Ballot measure defeat sends Mich. RTA officials back to drawing board

DETROIT — Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan (RTA) officials will examine why a $4.6 billion millage to bolster the region’s mass transportation failed Tuesday at the hands of voters who narrowly rejected the tax increase by an approximate 1% margin, The Detroit News reports.

The 20-year, 1.2-mill property tax would have raised $4.6 billion for mass transit in Macomb, Wayne, Washtenaw, and Oakland counties. The millage would have cost the owner of a $200,000 home about $120 annually, RTA officials estimate. Washtenaw and Wayne counties favored the millage with 56% and 53%, respectively, and Oakland County voters were split 50-50. However, Macomb County voters narrowly defeated the measure by 18,185 votes.

The millage sought to create bus rapid transit, a rail line between Ann Arbor and Detroit, an airport shuttle service, a regional fare card system, and other service changes. For the full story, click here.