Demand Action on MTA Budget Failures

Please excuse this brief public service announcement.  It’s time the MTA officials get off their asses and solve the MTA budget crisis.  It has been sitting around not getting fixed for way too long.

Your readers have already read all about MTA’s budget meltdown and the possibility of drastic fare hikes accompanied by severe cuts to bus and train service.  But have they heard what they can do about it?

On November 19th, the Campaign for New York’s Future is organizing Keep New York Moving Day. We’ll have volunteers at subway stations throughout the city, asking commuters to sign giant postcards to local leaders, telling them that now’s the time to invest in transit.

We need your help getting everyone’s attention, so our decision makers take action and save New York from our transportation crisis. Unless our leaders take immediate action, the MTA’s severe budget shortfall could soon lead to fewer trains, cuts to bus service, and double-digit fare hikes.

You and your readers can click here to find out what they can do to help Keep New York Moving and send a message urging our leaders to take action at www.keepnewyorkmoving.org. We’ll deliver the signatures on November 20th, when the MTA is holding a decisive meeting about the transit system’s desperate financial crisis.

Please feel free to also write with any questions or concerns,

Matt Derby,

On behalf of The Campaign for New York’s Future

MTA: “Fellas…where’d that $3 billion go?”

That’s what the MTA is saying these days when they look at the capital improvement budget.  There’s a gaping $3 billion hole smack in the middle of the budget responsible for general repairs and maintenance of the transit system.

Yep.  $3 Billion.  Oops.

“The [CAPITAL] program has some shortfalls in it,” Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Elliot Sander said at an agency board meeting. [AMNY]

Uhhh yeah, “shortfall” is an understatement.

While mega-projects like the Second Avenue subway are not affected, the “nitty-gritty” work of station repairs and upgrades, signal replacements, or purchase of new cars could suffer, said MTA spokesman Jeremy Soffin. {AMNY]

You know, just the minor things like repairs, and track signals.  And really, how badly do we really need working brakes?

Spitzer Screws Hookers and Transit System

Just when you thought some serious decisions were finally going to be made in Albany about all things transportation in NYC, Spitzer had to get caught with his pants down.

Clearly, these developments throw some major wrenches in plans for things like congestion pricing and transit related budget issues. While the pols in Albany get their panties untwisted, we’ll just have to wait around.

Regardless of your opinion of Spitzer as a leader, at least some decisions were being made. Good or bad…at least once they were decided, we could all move on to the next thing.

That’s the most frustrating thing about politics…all the waiting and suspense.

For example, the fare hike. Personally, as a monthly card holder, I feel it was a little excessive. Needed perhaps, but a bit much. However, I’m just glad it is done! At least I know for the next year or two, the price will be the price. I can move on with my life.

Congestion pricing, well now what? If your for it or against it, wouldn’t you just rather have a final decision made so we could all move on.

I’ve got my fingers crossed that Patterson can get the momentum moving again.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry