Turnpike bill dead and buried, really

OK, now the Triangle Expressway really is dead without a public-private partnership. Honest. We mean it this time.

But a partnership became the prime money option for the Triangle Expressway after the legislature ended its session late Thursday night without providing seed money to allow the turnpike authority to float construction bonds for the project.

In the waning hours of the session, the House passed a bill that would have provided $20 million from the general fund, but that measure was politically unpopular with the Senate, which didn't consider it before adjourning. That kills chances for state seed money until the legislature reconvenes for a "short session" in May.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is why it's impossible to live-blog the General Assembly. Just to recap: we've gone from a passed Senate bill, to that bill being rejected by the House, to a few changes being made that ensured passage through the House, to that new bill being rejected by the Senate, and the Senate adjourning shortly thereafter. Confused much? Welcome to North Carolina.

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