Discussion Question: How Do You Feel About the Madison Metro Bus Fares Going Up?

City Budget

It appears that there will probably be a .50 increase on the Madison Metro Bus fare, making it $2 to ride the bus. Some say since there hasn't been an increase in 10 years it's overdue, while others say that considering the economic state the country is in right now, it's a poor time to start raising fares. What do you think?

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I don't think you can raise

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?

Woops...typed too fast

Yeah, sorry about that, I typed too fast.

Your comment about the train actually brings up another question. Whatever happened to those damn trolley cars that Mayor Dave was all hot for?

Wind bag.

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

daily commuter

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

subsidize bus service more

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 agree with Shane.

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

Why not raise gas taxes instead?

Way to pick a very unpopular

Way to pick a very unpopular stance.

raise gas taxes

Well, to be fair, the money has to come from somewhere. Since Madison Metro is local, the money would have to come from somewhere on a city or maybe county level. The two biggest targets are decreasing funding of other programs or increasing property taxes. Both of those are sufficiently unattractive options that it's worth considering what else is out there.

I know additional taxes can be assessed in WI on the county level, but I don't know if they can on the city level. A gas tax on one of those levels would be fraught with hassle, but it wouldn't be hard to argue that it also has merits.

The bottom line is that there is no easy answer to this. I believe raising bus fares is a bad idea. People who can't afford to drive will now have more trouble affording to ride the bus. People who have cars but choose to ride the bus will now have a harder time justifying doing so. I understand why they decided this -- it's really hard to find other options. I just wish they'd been able to find something.

I wasn't saying it was a

I wasn't saying it was a silly suggestion I just don't think you would be able to find a whole lot of support for a gas tax hike. You would probably find even less people who would get behind raising property taxes. Unfortunately I think the general public will allow bus fares to go up because a majority of them don't use mass transit thus punishing the people who need the bus system most; the poor, the elderly, the environmentally conscience.

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