I just received an email announcing the organizational meeting for the Durham Orange Friends of Transit and it got me to thinking... As a resident of Carrboro, I continue to hear a lot of excitement at the neighborhood and town level about the idea of some type of fixed rail service with a stop in downtown that takes folks to the university and beyond to Durham. Despite this, everyone that I've heard that is "in the know" about transit issues seems to be dismissive of the idea that a station in Carrboro is a viable idea. I believe this is partially due to the perception that the Carrboro population is not large enough to sustain such a station. The types of statistics I've seen that justify transit and transit stops tend to only use population and density numbers, but don't take into account the percentage of the population likely to use such a service.

With the passage of House Bill 148 by the 2009 General Assembly, authorizing a referendum on a sales tax increase in Wake, Durham, and Orange Counties (fiscal details here) to fund a regional rail system and a rapid increase in bus service, supporters turn next to a potential referendum campaign in 2010 or 2011. See the proposed regional map here.  (click header or "read more" to see remainder of post)