Susan De Vos: Mayor culpable in poor location of bus transfer points

The Cap Times, November 10, 2016

Dear Editor: Maybe the main thrust of a recent article concerned Madison’s participation in a national program to improve data use, but that did not prevent the mayor from making an ill-informed comment about the bus, making scapegoats of many bus users while downplaying his own culpability in abetting a skewed land use pattern in Madison: “In the maintenance and operation of our bus routes, the city of Madison knows that for folks who are lower income, African-American that bus route times and transfers are much longer than for others," Soglin said.

If you think that Scott Walker is the only one who would lower everyone’s welfare rather than lift all boats, think again. Most areas outside the transfer points were developed from farmland while Soglin was mayor of Madison. Metro’s budget did not expand commensurately with the expansion of land added to the city of Madison. The Transportation Planning Board’s most recent Transit Development Plan chose not to consider moving transfer points in an attempt to deal with many issues, including scheduling. His own affordable housing initiative finds bus service too lousy in otherwise-desirable locations to locate housing projects there. So scapegoat bus users inside the transfer points instead of suggesting real improvements? How convenient.

Susan De Vos
Madison
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