Streetcar Extension Plan Approved in Atlanta

"The Atlanta City Council has approved a new Streetcar System Plan, which includes five crosstown routes in addition to 22 miles of streetcar service along the Beltline," reports Andria Simmons.

The plan will guide a system totaling 50-plus miles of streetcar routes throughout the city. One major hurdle left to clear before the plan can begin moving toward reality: a 2016 Fulton County referendum that will ask voters "to impose an additional penny or fractional penny sales tax to fund transportation projects."

The Atlanta Streetcar System Plan, as it's called, will serve as a framework for the county referendum as well as for potential federal funding.

The article includes some details of the council hearing that produced the plan's approval, as well as a round of reaction soundbites from politicians both supporting and opposing the project.