Streetcar critics claim Cincinnati is raiding its road-repair budget to cover debt service for the downtown transit experiment.

Cincinnati’s vice mayor calls that a “bogus argument,” but Business Courier research indicates the claim is at least 19 percent correct. In other words, if council killed the downtown streetcar project tomorrow, it could free up enough capital to restore nearly one fifth of street paving spending cuts.

Interesting dilemma, don’t you agree? Well for some, its quite clear cut:

“There’s just certain things that shouldn’t be touched, and one of those things is street paving,” said [Councilwoman Leslie] Ghiz. Because bonds take decades to pay off, Ghiz fears the city will continue to cut lane miles year after year. […] “You’re talking about 30 years at that rate,” Ghiz said. “This place is going to look like Beirut.”

Although clearly Leslie Ghiz deserves a “Looks Like Beirut” certificate, she may have a point. Just check out Jouwar.com and France24’s recent coverage of Lebanon’s online pothole directory. Cincinnati’s roads could very well turn into Beirut if funding is cut.

Will Cincinnati streets look like Beirut?