Fares on the bus go up and up

Click here to enlarge " /> Click here to enlarge DispatchPolitics Bus riders will need more change for the coin box in January if a plan to increase fares as much as 26 percent is approved by the Central Ohio Transit Authority.

[hog2561]

didnt cota get a tax increase from voters and federal money what about the county workers getting monthly passes for nothing this past year it always come down to the poor working soul who cannot afford to pay.

[amber]

i don't consider boston a comparable city. their cost of living is quite a bit higher.

[Someone who knows]

Poor working class, all OU students ride for free, most people whom get on the bus, try to ride for free, half of the people whom ride on the bus are to lazy to work, thats why they ride the bus, they can't afford a car on welfare. Ride one of the buses downtime and I think you might feel a little different.

hog2561 wrote:

didnt cota get a tax increase from voters and federal money what about the county workers getting monthly passes for nothing this past year it always come down to the poor working soul who cannot afford to pay.

[Spanky the chipmunk]

It is about time they made the ppeople who use the "service" pay for it themselves instead us milking the rest of us to subsidize it for them!

They are poor because they choose to be. Look up the word self-motivated & their photo will not be there!

I noticed you took out Geoerg's comments!

[Kathleen]

Still a bargain over driving and parking downtown.

[Educated Commentator]

If I remember right, the last time fares were increased, taking the local one-way fare to $1.50 and the local monthly pass to $45, it was due to sudden spikes in fuel costs. I also know that fares did not decrease as fuel costs have moderated, even decreased.

And COTA does have that successful recent sales tax levy. The situation there is that projected revenue is down due to the downturn in the economy, but they still went and bought several new buses, increased services, added routes, etc.

As a regular COTA rider I don't like the idea of my fare increasing, however. I always find it interesting that the folks are the ones impacted the most. Like many, I've taken a pay cut for 2009 but governmental fees continue to increase, taxes continue to go up, and now bus fares are slated to go up. I'd like to see an alternative proposal to a fare increase that would cut operating costs. I have to cut my household operating costs, so why shouldn't COTA? Actually, why shouldn't all governmental (or in the case of COTA, quasi-governmental) organizations not cut operational costs instead of seeking tax increases (or in the case of COTA, fare increases).

[John Gideon]

Funny. Bill Lhota just made a major presentation to the Columbus Metropolitan Club. All sweetness and light. No mention of a fare increase. And he was just on Ann Fisher's "All Sides" show on WOSU-820AM and, again, all sweetness and light and no mention of a fare increase. Seems a bit deceptive.

And there are no adequate justifications for an increase given by COTA staff in this news story. The only sufficient justification -- in my mind -- is to stay in the black. Nothing is said here about any danger of an immediate or approaching deficit.

The stated justifications are:(1) "to have riders pay about 20 percent of the system's operating costs," and (2) "the [long-range] plan called for rate increases every three years."

It might be nice to have a certain balance in the sources of revenue for COTA's operating costs, but that is NOT a justification for a rate increase, if there is no immediate danger of running a deficit.

And trying to follow the plan is generally a good thing, but no one planned on our current economic crisis. This might be a good time NOT to follow the plan a bit longer.

Hopefully the COTA board will exercise good judgment and vote down the proposed fare increase unless and until COTA really needs it to balance its books. This is not a time for COTA to go running off the rails with an unjustified fare increase.

[Roberta]

Your City comparisons may as well be moot. Comparing us to Cincinnati and Boston? Come on! There is no comparison!! Cincinnati, okay, maybe but Boston is way out of our league. It makes sense that their bus fares may be higher; it's a much larger city with a higher cost of living. This fare hike is ridiculous and if I get the chance to, I'm voting a big fat "NO" on this issue.

[CMH Rick]

Yea, I know just what the riders are upset about.. It is just a shame that the taxpayers can't somehow pay the entire cost of the bus ride.

The taxpayers already pay for the entire cost of some peoples food and shelter, not to mention the medical expence.

Why can't you taxpayers just work a little harder so we don't have to pay more to ride the bus?

[Eugene_C]

They've been $1.50 for a long time, like 7 or 8 years. I think $1.75 is not unreasonable at this point but jumping to $2 is a bit much.

[CMH Rick]

Spanky the chipmunk wrote:

It is about time they made the ppeople who use the "service" pay for it themselves instead us milking the rest of us to subsidize it for them!
They are poor because they choose to be. Look up the word self-motivated & their photo will not be there!
I noticed you took out Geoerg's comments!

Spanky, you started off doing just swell, and then for some reason you became confused. These people that don't want to pay their way, are going to work. They are not just riding the bus because of all the fun thrills and spills. They are motivated, they just want something for nothing.

[KOMRB]

I'm fine w/a rate hike. I was surprised COTA didn't raise prices during the inflated gas crisis, but I suppose a greatly-increased ridership helped defray those costs.

Park your car and take the bus. You can read, or have a liquid lunch even. There's a lot of perks.

[KOMRB]

Spanky the chipmunk wrote:

It is about time they made the ppeople who use the "service" pay for it themselves instead us milking the rest of us to subsidize it for them!
They are poor because they choose to be. Look up the word self-motivated & their photo will not be there!
I noticed you took out Geoerg's comments!

They're poor because they choose to be?!? What an assinine and untrue statement. Of course, Spanky is from Dublin, so probably has not a f'in clue as to how the real world lives.

And the bus isn't just for poor people, but unfortunately, folks like this and stupid comments like this give riding the bus - a very sensible, environmental solution - a bad rep.

[Eugene_C]

hog2561 wrote:

didnt cota get a tax increase from voters

Not lately, COTA are paid with a fixed slice of the sales tax, like 1/4%, which has not gone up since around 2000. It's actually pretty low for a city like Columbus. In Cleveland, a full 1% of the sales tax goes to public transport.

[michaelincmh]

My other half and I both take the bus on a regular basis. We get our monthly passes and pay the full fare. Just because we take the bus doesn't mean we have lousy jobs or are poor. With parking over $100 a month and gas at the prices they are, it makes better sense to spend the 45 a month and leave the car parked in the garage.

I do agree with "Someone Who Knows" that the vast majority of riders are riding with a reduced fare when it is clear they could be working and actually contributing to society and not milking for all they can get. And as for the students riding for free, well maybe it is time for them to take a bite from their beer budget and put it towards the real need, transportation.

As for those who don't ride COTA, I would suggest you educate yourself by actually riding and using their services before complaining.

[Lois]

My favorite riders are those getting on for free with their big expensive baby stroller and blocking the aisle way. They’re too rude and too lazy to collapse it (like they’re suppose to) and do not care if they’re blocking the aisle way. Seen it way too many times. What’s worse is the driver doesn’t make them collapse the stroller it either. Oh well, that's the thrill of riding public transportation.

[bharness26]

how much more screwing is the city of columbus gonna do to people? theres a reason why people ride the bus and its because they dont have reliable means of transportation and its the only way to get around,i mean they raised taxes on alcohol,cigarettes,property waste,and a city tax increase,how much more do they want from people? if anyone has any since to theirselves youll vote NO on this one.

[DeeKay]

People are confused about OSU students riding feee. Their fees are added to their tuition and then they get their Buck ID, which they show the bus driver.

And Spanky, who is probably (or acting like) 13, has never been on a COTA bus because mommy is lugging his sorry butt around in her Navigator.

[Eugene_C]

Talia wrote:

<quoted text>
I personally ride the bus to work daily, and have a very good job. There are many people who choose to ride COTA, county, city ,and state workers commute on Cota. Some people may or may not have cars but does that make them "poor"? What a ding-dong!

I enjoy riding COTA. I can read and relax on my commute instead of getting my blood pressure up because of rush hour drivers who are texting on cell phones. At least I know if someone in a car or SUV hits a bus, they're likely to come out on the worse end of the deal.

[Country Mouse]

I don't use COTA here in Columbus, but I did use Metrobus while visiting Washington DC last year. Their current fares for the bus are only $1.25 using SmarTrip®(an electronic card system) and $1.35 using cash.