The Metro Council is prepared to revisit recommended fare hikes and service cuts to the Capital Area Transit Service on Wednesday. Council Member Joel Boé says his colleagues haven’t shown him any new plans to fill the $1.2 million budget gap facing the public transit system. “It’s pretty much the same ideas you’ve already heard: revenue from red light cameras or traffic tickets or parking tickets,” Boé says. “The problem is that money is already budgeted for other purposes. If you give that revenue to CATS, they get the proverbial win, but some other department has to lose.”
CATS officials have recommended raising various fares, eliminating two routes and ending weekend and holiday service to fill the budget deficit. CATS CEO Brian Marshall estimates the system, which is operating on an annual budget of roughly $11.8 million, will go broke by October if the changes aren’t made. The Metro Council on Jan. 12 voted 6-5 against Marshall’s recommendations, and postponed the issue until its next meeting, which is set for 4 p.m. Wednesday.
When the CATS board met earlier this week, it presented no alternatives to its previous recommendations. Marshall says all alternatives have been explored since a dedicated revenue source for CATS was defeated by voters in October, and the current recommendations remain the best option. Even if the fare hikes and service cuts are approved by the Metro Council next week, CATS board member Dalton Honore says the board will continue to look for ways to increase revenue and restore services. “Any decision made by the council will not be a final decision for CATS in 2011,” Honore says. —Steve Sanoski
Today’s question: Should the Metro Council approve recommended fare hikes and service cuts for CATS?
