Wayne County millage ballot proposal looks to expand transit services. What to know.

Wayne County voters may soon be asked to decide whether to approve a millage that would expand transit service. County leaders say the average homeowner would pay about $8 more a month. 

"It's an affordable rate. It's $8 a month for the average homeowner in Wayne County," said Wayne County Deputy Executive Assad I. Turfe.

County leaders say the proposal would generate about $57 million a year over 10 years, with money going toward SMART, the Detroit Department of Transportation, senior transportation services and flex transit zones.

They say the goal is to expand access and better connect communities across Wayne County. However, critics argue voters are not getting the full picture.

Not Smart Wayne, the group behind a legal challenge to the proposal, argues that the ballot language is unclear and that many residents are not being told this would be a new tax.

"For over a million people in Wayne County, this is not some sort of renewal. This is a brand-new tax to them. This is going to collect $570 million over its term," said organizer Matthew Wilk. 

Wayne County leaders dispute that criticism, saying the funding would expand service, improve access and help connect communities that currently lack transit options.

"You're going to see more bus routes, you're going to see more frequent bus routes, you're going to see bus routes in places that currently don't have bus services," said Turfe. 

Critics argue that more money does not necessarily mean better transit, saying the current system is underused and that promised improvements have not always materialized.

"So, while the concept might be necessary, what solves that problem is not continuing to pump money into an underused, inefficient system where the people who are running it make promises they can't keep," said Wilk. 

Before voters decide, the big question may be whether more money would actually lead to better transit service.