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APPENDIX B – WAKE COUNTY PROGRAMS TO MITIGATE SECONDARY AND CUMULATIVE IMPACTS
B-23
by 25 percent between 2007 and 2015 through a moderate package of TDM strategies
that encourage alternative modes of transportation. TJCOG is now coordinating the
marketing and evaluation of this effort through a grant program and promoting
commute alternatives, such as mass transit, carpooling, biking, teleworking, and
vanpooling (TJCOG, 2014).
In 1999, the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce organized the Regional
Transportation Alliance, a group of government and business leaders, to consider ways
to address the region’s traffic problems. Today the RTA counts as members more than
100 businesses, along with two metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) for
transportation, Triangle Transit, and RDU. The group serves as a regional business voice
for transportation initiatives and continues to focus on advancing multimodal solutions
needed to sustain prosperity and enhance quality of life (RTA, 2013). The Triangle Clean
Cities Coalition was also founded in 1999, and brings together fleet managers, local and
state government officials, fuel and vehicle providers, and interested citizen groups, to
reduce dependence on petroleum by promoting alternative transportation fuels
(TCCC, 2010).
NCDOT is also in the process of planning for a southeast high-speed rail service that
will connect Washington, D.C., to Charlotte, NC. The project will be developed
incrementally based on available funding, upgrading existing rail rights-of-way.
NCDOT has used federal stimulus funding to add commuter routes between the cities of
Charlotte and Raleigh (Southeast High Speed Rail, 2012). Improved alternative
transportation options have the potential to improve air quality by reducing traffic
congestion.
The southern section of NC 540, referred to as the Triangle Expressway is the State’s first
modern toll road, beginning at I-40 in Durham County and currently ending at NC 55 in
the Town of Holly Springs. A key proposed project is the “Complete 540” project, which
will extend the Triangle expressway to the U.S. 64/U.S. 264 Bypass in the Town of
Knightdale, completing the NC 540 Outer Loop around the greater Raleigh area, linking
the Towns of Apex, Cary, Clayton, Garner, Fuquay Varina, Holly Springs, and the City
of Raleigh. NCDOT is currently in the process of performing a detailed study of
alternatives for the extension, to be followed by an EIS (NCDOT, 2013).
B.11
Historic Preservation
The County has a Historic Preservation Commission, which has jurisdiction in several
towns including the Towns of Apex, Cary, Holly Springs, and Morrisville and the
unincorporated areas of the County. The Wake County Historic Preservation
Commission is staffed by Capital Area Preservation (CAP), a non-profit organization
that focuses on the security of historic resources.
The goals of the Wake County Historic Preservation Commission are to:
Safeguard the heritage of the County by preserving districts and landmarks that
embody important elements of its culture, history, architectural history, or
prehistory.