A poll shows local support for transportation spending. The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber polled 400 voters in Hamilton county, 200 voters in Butler, Clermont, and Warren counties in Ohio, and 200 voters in Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties in Kentucky, and Dearborn county in Indiana.
A majority of those asked believe highways are a higher priority than public transit. Fifty two percent said repairing, building, and expanding existing roads and highways should be a priority. Thirty six percent said the priority should be expanding and improving mass transit, including buses and rail.
Voters are split on the idea of paying new taxes to fund regional improvements, although slightly more in Hamilton County would support an increase for bus service expansion. The question comes after SORTA board members voted to pursue a sales tax levy in 2018.
Sixty percent of those polled said tolls were a fair way to fund transportation projects, about the same number said a dollar was an acceptable amount for a toll. That question referred to the plan to replace the Brent Spence Bridge, which some proponents have said could be funded through a toll. Fifty five percent of respondents in Northern Kentucky and Indiana said they agreed that tolls were an appropriate funding source.
The chamber released the poll results this morning.
