On Wednesday afternoon, the Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools held a virtual meeting to discuss school buses. Those who tuned in quickly realized that our school bus system is in trouble—big trouble. We’ve lost drivers and buses, and have started using contracted vehicles just to get kids to school. There are children riding the bus […]
Martin Johnson
Martin Johnson lives in Chapel Hill. He teaches film studies courses at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also a member of NEXT Chapel Hill-Carrboro and the Bicycle Alliance of Chapel Hill. He believes that walkable urbanism is the solution to our environmental and economic challenges.
Posted inElection 2022
RALEIGH MATTERS: Triangle Blog Blog Endorsements for the Capital City
Raleigh’s progress on zoning reform is an inspiration for cities across the South. It must not regress into the anti-housing politics of old. Raleigh is the South’s beacon on housing. By passing long overdue reforms, such as permitting missing middle housing and ending parking mandates, the City of Oaks is setting precedents other places cite […]
Posted inTriangle Region
Triangle Blog Blog’s Guide to the Raleigh Mayor and City Council Elections
It may be the midterm elections in North Carolina, but for fans of local politics there’s much to write about, at least in the left half of the Triangle. Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, and Durham all have odd-year elections (which suppresses turnout), so after the spring primaries for statewide elections things are a little sleepy […]
Posted inChapel Hill
This One Goes to 11: 157 East Rosemary Street
157 East Rosemary Street is heading to the Chapel Hill Town Council on Wednesday for a first look and — it’s kind of wild. The proposed building has 11 stories, 50 dwelling units (including condos), 3,000 ft of ground floor retail, and 23-parking spaces (with additional parking in the town’s new deck.) […]
Posted inChapel Hill
Three Reasons to Extend the Libba Cotten Bikeway to UNC (And Three Ways You Can Help)
Yesterday, NEXT Chapel Hill-Carrboro launched a campaign to ask the Town of Chapel Hill to extend the Libba Cotten Bikeway, which runs along a rail line between Chapel Hill and Carrboro, to UNC’s campus along Cameron Avenue. (Full disclosure: I am a member of NEXT, and pitched the idea of focusing on this issue). More […]
Posted inBike and Walk
Five questions to ask before supporting a new transportation plan
My recent piece on the proposed Commuter Rail Project received some pushback, including from TBBer Melody Kramer. Most of the criticism made two points: 1). Highway spending is just as wasteful, and we never hear criticism of highways, and 2.) If we don’t support this project now, we’ll regret it in the future. While I’m sympathetic […]