I don't think you can raise a fair but you can raise a fare.
Sorry - had to point that out.

How about we evolve and just get a train?

A wind bag is me.

I'm all for some hot train action, too - but I think that's better for city-to-city travel than intercity, at least in a place the size of Madison. I'm on the fence about the trolley idea. I think that money might be better spent making sure the buses remain affordable for everyone, and actually have comprehensive routes.

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www.lostalbatross.com

i ride the bus every single day (except on the days when my sister is awesome and gives me a ride to work). personally, i'm totally fine with the cost going up. madison metro has done a lot to try to keep the costs down. they shifted bus schedules around, shortened some bus routes, and started putting larger ads on the sides of the buses. maybe they can just increase the cost of the buses that go further away? like the buses to middleton, fitchburg, and verona. would that help? or maybe just make it more confusing?

of course, i've also got myself situated in a decent paying job and i probably would kick up a fuss if i still worked for minimum wage at a coffee shop.

about the train/trolley, is there a guarantee that it will cost less than the bus?

quixoticgoat.blogspot.com

I think we should subsidize bus service as much as we subsidize cars. Bus fare increases disproportionately affect poor and lower income people who rely on it to get to work. As we go into a recession, one way we can easily increase the economic opportunity and stability for low income people is to expand bus service and make it more affordable.

I ride the bus twice daily on average and as anyone who's spent any time on a Madison Metro bus knows, it's a really amazing cross-section of local culture. Everyone from UW professors to East High School students and all in between are on the bus. The one thing we all have in common is that by choice or circumstance we are on public transportation, thus decreasing our negative impact on the environment. That reason alone seems to indicate that those who ride the bus should not be subject to a price increase, as the more expensive public transportation gets, the less likely folks who do have the choice between taking a bus/driving to work will be to choose the bus.

Why not raise gas taxes instead?