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Strapped for cash
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We'll likely be paying more to ride Metro a little over a year from now and it really should come as no surprise. The transit system is facing serious maintenance issues and a massive budget shortfall. But I can fully understand that for some, this may be hard to swallow. At least you’ll have plenty of time to air out your frustrations and ponder what to say when that local TV reporter sticks a camera in your face and asks, “How do you feel about paying even higher fares to a transit system that continues to be plagued with maintenance problems, public relations gaffes, train operators on drugs and bus drivers who like to text behind the wheel?” Sure, Metro has its problems. Metro has plenty of problems. But in a region that consistently sees the second worst traffic gridlock in the country, it’s perfectly reasonable for Metro to ask for a small raise.
This week, Metro’s Board of Directors will meet to take action on its budget guidance plan for fiscal year 2011, which includes a proposal for a fare hike. Board members know there is a very low probability that funding from local jurisdictions will increase. They also anticipate that, as the economy continues to struggle, advertising revenue will continue to decline. The guidance plan also anticipates continued growth in overall ridership. Current fares just aren’t enough to resolve the agency’s budget shortfall, so what’s left? Metro still doesn’t have a dedicated funding source, the proposed funding plan that’s been kicked around the legislatures in Virginia, Maryland and the District for several years now. A dedicated funding plan would, and still could, provide Metro with millions of dollars over the span of about ten years. The idea that those three jurisdictions would kick in so much every year, with Congress matching the funds, is still a pretty good idea. Unfortunately, it's an idea that still hasn’t come to fruition.
To put it plainly, Metro is strapped for cash. It was perhaps most evident in the days following the deadly train crash in June. General Manager John Catoe testified on Capitol Hill several times. Actually, Catoe pleaded with lawmakers to provide more funding. Catoe did all he could to relay the message that his system requires constant maintenance. His workers often find cracks in the rails. The doors on his train cars malfunction (I can’t stress enough how often that happens). His buses need to be maintained, and replaced. His operators need proper training (I can’t stress enough how important that is). His track circuits need replacing. These are just a few of the issues John Catoe deals with on a daily basis. And when Metro crews get a chance to replace a section of tracks, then yes, trains will be delayed and a station may have to be temporarily shut down. That means riders are inconvenienced. Still, with all its problems, the Metrorail system remains one of the best things about the Washington area. In fact, the Washington area could not operate at all if it weren’t for Metro. Perhaps more importantly, the federal government would not be able to operate if it weren’t for Metro.
Yes, fares will have to go up. And in the months to come, board members will wrangle over just how much they’ll have to go up. A proposal currently on the table calls for an increase of somewhere between 4 and 6-percent for Metrorail service. Increasing Metrobus fares is a tougher matter to deal with. For most of us, it’s still extremely affordable to ride the bus. And with so much of the population living below the poverty line, some board members will try to keep it that way.
But like I said, you’ll have plenty of time to complain your heart out about how Metro will want a fare increase in 2011. In fact, just think about all the time you have now every single day sitting in the nation’s second worst traffic. Go ahead, scream. Feel free to tell that jerk-off who just cut you off what he can do with himself. Then maybe you’ll see how paying a dime or two more to ride the train really isn’t that horrible of a notion.
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