Post by bennyp81 on Jun 15, 2005 10:31:50 GMT -8
Bart Reed
User ID: 8854703 Mar 16th 9:30 PM
San Francisco Business Times: Friday, Feb 14, 2003
Muni shortfall lurches toward $50M by Eric Young, Staff Writer
Companies: Municipal Railway & Transit Authority-San Francisco CA NAICS:485111 NAICS:926120
Copyright American City Business Journals
Friday, February 14, 2003
Managers of the Bay Area's biggest transit system are trying to whittle down a burgeoning budget deficit.
San Francisco's Municipal Railway said its shortfall for the fiscal year starting July 1 has mushroomed to $50 million from $38 million. The cause for the widening gap: state budget adjustments that likely will direct less money to San Francisco transit-related funds.
Given the fluid status of California's budget, the MUNI gap has the potential to grow even bigger.
"It's really still a moving target," said Maggie Lynch, spokeswoman for MUNI, which handles 236 million passenger boardings annually.
MUNI isn't alone with its money woes. Other large Bay Area transit operators, including BART, Santa Clara County VTA and AC Transit, are all facing budget gaps due to slips in ridership, dips in sales tax revenue or state funding cutbacks.
"All the big players are feeling it," said Randy Rentschler, spokesman for the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
MUNI, to help close its gap, has rolled out several steps in recent months. MUNI enforcement officers have been writing tickets to passengers who hop aboard without paying.
The transit system also has eliminated overtime pay, banned many purchases and plans to sell its fleet of cars. MUNI is discussing the possibility of laying off 30 to 50 from its administrative staff of 500. A labor union representative could not be reached for comment.
The biggest potential impact on riders is the proposed 25 percent fare increase that would put adult fares at $1.25. The fare increase, the first since 1992, would raise an additional $15 million annually, according to MUNI estimates.
The proposal, which is being discussed in public comment sessions this month, needs approval first by the city's Municipal Transportation Agency board and then the city's Board of Supervisors.
MUNI would like the hike to go into effect in July. Some residents have spoken out against a fare increase, arguing that it hurts the poor and anyone on a fixed income.
Meanwhile, some in the business community, including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, support the idea, saying it helps the transit system keep up with inflationary pressures.
Among the MUNI riders who support the proposal are Andrew Sullivan, chairman of Rescue MUNI, a citizen's watchdog group. Sullivan is urging the Department of Parking and Traffic to increase parking fees and fines by 25 percent as well.
MUNI derives about one quarter of its operating revenue from parking fees. A parking rate hike would help pump more money into MUNI and serve as a deterrent to drivers, Sullivan said.
The parking and traffic department is discussing rate hikes this month and likely will set new rates by March, a spokesperson said.
Þ--Þ--Þ
John
User ID: 9510053 Mar 16th 9:55 PM
Hey, there's an excellent idea: raise parking fees and tickets! Is the MTA pressing for that to be done in Los Angeles County?
Bart Reed
User ID: 8854703 Mar 16th 10:29 PM
Things are done a little differently in San Francisco. Since the City and County and Muni are one and the same in San Francisco, they put this package together many years ago.
In Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is completely separate from the County of Los Angeles, the City of Los Angeles and the other 87 cities in L.A. County.
It is quite unlikely, but you never know if you could put a parking and ticket deal together. I bet you and Mike could pull it off!
It is certain that the new $52 pass will go into effect on January 01, 2004. But other cities are charging a lot more for the monthly passes.
®-Þ-®-Þ-®-Þ-®
John
User ID: 9510053 Mar 16th 10:51 PM
Heh heh. Mike and I don't work for the MTA, nor are we elected officials of the city or the county. I would expect the MTA, Mayor Hahn, the City Council, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to be working on a plan to raise parking fees and tickets. It will be especially interesting to see if Mayor Hahn will try to get this done, since, as mayor, transportation should be one of his main priorities.
Well, if it does, Mike and I will still buy Monthly Bus Passes. I wonder how many others will.
PaulC
User ID: 9885643 Mar 17th 1:47 AM
I'll keep buying monthly passes also, and I think so will most people. Because for a person like myself, its just more economical to do so considering how often I take the bus each month.
Paul
Roberto
User ID: 9161143 Mar 17th 2:07 AM
For me it's still not worth it until the Gold Line is in place ... my preferences are train, car, bus ... in that order. I hate taking the buses so much that right now I only take rail when my itinerary puts me close enough to Norwalk to make it worth driving there to take the trains to Hollywood. Right now that's about 3 times a week, but when the Gold Line opens, it'll be practically every day.
Marty
User ID: 0798784 Mar 17th 2:18 AM
My preferences are train, car, bike, foot, boat, skateboard, scooter, pogo-stick, stilts, unicycle, hands, and then tongue - in that order. Bus is not on my list.
Cliffj
User ID: 0067194 Mar 17th 11:12 PM
AHhahhahahahahaha Marty!
ken
User ID: 9739563 Dec 10th 11:36 AM
Pelosi secures federal money for S.F. subway
Light rail to go from ballpark to Chinatown
Edward Epstein, Chronicle Washington Bureau Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Washington -- The Municipal Railway stands to reap a windfall that could total more than $500 million for its planned Central Subway, thanks to Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who got a special provision for San Francisco inserted into the $820 billion appropriations bill the House passed this week.
The language in the omnibus spending bill says that the $340 million or so of its own money that the city has spent on the Third Street light rail line will count toward the city's matching share of its planned second phase, a $764 million subway, an extension of the new line, that would run from around Pacific Bell Park under Third and Stockton Streets to Clay Street in Chinatown.
"It's fantastic news,'' said Jose Cisneros, Muni's deputy general manager for capital planning. "If we didn't get this money, we would have a much greater challenge building the Central Subway. We would have to use more local money.''
"She's been very interested in the project,'' Cisneros said of Pelosi.
In a statement, Pelosi said, "This funding will benefit San Francisco and the entire Bay Area by supporting successful programs and initiating promising projects.''
Muni officials say the provision reverses a Federal Transit Administration ruling that separated the two projects for funding purposes. It could mean that the federal government will pay more than $500 million for the subway, according to Muni's calculations. Muni plans to open the subway in 2011.
The money would be doled out over several years, as work progresses, much as annual federal appropriations helped pay for the new BART extension to San Francisco International Airport. The current federal transportation appropriation bill includes $100 million to pay for the last round of work on the BART line to SFO.
But whereas Pelosi and Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, had to fight annual battles in the SFO project's early years to ensure continued funding, Pelosi's clout as House Democratic minority leader indicates clearer sailing for the Central Subway funding.
Muni and the federal government still have to negotiate what's called a "full funding grant agreement'' to put the project in line for its annual share of funds, but with Pelosi's language in the bill, Muni has a big leg up on such an accord.
Pelosi inserted the language changing the funding formula into the bill during a House-Senate conference through a process called an earmark, in which funding language is added without committee hearings or floor debate. The Democratic leader also got $9 million included in the bill for the current fiscal year to help Muni pay for preliminary engineering on the planned five- station subway.
The conference committee report can't be amended in either House without requiring both houses to vote on the entire legislation again.
The money still has a big hurdle to clear in Congress, because the Senate on Tuesday delayed consideration of the appropriations bill until Jan. 20. But passage still seems likely.
Work on the project is well underway on the Third Street light rail line, which runs from Fourth and King streets near the Caltrain terminal to a station near Bayshore Boulevard. The 5.4-mile surface line is due to open in late 2005.
The city's share of both the Third Street line and the Central Subway comes out of the half-cent local sales tax for transportation projects that San Francisco voters decided to renew last month.
Muni had anticipated that it would fight for and win federal funds for the new subway. So the prospect of getting the money means the system can continue long-range planning that includes a possible extension of the Central Subway to North Beach and Fisherman's Wharf and construction of a light rail line on the Geary corridor to replace the diesel buses on the 38-Geary line.
Pelosi also got $2.5 million for road work needed for the Third Street line.
User ID: 8854703 Mar 16th 9:30 PM
San Francisco Business Times: Friday, Feb 14, 2003
Muni shortfall lurches toward $50M by Eric Young, Staff Writer
Companies: Municipal Railway & Transit Authority-San Francisco CA NAICS:485111 NAICS:926120
Copyright American City Business Journals
Friday, February 14, 2003
Managers of the Bay Area's biggest transit system are trying to whittle down a burgeoning budget deficit.
San Francisco's Municipal Railway said its shortfall for the fiscal year starting July 1 has mushroomed to $50 million from $38 million. The cause for the widening gap: state budget adjustments that likely will direct less money to San Francisco transit-related funds.
Given the fluid status of California's budget, the MUNI gap has the potential to grow even bigger.
"It's really still a moving target," said Maggie Lynch, spokeswoman for MUNI, which handles 236 million passenger boardings annually.
MUNI isn't alone with its money woes. Other large Bay Area transit operators, including BART, Santa Clara County VTA and AC Transit, are all facing budget gaps due to slips in ridership, dips in sales tax revenue or state funding cutbacks.
"All the big players are feeling it," said Randy Rentschler, spokesman for the Bay Area Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
MUNI, to help close its gap, has rolled out several steps in recent months. MUNI enforcement officers have been writing tickets to passengers who hop aboard without paying.
The transit system also has eliminated overtime pay, banned many purchases and plans to sell its fleet of cars. MUNI is discussing the possibility of laying off 30 to 50 from its administrative staff of 500. A labor union representative could not be reached for comment.
The biggest potential impact on riders is the proposed 25 percent fare increase that would put adult fares at $1.25. The fare increase, the first since 1992, would raise an additional $15 million annually, according to MUNI estimates.
The proposal, which is being discussed in public comment sessions this month, needs approval first by the city's Municipal Transportation Agency board and then the city's Board of Supervisors.
MUNI would like the hike to go into effect in July. Some residents have spoken out against a fare increase, arguing that it hurts the poor and anyone on a fixed income.
Meanwhile, some in the business community, including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, support the idea, saying it helps the transit system keep up with inflationary pressures.
Among the MUNI riders who support the proposal are Andrew Sullivan, chairman of Rescue MUNI, a citizen's watchdog group. Sullivan is urging the Department of Parking and Traffic to increase parking fees and fines by 25 percent as well.
MUNI derives about one quarter of its operating revenue from parking fees. A parking rate hike would help pump more money into MUNI and serve as a deterrent to drivers, Sullivan said.
The parking and traffic department is discussing rate hikes this month and likely will set new rates by March, a spokesperson said.
Þ--Þ--Þ
John
User ID: 9510053 Mar 16th 9:55 PM
Hey, there's an excellent idea: raise parking fees and tickets! Is the MTA pressing for that to be done in Los Angeles County?
Bart Reed
User ID: 8854703 Mar 16th 10:29 PM
Things are done a little differently in San Francisco. Since the City and County and Muni are one and the same in San Francisco, they put this package together many years ago.
In Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is completely separate from the County of Los Angeles, the City of Los Angeles and the other 87 cities in L.A. County.
It is quite unlikely, but you never know if you could put a parking and ticket deal together. I bet you and Mike could pull it off!
It is certain that the new $52 pass will go into effect on January 01, 2004. But other cities are charging a lot more for the monthly passes.
®-Þ-®-Þ-®-Þ-®
John
User ID: 9510053 Mar 16th 10:51 PM
It is quite unlikely, but you never know if you could put a parking and ticket deal together. I bet you and Mike could pull it off!
Heh heh. Mike and I don't work for the MTA, nor are we elected officials of the city or the county. I would expect the MTA, Mayor Hahn, the City Council, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to be working on a plan to raise parking fees and tickets. It will be especially interesting to see if Mayor Hahn will try to get this done, since, as mayor, transportation should be one of his main priorities.
It is certain that the new $52 pass will go into effect on January 01, 2004. But other cities are charging a lot more for the monthly passes.
Well, if it does, Mike and I will still buy Monthly Bus Passes. I wonder how many others will.
PaulC
User ID: 9885643 Mar 17th 1:47 AM
I'll keep buying monthly passes also, and I think so will most people. Because for a person like myself, its just more economical to do so considering how often I take the bus each month.
Paul
Roberto
User ID: 9161143 Mar 17th 2:07 AM
For me it's still not worth it until the Gold Line is in place ... my preferences are train, car, bus ... in that order. I hate taking the buses so much that right now I only take rail when my itinerary puts me close enough to Norwalk to make it worth driving there to take the trains to Hollywood. Right now that's about 3 times a week, but when the Gold Line opens, it'll be practically every day.
Marty
User ID: 0798784 Mar 17th 2:18 AM
My preferences are train, car, bike, foot, boat, skateboard, scooter, pogo-stick, stilts, unicycle, hands, and then tongue - in that order. Bus is not on my list.
Cliffj
User ID: 0067194 Mar 17th 11:12 PM
AHhahhahahahahaha Marty!
ken
User ID: 9739563 Dec 10th 11:36 AM
Pelosi secures federal money for S.F. subway
Light rail to go from ballpark to Chinatown
Edward Epstein, Chronicle Washington Bureau Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Washington -- The Municipal Railway stands to reap a windfall that could total more than $500 million for its planned Central Subway, thanks to Rep. Nancy Pelosi, who got a special provision for San Francisco inserted into the $820 billion appropriations bill the House passed this week.
The language in the omnibus spending bill says that the $340 million or so of its own money that the city has spent on the Third Street light rail line will count toward the city's matching share of its planned second phase, a $764 million subway, an extension of the new line, that would run from around Pacific Bell Park under Third and Stockton Streets to Clay Street in Chinatown.
"It's fantastic news,'' said Jose Cisneros, Muni's deputy general manager for capital planning. "If we didn't get this money, we would have a much greater challenge building the Central Subway. We would have to use more local money.''
"She's been very interested in the project,'' Cisneros said of Pelosi.
In a statement, Pelosi said, "This funding will benefit San Francisco and the entire Bay Area by supporting successful programs and initiating promising projects.''
Muni officials say the provision reverses a Federal Transit Administration ruling that separated the two projects for funding purposes. It could mean that the federal government will pay more than $500 million for the subway, according to Muni's calculations. Muni plans to open the subway in 2011.
The money would be doled out over several years, as work progresses, much as annual federal appropriations helped pay for the new BART extension to San Francisco International Airport. The current federal transportation appropriation bill includes $100 million to pay for the last round of work on the BART line to SFO.
But whereas Pelosi and Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, had to fight annual battles in the SFO project's early years to ensure continued funding, Pelosi's clout as House Democratic minority leader indicates clearer sailing for the Central Subway funding.
Muni and the federal government still have to negotiate what's called a "full funding grant agreement'' to put the project in line for its annual share of funds, but with Pelosi's language in the bill, Muni has a big leg up on such an accord.
Pelosi inserted the language changing the funding formula into the bill during a House-Senate conference through a process called an earmark, in which funding language is added without committee hearings or floor debate. The Democratic leader also got $9 million included in the bill for the current fiscal year to help Muni pay for preliminary engineering on the planned five- station subway.
The conference committee report can't be amended in either House without requiring both houses to vote on the entire legislation again.
The money still has a big hurdle to clear in Congress, because the Senate on Tuesday delayed consideration of the appropriations bill until Jan. 20. But passage still seems likely.
Work on the project is well underway on the Third Street light rail line, which runs from Fourth and King streets near the Caltrain terminal to a station near Bayshore Boulevard. The 5.4-mile surface line is due to open in late 2005.
The city's share of both the Third Street line and the Central Subway comes out of the half-cent local sales tax for transportation projects that San Francisco voters decided to renew last month.
Muni had anticipated that it would fight for and win federal funds for the new subway. So the prospect of getting the money means the system can continue long-range planning that includes a possible extension of the Central Subway to North Beach and Fisherman's Wharf and construction of a light rail line on the Geary corridor to replace the diesel buses on the 38-Geary line.
Pelosi also got $2.5 million for road work needed for the Third Street line.