California (must be) Dreaming
Posted by Fred Jandt
Editor, Mass Transit magazine
It’s not often when the mercury drops below the 0 on my thermometer that I am glad I’m living in the Midwest and not sitting on California’s sunny shores, but this is one of those times. As I write this the state government seems set on watching the Rome back lot burn while fiddling around finding out how to pass a budget.
Currently the Golden State is in turmoil as its political leaders let political rivalries between Republicans and Democrats keep them from agreeing on how to best fund the state. Facing a massive $41 billion budget deficit, the laundry list of ways to make money is growing. Here is a sample:
- Cutting about $150 million in funding to public transit
- Shutting down $1.8 billion in road construction projects
- Send out IOUs instead of tax refunds this year
- Give state workers two days “off†a month
- Shorten the school year
What do all of these ideas have in common? They are all going to cost someone their job. The shutting down of road construction projects alone has the potential to put tens of thousands of construction workers out of work.
Let’s focus on transit for a bit here, though. Transit is the ultimate Catch-22 in this whole scenario. As gas prices went up and the economy went down, ridership boomed. At the same time, sales tax revenues shrank and state funding disappeared, forcing those same agencies with an overabundance of riders to reduce or cut service entirely. This isn’t anything new; it’s happening all over the country.
But in California — home to the American got to have a car dream — people aren’t just throwing their support behind transit with their feet, they’re doing it with their ballots. Of the six ballot initiatives, five of them passed and the one remaining had a majority (63%), but not enough to pass it.
It’s high time transportation — roads and transit — stopped getting the shaft when it comes to budget balancing while the two major parties are fighting one another. Transit creates jobs, bolstering a lagging economy and sparks growth, generating more money overall.
Thanks for reading the MT Position updated every Friday,
Fred
fred.jandt@cygnusb2b.com
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January 16th, 2009 at 3:59 pm
California has provided a safe haven for millions of illegal aliens and provided services for them instead of dealing with the legal issues that need to be addressed. While the feds have not held up their end either, California shoulders much of the blame here. Taking on this huge economic burden is something they need to reverse and I resent the fact that they will come to all of the rest of us looking for money to bail them out. There is a high price associated with their liberal stance and California needs to deal with it, not the rest of us.
January 20th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Shortening the school year definitely should not be part of the solution. We’re already lagging in test scores and general knowledge. Let’s give our kids a future by educating them and modeling the type of behavior that will instill the values of honesty, hard work and commitment in them. Without this, they and future generations will be lost. Improvements to infrastructure and transit, alternate energy solutions, a healthier environment — we can’t arrive at these without an educated work force. I don’t know where the money will come from (like other Californians, I’m expecting an IOU), but please don’t take it from school budgets.
January 22nd, 2009 at 3:07 pm
There will be money for mass transit coming soon, if Obama is not short-sighted enough to devote all of the money to “bridges and roads.” I have been told, on good authority, that Metrolink will expand its service into Orange County, have its own raised right-of-way, and eventually run every half-hour. Having discovered that I can use mass transit to get to work (from Culver City on the westside to Orange in Orange County), I can’t wait to see this happen. Is there an mass transit advocacy group that one can join?