If we actually want to win our World University Games bid, one of several advantages our bid has over South Korea’s that we have to double down on is our car-free connections between potential venues. That means Orange County’s mobility investments could affect how the world sees “Raleigh”.
Lucky for us, Orange County is figuring out how to improve their transit systems, and they’re asking for feedback on some draft ideas.
One of them is to make GoTriangle’s buses run along Tobacco Road every 15min all day every day. This could happen by FY2026 with additional funding:
There are also other “aspirational, currently unfunded, longer-term” projects that could happen. These include BRT to Raleigh and RTP, as well as express bus services to Pittsboro’s Chatham Park.
If you’re wondering why this is happening more slowly than Raleigh’s BRTs, keep in mind that Orange County’s transit revenue is about one-third of Wake County’s this year. That slower revenue accumulation isn’t exactly doing any favors when it comes to moving on from that light rail project’s demise.