Voters likely won’t get to decide whether public transit should get a bigger share of a 1-cent sales and use tax that funds road construction and maintenance projects and public transit.

Officials from the Pikes Peak Rural Transportation Authority, its Citizen Advisory Committee and a Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce task force agreed in a joint meeting Monday that the formula for dividing up the tax shouldn’t be changed, when a renewal question is brought to the ballot in November 2012.

 Under the 2004 voter-approved division of revenue, public transit gets 10 percent of the 1 percent tax that’s collected in unincorporated El Paso County, the cities of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs, and the towns of Green Mountain Falls and Ramah.

 Maintenance projects receive 35 percent, and capital construction projects 55 percent. The latter sunsets in 2014. Transportation officials agreed Monday to bring a renewal measure before voters next November.

 A nearly year-long study of the local public transportation system, called the Future of Regional Transportation, had looked at the possibility as a way to boost revenue for the city of Colorado Springs-operated system because it has experienced drastic budget cuts in recent years.

 Other agreements reached Monday:

 – The PPRTA board would refer the measure to the ballot and pay for the cost, an estimated $200,000 to $350,000.

 – Gross revenue for the RTA is estimated at $69 million per year

 – Future projects should be reprioritized for voter approval

 – Projects will shift from large-scale ones to relieve traffic congestion to smaller, ones to sustain and improve existing infrastructure

 – Still to be decided: Whether the extension should be for 10 or 12 years and whether voters should be presented with just one project list instead of three lists, which is what voters approved in 2004. Projects on only the A list are likely to be completed before the existing capital tax expires in 2014. But there are projects on a B list and a C list that won’t be addressed. The PPRTA’s Citizen Advisory Committee will review those and other issues and make a recommendation to the PPRTA board, the final decision-maker on the plans.

 Former County Commissioner Douglas Bruce advised the group to reconsider referring a renewal measure to the ballot next year, saying it should be brought to voters in 2014, when it expires, not before.

Have an opinion about the state’s passenger and freight rail system?

There will be an open house on the Statewide Rail Transportation Plan, 9-11 a.m. Tuesday at the city of Colorado Springs’ Transit Services Division, 1015 Transit Drive.

The public can comment on the draft plan, which will be released in January and propose methods of improving the rail system and how to pay for it. 

Six open houses have been held in other cities around the state. Tuesday’s event was added because local transportation officials complained to the Colorado Department of Transportation, about why the state’s most populous county wasn’t designated as a location for an open house on the issue.

El Paso County is taking final public comments on the 2040 Major Transportation Corridor Plan beginning Friday and through Oct. 2.

Public input began one and one-half years ago with open houses about future transportation needs.

The plan guides how taxes and fees are spent on local roadway projects.

The county’s planning commission will review the plan Sept. 6 and look at final public comments on Oct. 4.

The documents can be reviewed and commented on at this web site.

Here’s your chance to weigh in on two county issues.

El Paso County is seeking citizen input on a new strategic plan, which will identify the vision, mission, values, goals, strategies and objectives of the county to be completed from 2012 through 2016.

 Anyone interested in taking a five-minute online survey can find the link at the county website.

 Questions such as “How would you rate El Paso County as a place to live?” and “Do you feel you’re receiving good value for your county taxes?” are included.

The county also is taking comments on proposed improvements to Highway 105 between the Interstate 25 and State Highway 83 intersections.

 Residents can click here to leave comments. 

 Public input will be considered in a study to examine the roadway’s current condition and a proposed plan to address traffic congestion, commuter safety, environmental impacts and drainage concerns.

 The county’s transportation division will hold its first public meeting on the corridor study from 5 to 7 p.m. Aug. 2, at the Monument Academy, 1150 Village Ridge Point in Monument.

El Paso County commissioners will hold a public work session to discuss a traffic study on Doewood Drive in Woodmoor, 2-5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 17 at the County Office Building, 27 E. Vermijo, third floor hearing room.

County staff will present information on the projected costs and impacts of leaving an emergency access gate that blocks public access to this dirt road in Woodmoor in place, closing it entirely or making it a through street.

Neighbors also will have a chance to weigh in on the issue that has divided the community since 1996, when the gate was installed at the request of county commissioners at that time.

The area has been built out since then, which prompted a review of the transportation requirements.

“There are residents who believe that no changes are necessary and the emergency access gate should remain in place. But there also are residents who want to see the road closed permanently, and some who want it to open to through traffic,” said Commissioner Darryl Glenn, who represents District 1, which includes the Monument area. “I see this work session as an opportunity for the entire board to hear the concerns of the neighborhood and get all of the information on the table before we decide to make changes.”

No formal action will be taken. The item is scheduled to be presented at the board’s May 31 meeting.

A regional transportation plan update is underway, and the public is invited to help prioritize projects.

Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments will host a “regional transportation goals” workshop from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Jan. 20 at the organization’s office. Parking and entrance are at 14 S. Chestnut St., in Colorado Springs.

PPACG is required by federal law to update its regional transportation plan every four years. The  process will outline policies and prioritize such elements as intersection improvements, bridge repairs, sidewalks and bike trails.

Strong public participation is vital to developing the plan because it covers the next 25 years, said El Paso County Commission Vice Chair Sallie Clark, who also chairs the PPACG board.

Clark was elected chair of the PPACG, a voluntary association of 16 municipal and county governments, at this month’s meeting. Other new officers: El Paso County Commissioner Dennis Hisey as first vice-chair, Colorado Springs City Councilman Scott Hente as second vice-chair, Teller County Commissioner Jim Ignatius as treasurer and Green Mountain Falls Mayor Tyler Stevens as secretary.