I was dismayed to read the news yesterday from Durham. The FTA rejected the Triangle's request for funding the Regional Rail project between Raleigh and Durham.
Apparently we can spend billions of dollars to build freeways that clog up with traffic, spew pollution into our neighborhoods and cut through communities like open wounds, but we can't channel a few million for a clean, efficient rail line that will encourage smart growth, reduce congestion and pollution and generally improve quality of life.
Fortunately, the TTA is intent on trying again. I only hope that the state's two republican senators, who previously supported and now apparently oppose the line, get back on board. I can tell you all right now that the Triangle needs that line and more, and I don't even live there.
The traffic is already terrible, and the sprawling development, spurred on by roads and highways, has created a devastating, desolate landscape. As one of the fastest-growing regions in the country, the Triangle needs to embrace smart growth and mass transit now, before all that's left are lifeless parking lots and freeway interchanges.
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