By Ariel Hart

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Metro Atlanta voters know little to nothing about a high-stakes transportation sales tax they’ll consider next year, and they don’t quite trust it.

But they’re so concerned about the region’s future that a slim majority of 51 percent say they’ll vote for it anyway.

A new poll commissioned by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News asked voters for their views on a proposed sales tax to pay for transportation projects in the 10-county region. The plan now tops the regional agenda both for business leaders who argue metro Atlanta’s future is at stake and for anti-tax hawks who fear the economic consequences of a tax hike.

If approved by voters in 2012, the referendum would levy a 1 percent sales tax in the 10-county metro Atlanta area. It is expected to raise $6.1 billion over 10 years for regional transportation, and a list of projects is being finalized now.

Metro business leaders are so concerned about congestion blocking economic growth that they plan to put millions of dollars into a public awareness campaign to pass the tax. Opponents have come out swinging.

For those who want the tax to pass, the road to the vote is a long one.

If the vote were held today, the smallest of majorities say it would support the measure, said Brad Coker, managing director of Mason-Dixon Polling Research Inc., which conducted the poll. Thirty-six percent said no, and 13 percent were undecided, according to the poll.

The respondents’ feelings will come as no surprise to anyone who has braved metro highways. Two-thirds said congestion was undermining the region’s quality of life. Moreover, 91 percent said the region’s transportation problems were important to address for the sake of its quality of life and economic future.

That doesn’t mean just roads. The first draft of a project list spends

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/W5UoxI4FNUI/traffic-concerns-drive-support-1188053.html