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Dear Smart Growth Supporters,
Thanks to all of you who emailed Metro a few weeks ago! The Metro Board heard us and agreed to hold a public hearing before voting on the proposed service cuts. The public hearing is this Wednesday, January 27.
How Should Metro Balance the Budget?
As you may have heard, Metro is facing a $40 million deficit for the FY2010 operating budget. To address this crippling deficit, Metro has identified four options for balancing the budget including increasing fares, cutting service, and/or borrowing capital funds. They want to hear from riders about the best course of action.
Please join us in calling on the Metro Board to address the budget shortfall without cutting bus and rail service. Our region’s residents and economy depend on a robust, reliable and safe transit system. Metro will accept comments sent by email through the end of the public hearing this Wednesday evening.
It's critical that riders attend the hearing, as well. The hearing is this Wednesday, January 27, starting at 5:30pm, at Metro Headquarters, 600 Fifth Street, NW. You can sign up to speak by email -- be sure to reference Hearing #547 and include your name, address, phone number, and organizational affiliation (if any).
What Metro is Proposing
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Send an email today urging Metro to balance their budget without making service cuts.
Photo Credit: Eric Schneider
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Metro faces a $40 million deficit in this year's operating budget (ending June 2010). Earlier this month, the Metro Board proposed service cuts to address this shortfall, but because of public outcry they've now put out four options for public consideration.
The options for meeting $16 million of the $40 million include increasing fares, cutting service, and/or using capital budget dollars to keep the system in good working order. One of these options, or some combination of them, is required to balance the budget.
We urge Metro to:
- Save rail and bus service
The Washington Region's residents and economy depend on Metro. In this period of economic hardship, Metro is more vital than ever for the residents of greater Washington.
- Adopt a combination of capital borrowing and fare increases
Any capital borrowing for the operating budget, however, should be fully paid back over the next few years.
- Implement cost-cutting bus priority corridors
Bus priority corridors will save money while making existing bus service faster for riders. State and local transportation departments must cooperate in solving Metro's budget crisis by giving buses priority on roads. Bus priority treatments include dedicated bus lanes, queue jumpers, and signal priority.
- Call on state, local and federal governments to increase their contributions
This crippling budget deficit comes after years of chronic underfunding by state, local, and federal governments.
- Establish a culture of heightened attention to customer service, safety, openness, and accountability
Metro Needs Sustained Investment
Next year’s operating budget is more bad news – a $175 million deficit is projected for FY2011. In addition to the operating budget challenges, Metro’s has longer term needs that requires the support of all levels of government to secure the needed funding to:
- Replace track, switches, electrical power systems, and station platforms; and,
- Purchase new buses and rail cars to keep up with growing transit ridership.
Total replacement and capacity needs between 2011 and 2020 is $11.4 billion. In December, Congress approved and President Obama signed an appropriation of a first, one year installment of $150 million for capital investments to address some of this need. This is the first part of a 10-year proposal to match $1.5 billion in federal funds to $1.5 billion in state and local funds. But we will need additional commitments each year from local, state, and federal governments for not just the $3 billion, but the full $11.4 billion in needs.
For comparison, the region has spent about $4.6 billion on the Beltway (Wilson Bridge, Springfield Interchange and HOT Lanes) and $3 billion on the Intercounty Connector in recent years, and Maryland DOT is now proposing $4 billion to widen I-270 to Frederick. Clearly, we have to make choices -- we believe that investing in Metro should be a top priority because of the many benefits it offers.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Perring
Coalition
For Smarter Growth
action@smartergrowth.net
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