I think that walking from Meredith or NCSU to Glenwood Avenue and Fayetteville Street is a bit of stretch (in the rain, at night, after work?) which is why there was a streetcar line along Hillsborough Street at one time. What Raleigh seems to forget (when it comes to rail transit)) is that development FOLLOWS transit -- look at Charlotte. If you buy the anti-transit/anti-urban argument that you don't have enough density to support rail, you'll be waiting for a long time. The existing rail line running from Raleigh to Cary is perfect for long-distance and inter-city (commuter) rail but light rail? No.
I think Hillsborough Street is over-engineered now -- too many warning signs, yellow paint and signals. And, if they build another "roundabout" you might just as well call it a traffic engineers' wet dream instead of a vibrant urban corridor. Raleigh seems to be run by traffic engineers without any imagination -- it needs more creativity and spontaneity. Instead of becoming more interesting, Raleigh feels more like a bigger Cary than a 21st city..
It's not like Raleigh doesn't have the resources, it just lacks an exciting vision and the will to get anything done. TTA? Really? I've been waiting for 25 years for rail transit in the Triangle but they're still talking about station locations and RTP is still a giant suburban office park with no center. Look at what Charlotte, Austin and and even Nashville have done in the last 25 years and Raleigh just isn't in the same league and, it should have been. Glenwood Avenue, a few pockets downtown and a corner at Cameron Village just can't compare to the urban energy of so many other cities that have far less intellectual and financial capital than Raleigh
Maybe Raleigh will aspire to be more than a suburb in the next 25 years.