Democrats propose ‘paradigm shift’ in NC transportation spending

The N.C. Department of Transportation spends about $5 billion a year building and maintaining a transportation system based primarily on cars and trucks.

Some lawmakers want to change the state’s priorities, giving more say to local communities that want to shift transportation dollars toward transit and projects that would benefit pedestrians and cyclists.

They’ve introduced bills in the House and Senate that they call the Transportation for the Future Act. Among other things, the bills would alter the formula NCDOT uses to allocate money, requiring that at least 20% go to non-highway projects.