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Layoffs and Cuts Hammer Transit
Sacramento Bee
As federal and state investment in high-speed rail ramps up, local bus and light-rail systems are retrenching, cutting service and laying off workers... Finally the state, reeling from its own budget crisis has drastically cut support for transit. And though RT gets some funding from the federal government, including $22 million in stimulus money thus far, much of that money comes with strings attached. It must be used for capital expenditures, not for operations. Coming together, big declines in sales taxes, fare box receipts and state support have left a gaping $16 million hole in RT's $140 million annual budget. The transit agency must bridge this year's shortfall by June 30. Next year it must cut another $20 million.
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Windfall barely nicks Bay Area transit deficit
San Francisco Chronicle
The $70 million in federal funds that Bay Area transit agencies will split since the money was diverted from BART's Oakland Airport Connector won't stop service cuts or layoffs, solve budget problems or go very far toward filling vast deficits. [Metropolitan Transportation Commission spokesman Randy Rentschler] expects most of the 19 transit agencies sharing the money will use it to fund maintenance programs, which will allow them to free up equivalent amounts of money in their budgets to help cover general operating expenses. While it may not solve any transit agency's troubles, the $70 million comes as the Bay Area's transit operators are struggling because of the loss of all state funding, the steep decline in sales tax revenues and the drop in ridership and fare revenues.
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Muni fare hike, cuts appear inevitable
San Francisco Examiner
Despite efforts to avoid higher fares and service cuts to the disabled, elderly and youth, those options remain part of two separate proposals in a budget-balancing package that will be voted on Friday by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Although met with heavy criticism, the SFMTA faces a $16.9 million deficit in its $765 million budget and is set to push forward with plans to double the current cost of discounted Fast Passes from $15 to $30, and reduce transit service by 10 percent, which will lead to longer waits for more-crowded vehicles. Combined, those measures will help trim $5.8 million off the deficit, which must be reconciled by June 30, the end of the fiscal year.
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Bus riders worry about service cuts
Orange County Register
With new cuts in bus service three weeks away, Yvonne Tobin, 49, and other avid bus riders are wondering how they will be getting to their destinations. "I'm completely dependent on public transportation," said Tobin, a Santa Ana resident, as she was waiting for her bus to arrive at Santa Ana Boulevard and Santiago Street. "Right now we're going to the library. We need to get on the computer for job search." ... Bus service cuts go into effect March 14, with deeper cuts in store if state transportation funding does not become available. In November, the Orange County Transportation Authority approved a plan to cut 150,000 hours of service annually from the bus schedule ... The plan eliminates about 8 percent of the county's bus service.
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Service Cuts. Again.
Riding in Riverside
Really, I'd love one day to get up and post on this blog about the massive new service expansion that RTA is planning. If only RTA would get around to planning one. At least I have good news to report about the City from time to time. Nope, here I get to fire up the 'ole intertubes and tell you all about the latest service cuts that our meagre little transit system is going to suffer from. And this time around, Riverside is most certainly NOT spared.
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BART explores more fare hikes, cuts
San Francisco Examiner
BART faces a $14 million shortfall for the upcoming fiscal year and a four-year projected deficit of more than $60 million, meaning fare and fee increases, service reductions, and employee layoffs are again being considered to help balance the budget... BART will again explore the possibility of fare increases — prices went up 6 percent in July — while entertaining the idea of raising fees at its parking lots, according to transit agency documents. Service adjustments, employee reductions and labor negotiations also will be in the mix.
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Weekend bus cuts loom
Sign On San Diego
The Metropolitan Transit System, the agency that runs San Diego's bus and trolley network, will eliminate 23 Sunday bus routes starting this weekend and scale back weekend service on others. The changes have been in the works since late last year, when the agency began scrambling for ways to cover a $13 million operating deficit. The gap largely stems from reductions in sales tax revenue and the elimination of state subsidies.
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