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What's the price tag for Nashville's transportation proposal?

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Voters in Nashville will soon get a chance to weigh in on how folks get around in this city through a transportation referendum on the November ballot — the same time you're voting for president.

The cost voters will see on the ballot is about $3 billion classified as current capital costs.

I walk you through this in the player above.

But Ben Cunningham with the group "Tennessee Tax Revolt" said that doesn't tell the whole story.

He cites an independent audit carried out for Metro that says the total revenue needed during construction would be more than $6 billion.

"We believe that number should be out there," Cunningham said.

In 2018 during the previous transit referendum, that Metro Council chose both cost numbers to appear on the ballot.

The mayor's office says its single number of $3 billion on the ballot is simpler, complying with federal law while laying out the plan in plain English, with what it calls an ideal mix of clarity and transparency.

To pay for most of the plan, Mayor O'Connell has asked for a slight jump in the local sales tax, costing the average Nashville family about $6 more each month.

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