ability of public agencies to fund transit operations has evolved steadily since North Carolina municipalities began to take over private transit systems in the late 70's. Initially, the General Statues only allowed operating assistance to come from funds available to the municipality from sources other than ad valorum property taxes. In the 80's, the General Assembly authorized certain municipalities and counties to levy an automobile licensing fee on all vehicles housed in the municipality or county. The funds generated could be used for public transit purposes. In the early 90's, a bill was finally approved allowing the use of property taxes for public transit. This greatly improved the ability of local communities to expand service. Also in the early 90's, the General Assembly began providing annual funding to the Gnnnetl: Fleming ENGINEERS AND PLANNERS