Posted on 02/26/2022 2:54:53 AM PST by Libloather
How on Earth does a city the size of D.C. have a budget of $17.5 BILLION? I mean, I know the amount of fraud and waste that is likely occurring, but still….seriously?
If they were serious they would e Mandating ALL Public Employees Exclusively use Public Transportation for ALL TRAVEL, with Severe Penalties for non compliance
Make riding the subway free and use the $100 per resident for operating costs.
“If they want to make it easier for the “poor” to ride public transit reduce fares for everyone or simply ... provide the service for free.”
Thanks for the clarity. How simple, and effective! Reduce fares. In the extreme, eliminate fares. By the way if you eliminate fares, you no longer need people and equipment to collect fares - so that reduces some expenses. That would defray some of the increased rail car cleaning bills.
Your suggestion is very sensible in terms of the stated goal, increasing ridership.
However, it implicitly acknowledges the law of demand. Next people might discuss supply, demand, market prices and perhaps (shudder) laissez fair economics. The actual convoluted proposal, like the current convoluted D.C. budget, maintains the appearance of government control - the mayor and others are busy “running the city.” Leave that to the professionals.
The Metro rail system was devised to get cars off the road. It was a gigantic project that included much tunneling under an existing city. The cost of building the system was never going to be recovered. The billions spent was just a gift.
You would think the metro system could at least recoup operating expenses. I don’t think that has ever been the case. Imagine giving someone a brand-new automobile and telling the recipient “You have to maintain it.” Sometime later, they come back and ask for gas money. Oh, and it costs money to change the oil. Detailing yearly (why not monthly?) is expensive too...
What does the metro rail system achieve? The main benefit seems to be that suburban (I prefer “uberurban”) sites collect workers and flow them into the city for work. Terminuses are limited by parking. Also, the line should always be extended farther and farther away from the city.
Increased parking and rail line extension makes sense in terms of “getting cars off the road,” the initial goal. It costs money of course. Also, it fuels dreaded sub-urban (above-urban) growth, reducing city population and growth.
The Metrorail system was a giant boondogle. It never lived up to the promises made. It should never have been done. We should never do it again in any other city.
If illegal aliens have to register for this program, won't that mean they're no longer "undocumented?" What will they become? "Underdocumented?"
Most of its funding comes from the federal government.
I just looked at the DC 2022 budget (the Executive Summary is 331 page pdf) and 50% of it comes from local taxes. .
Local taxes includes PILOT payments from the government on all the real estate owned by the government.
PILOT = Payment in Liu of Taxes
The D.C. Councilmembers will each take a crate of money and hand it out themselves good idea huh Lee Roy?.
To heck with THAT! Just make it FREE. Why NOT?
Reasons:
Polution in my city reaches very irritating levels. I’m bothered by it and I don’t even have a medical condition.
Traffic! When I see a bus or train filled to the brim, I celebrate. That full transport means that much less traffic.
Public transport is an issue that should be determined locally and should not be dictated on a state or federal level.
And Biden’s Transportation CZAR states that we all must get rid of our cars and ride the bus. 👎😡🚍
The woman eventually gets up but throws punches at another passenger before getting off the bus. Benavidez said he’s noticed more bad behavior on buses recently. “It’s been a problem for the past few months. People refusing to wear masks, not obeying commands of the driver, twice in the last month I’ve witnessed two people doing drugs on the bus,” he said.
He’s calling on city leadership to bump up security. “I agree with the free fare program and fares but at the same time they had to anticipate that there was going to be some people getting on the bus as a result of that program that shouldn’t be there,” said Benavidez.
https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/video-woman-refuses-to-move-for-elderly-veteran-on-albuquerque-bus/
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