Executive Director Gina Marsh and Transportation Committee Chair Reginald Harris presented before City Council’s Education, Innovation, and Growth committee today on the results of its public transit survey . Among the highlights of the survey:
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- 58% of riders regularly use the bus to get to work/school;
- 76% of these riders have household incomes below $25K and 38% below $15K;
- 84% do not have a car.
- 42% rely on bus to get to grocery store;
- 38% rely on bus to get to medical appointments.
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SORTA’s Reinventing Metro plan proposes annual fare increases amounting to an overall increase of $1.05 by 2028. Zone 1 fare would increase from $1.75 to $2.80. That’s a 60% increase in fares over 9 years. 36% of the respondents in our survey with household incomes below $25K said they could not afford a 25-cent fare increase.
HSC proposes the establishment of a Transportation Empowerment Fund that would provide free or discounted bus passes to those from households that are at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level. Non-profits and government agencies that serve low income residents would purchase the passes at a 50% discount then distribute them to eligible citizens. This would offset the reduction in ridership that is projected to occur with proposed fare increases. We believe a commitment of $300k/year, which is .6% of the Transit Tax Fund, for 3 years would provide significant impact to ensure lower income residents can maintain employment and self-sufficiency.
