While the Fed’s excessive monetary creation was a causal factor in the bubble, that didn’t explain why so much new credit ended up in housing rather than other investments.
RALEIGH — As county commissioners consider whether to put a “transit” tax — a half-cent sales tax increase — on this year's ballot to pay for the estimated $4.6 billion rail project, the railroad companies that must provide access to their lines haven’t signed off on the proposal.
RALEIGH — Public transit costs much more money than driving, and North Carolina transit systems require huge subsidies to attract any riders at all. A leading national transportation expert reaches those conclusions in a new John Locke Foundation Spotlight report.
RALEIGH — Residents of the city's Five Points neighborhood are urging the city to choose one of the two options that would keep the trains on the opposite side of Capital Boulevard from their homes. The city council is scheduled to consider the choices during its 1:00 p.m. meeting Tuesday.
RALEIGH — Residents of Raleigh's Five Points district are standing up against an option to bring President Obama's high speed rail through their backyards. The option is called NC-3, which would run trains down the west side of Capital Boulevard into downtown Raleigh. It would use eminent domain to seize homes and businesses in order to make room for the faster trains. City planners recommend the option.
RALEIGH — North Carolina’s traffic congestion could double in the next couple of decades, with Charlotte drivers facing the same types of delays Chicago drivers face now. That was the conclusion of a 2007 John Locke Foundation report. It recommended $12 billion of spending to clear North Carolina’s congested urban roads and prepare for future traffic growth. Many traffic problems outlined three years ago continue to cause concerns today. Randal O’Toole, senior fellow with the Cato Institute, recently tackled the issue from a national perspective in the book Gridlock: Why We’re Stuck in Traffic and What to Do About It. O’Toole discussed the book in a presentation for the John Locke Foundation’s Shaftesbury Society. He shared some of its themes in an interview with Mitch Kokai for Carolina Journal Radio.
RALEIGH – The public has an opportunity to tell city planners what it thinks of the city’s proposed $212 million Union Station. The building would be a central stop for all the transit moving in and out of the downtown area. Triangle Transit’s proposed light rail also would use the station. While the total price tag is $212 million, the city only would be on the hook for as much as $21 million.
RALEIGH — Raleigh's city council is taking the first steps in a process to build an expansive new transit center. It's estimated to cost as much as $212 million and would be the new home for the city's and region's bus service, Greyhound depot and Amtrak station. Planners hope it eventually will house light rail and commuter rail services. Opponents say the building will waste valuable real estate and money that would be better spent on more popular forms of transportation.
There is no significant public demand for faster rail service from Charlotte to Raleigh. So why have NC politicians been spending millions of tax dollars subsidizing Amtrak?
The proposed “high-speed” rail service would be a technological step backward and have negligible effects on energy use, carbon emissions, and air quality.
Homebuyers in two North Carolina cities pay thousands of dollars in extra costs, thanks to aggressive growth management plans. That's the key finding in a new Policy Report from the John Locke Foundation.
