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On Tuesday, the Madison City Council will vote on raising Metro Transit fares from the current rate of $1.50 per ride to $1.75 or $2 (and raising all other fare options accordingly).
Increasing the cost of taking the bus is the wrong decision. A fare hike would be unduly hard on the many low-income riders who rely on the system, would send the wrong message about Madison's commitment to environmental sustainability and would decrease the number of riders who take the bus by choice. The loss of bus ridership would not only mean less revenue, but also more traffic and congestion and less available parking for all drivers. The mayor's insistence on the fare increases when this year's city spending on roads is projected at over $60 million shows how out of touch he is on this issue. Why make public transportation less attractive by raising rates or cutting service times and routes, especially in these tough economic times? We don't expect the parks, highways, snowplows or police forces to pay for themselves. These are core, critical city services that are worthy causes for our tax dollars -- as is Madison Metro Transit.
— Jessica King, Madison
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