The most important issue that will determine continued growth in the Lake Norman region in the coming decade is not tax rates, municipal codes, or teacher pay. It is roads.
North Mecklenburg has the greatest economic growth potential of any area in North Carolina. Yet without addressing our lack of transportation infrastructure, we will quickly find that growth will slow to the pace of I-77 traffic on a Friday afternoon.
NCDOT published a report in 1990 stating that I-77 should be widened to eight lanes from I-40 to the S.C. state line, with a completion date of 2010.
What happened? Over the past 20 years the Lake Norman area has been one of the fastest growing in the country. Road construction and interstate expansion have not kept pace.
For businesses, capacity of transportation infrastructure is a key factor in deciding where to locate. Investment in infrastructure leads to growth, and that translates into jobs.
In theory, the state does not have money to expand I-77. In theory, tolling I-77 with a third-party private partner is the most efficient and effective way to pay for immediate infrastructure needs.
Managed lanes tolling will guarantee at all a 45 mph minimum speed. You can drive in the toll lanes for free if you have at least three passengers. In theory this will allow the state to add interstate lanes, offloading the financial risk onto private investors. In theory, profits from tolling will be shared with the local communities for funding of the region’s priority transportation needs.
In practice I’ve found that when something sounds too good to be true, often times it is.
In state government we have seen that poorly written contracts for TIMS, NCTracks and NCFAST with private partners wound up costing taxpayers hundreds of millions in overruns or waste. The officials in charge said that everything was fine, while the state was being sued for failure to process Medicaid claims, folks were not getting their food stamps, and we literally threw much of the new tax software in the trash.
We have seen the same failure at the local level with the county property tax valuation process. County government officials continued to say there were no problems with property valuations, but we knew better. The process ultimately was fixed, which resulted in over $2 million in refunds just to the North Mecklenburg region alone.
We were promised that with the local half-cent sales tax and use of the Norfolk Southern line, we could build the LYNX Red Line. We now know that without additional millions it’ll likely never be built.
Recent data show troubling information concerning toll road projects involving Cintra in Indiana and Texas. I asked NCDOT to ensure we have contractual language that protects us in the event North Carolina has a similar experience.
I also asked for a public review and independent analysis by the state auditor of key provisions of the Cintra contract to ensure the deal is good for taxpayers.
Based on information from NCDOT, I am still in favor of tolling I-77 since this option solves the problem sooner rather than much later and will generate additional dollars for local road projects.
Simply doing nothing is not an option. However, the governor must ensure this contract is vetted publicly, has appropriate provisions for termination, and prevents financial recourse against taxpayers.
With over $163 million in taxpayer money at stake, I’d rather walk away than blindly risk taxpayers’ money on a project that is too important to fail. We have other options. We’ve heard “trust us” enough from bureaucrats and politicians. It is time for leadership that puts good public policy first, the politics of Raleigh last.
