Please really look at the proposed cuts to our public transit system that you are being asked to consider. i will make this short. think of the public that rely on transit for work, shopping and visiting family and friends. think of the PSW’s (public support workers) that travel from client to client on transit. think of the mother with two small children who have just missed yet another connection (and it will happen). think of the public who have chosen to leave their cars at home to do their part for the environment. think of the public that voted for you and their public transit. the ones who’s taxes help pay for it and their bus tickets or bus passes they bought to ride transit they are paying for a reliable service that wont be their if the cuts are made.
last summer we lost city services for 5 days. OK so you could not go to the library for 5 days so what. their garbage was missed only once. employees with desk jobs, their work sat their until they came back to work. transit has to stop if the employees are not their to drive the bus, the public lost the Sundays in August and lost service on a daily basis through out the rest of the week, they also have lost holiday service. also when you cut the service in June you effect the high school students who go to school longer than the university.
i looked briefly at the budget draft on line everything is going back to normal plus new hires, but transit gets the short end of the stick again. and that translates in to the public loosing their reliable on time public transit you will loose more drivers this year then you have to train more. and what happens when you are short drivers? you get canceled runs that equals the public with out transit.
and for a city who promote wellness for its employees try being on the front lines dealing with the customers who are yelling at you because they missed yet another bus and are going to be late for work again and see how you feel. i encourage all of you to go to the square talk to the public, talk to the drivers and take a bus. i could go on but i am sure you will get many more emails from the public stating other reasons i may have left out LM