Public Works Committee Meeting October 13, 2026

The Winston-Salem Public Works Committee met October 13, 2026. It considered a resolution continuing the bus-pass match distribution program for qualifying local 501(c)(3) organizations serving city residents; the passes cover fixed-route buses, with a separate eligibility process for Trans-Aid. A motion to approve the item is recorded, but the transcript does not capture the vote. The committee approved an ordinance updating the city’s solid-waste collection code. Changes include allowing businesses up to three 96-gallon carts, charging $65 annually for each additional garbage or recycling cart, requiring annual verification for certain medical exemptions, and updating enforcement fees and collection requirements. Staff also described planned route rebalancing and a move toward 80% automated collection; no new vehicle purchase or contract award was presented.

Staff updated the Martin Luther King Jr. Drive streetscape project, a federally funded project with a local match supported in part by the Creative Corridors Coalition. Design is complete, right-of-way acquisition is underway, and the city is targeting construction letting in spring 2027; staff said the scope was narrowed to stay within the current budget amid cost increases. The committee also received an update on NCDOT’s 2028–2037 transportation funding process: Division 9’s available programming had fallen to $39 million from an earlier $80 million forecast, and the Peters Creek Parkway sidewalk project was identified as the city’s strongest prospect among non-highway projects. US 52 improvements were selected for funding consideration in the statewide program, with timing within the 10-year window still to be determined. Any required local match would be coordinated through the city’s capital improvement plan.