Nov. 4. By Dave Vieser. Mecklenburg County voters approved a sales tax referendum by a 52% to 48% margin.
Support was strongest in Charlotte, while opposition came mainly from northern Mecklenburg precincts and Matthews.
The measure, a result of a bipartisan effort by county and state officials, will add 1% to the county’s sales tax starting next year. Opponents say the increase amounts to a 13.8% hike.
Proceeds are earmarked for road improvements and public transportation projects, including the Red Line commuter rail to Charlotte, which would serve Cornelius.
The referendum likely benefited from extensive paid media and public relations efforts.
Election results (unofficial, will be certified Nov. 14)
| NAME ON BALLOT | PARTY | BALLOT COUNT | PERCENT |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | N/A | 92,251 | 52.13% |
| Against | N/A | 84,716 | 47.87% |
Ridiculous. The Democrats waste money on every project to. Why trust them on this. The Red Line will never be built with these faik3d leaders.
Posted by BW | November 5, 2025, 12:20 amThank you to Cornelius Today for your coverage of this initiative – this was not a simple issue and voters’ consideration of the initiative benefited from your thorough coverage.
Now approved, the new law requires the Red Line to be prioritized. White the current Red Line proposal will be a boondoggle, revisions to the Red Line plan can improve the outcome if planners focuses on three things:
1) The new Red Line plan must increase the percentage of funding derived from fares and property surrounding the transit stations. The best way to achieve this is by charging higher fares for greater trip distances and by the transit authority being a landlord to high value tenants at or near the public transit hubs and using that as a revenue source.
2) The new Red Line plan must increase public confidence in transit safety. This should come via vigorous enforcement of rules like 100 percent fare collection and zero tolerance for unacceptable behavior while riding public transit. Planners must make every effort to prevent the horrific killing that happened on the light rail this August from ever happening again on public transit. Public transit must be safe and people must believe it is safe. Otherwise people will not use it.
3) The new Red Line plan must prioritize express trips from North Mecklenburg stops to Uptown Charlotte to reduce travel times. As proposed, the average speed of trips to Uptown from North Mecklenburg will be 45 miles per hour. This is half the speed of an express bus. A slow, old-tech, 20th century train is not an acceptable approach for a new transit project. The new train must provide faster trips through either offering direct trips at a higher price than a train with local stops, or by eliminating stops between Huntersville and Uptown altogether. This will not be popular, but it is necessary to preserve the value of the Red Line.
As proposed, creating a slow, local-stop focused non-interoperable commuter rail opening fifteen years from now is a collasal waste of money – a boondoggle. But, if planners can modify the plan to shore up funding sources, improve safety, and decrease travel time, they can respect that the money they are using is taxpayer money that should not be wasted.
Posted by Josh Farnsworth | November 5, 2025, 9:39 amHard to believe that with all the wailing and gnashing of teeth about inflation and the higher cost of living that a majority of people who voted chose to make things more expensive for all of us.
Posted by Gerry Mander | November 5, 2025, 9:54 am