According to an article by Tom Stacy published in the Austin American Statesman: http://www.statesman.com/opinion/content/editorial/stories/2009/09/25/0925stacy_edit.html, we will see little improvement in bus service in the upcoming year even though capitol metro received funds specifically for improvements needed to be made.
What first interested me about this article is that it is about Austin’s most popular public transportation system capitol metro which in my personal experience has been pretty bad and in dire need of improvement. I feel that the author agrees with me. He jumps right in to it: apparently Capitol Metro was given $26.1 million in federal stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for the purchase of new buses, ect. However Capitol Metro’s budget plan plans to redistribute some of that money to balance out their budget. The original plan was to raise bus fares which would take effect January of 2010; however the board was asked to formulate a new plan which may still cause a raise in fares. The new plan is that Capitol Metro will use 2.6 million of the allotted money to balance its budget instead of using it to make repairs. This will likely cause the money to run out faster which could in turn lead to a raise in bus fares. As of now the bus charges 50 cents for a one way and $1.00 for a day pass. This amount is likely to increase under the new plan and we will see little improvement in the Capitol Metro transportation system. Here are my complaints with Capitol Metro: 1) there are not benches at every bus stop. This is a problem because the bus is never on time; it is either early or too late. To ensure catching the bus you must reach the stop at least 20 minutes in advance, if you’ve missed the bus you have to wait another hour usually until the next one comes. Just because one bus is early doesn’t mean the next one will be. If the bus is late than you’ve reached the stop too early and still have to wait the 20 minutes or longer depending on if the bus is on time. There should at least be a bench to sit on while you wait. 2) Not all benches are covered. Sitting out in the sun for a good amount of time spent waiting on the bus increases the risk for sun damage. 3) The bus is always late! People have jobs to get to and no one can afford to be late in this economy. 4) The buses stop running at 10 pm. If you happen to be out past that time and don’t have enough money for a cab or a reliable friend to give you a ride, you’re stranded. I would have liked to have heard the author’s opinion on the actual transportation that Capitol Metro provides but he focused mainly on the issue of how capitol metro plans to spend the money given from the ARRA. Although did get a feel from the title, Capitol Metro Runs Over Stimulus Cash, that he was angry about how Capitol Metro plans to spend this money, he did not directly voice how he felt in the article itself; this is a commentary. The article was mostly informational. The target audience would be people that ride the bus as they are the ones who will be directly affected. As someone who has ridden Capitol Metro buses I agree with the author’s general claim that Capitol Metro should spend its money on improving its transportation what the money was originally for and not on balancing their budget. I’d be willing to pay a little more for better service.