Multiple Groups Criticize McKee’s RIPTA Plan, Governor Defends
GoLocalProv News Team
Multiple Groups Criticize McKee’s RIPTA Plan, Governor Defends
Advocacy groups are criticizing McKee's new budget strategy. On Thursday, RIPTA's board, chaired by RIDOT director Peter Alviti, approved the financing structure.
“Governor McKee's half-hearted attempt at averting the worst of the proposed RIPTA cuts is weak and dismaying. The Governor precipitated this funding crisis by not taking seriously the state's dependence on public transit. He could have funded transit in his budget last winter, to the good of all of us, as well as the 40,000 people who ride the bus every day, but he did not. While we are pleased that he has late come to the realization that the cuts his budget demanded are too high a cost to stand, we deplore the fact that he waited to the last minute and even now proposes what is not even a half-measure,” said Amy Joy Glidden, Chair, RI Transit Riders.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“And not only is his offer really nothing more than an accounting gimmick to ward off the worst by sacrificing investment in buses, he still wants to saddle the agency with a costly construction project that riders do not want or need. The idea that we need to build a shiny new terminal for a bus system the Governor and Assembly refuse to fund adequately would be laughable were the stakes not so high. Public transit is not only a vital public service to be preserved, its growth is essential to meeting the climate goals that the state promised to meet back in 2021. Neither preservation nor growth will happen on a starvation diet,” added Glidden
Glidden added, ”Efficient and effective public transit is an indispensable part of the most successful local economies around the country. Rhode Island is dense enough to support great transit. We could take advantage of that to build a system equal to the best in the nation. What is needed is not merely the budgetary spare change necessary to pull RIPTA out of its funding crisis, but the vision and imagination to see that the agency could be so much more than it is, and with only modest investment provide fast, green, and efficient transportation to all of our small state.”
Randall Rose of the Kennedy Plaza Resilience Coalition blasted McKee.
“This week, at the last minute, Gov. Dan McKee publicly pushed RIPTA to do things that not only harm our bus system, but also harm taxpayers who don’t use RIPTA. These changes are badly thought out and show how some of the state’s top politicians still don’t understand public transit, even as they interfere with the public transit system on an unprecedented scale. McKee seems to think he is actually helping finances, but those who are more familiar with the issue realize this approach won’t work. We hope political leaders will understand the financial consequences better, or the taxpayers will pay the price,” said Randall.
Further, the group says the outcome of the new budget is:
- major bus service cuts,
- a plan to do repeated fare increases over the coming years,
- and pushing ahead with the extremely expensive and controversial relocation of the state’s central bus hub.
“McKee’s service cuts would be the largest in many years, and they are paired with a planned series of fare increases. Fare increases may be counterproductive financially, since fewer people will ride the bus if they’re asked to pay more for worse service. Any increase in the $2 bus fare would mean that many would end up paying $3 per ride, 50% more than before, since the fareboxes don’t make change. And no significant bus system in America relies primarily on fares for funding. At best, a fare increase would raise 10-20% of RIPTA’s $10 million budget gap; but the fare increase might end up discouraging so many riders that it loses money,” according to Randall.
“Although McKee’s letter claims he’s found an extra $3 million for RIPTA this year, that one-time money actually comes from RIPTA’s own funds, which are designated for long-term capital investment. This financial maneuver is giving RIPTA operating money for this year at the expense of RIPTA’s ability to provide good service in future,” Randall adds.
McKee defended the decision:
“Today, the Board took an important first step by approving a proposal that closes RIPTA’s operating deficit without eliminating routes, while securing meaningful administrative and management savings. Not only does the decision protect core ridership services, but also it prevents future wide-ranging tax increases on Rhode Islanders. This decision provides a foundation for RIPTA to build a more modern and financially sustainable transit system.”