CTA Funding Follow Up
Yesterday I posted about Gov. Gonad's surprise, last minute change to the CTA funding bill to allow senior citizens to ride for free. The post was made in anger after months of no progress in Springfield on CTA (really RTA) funding. Now when it looks like we have a last minute deal to keep the buses and trains running Gov. Gonad pulls a fast one and wants the bill changed. And he does it after the legislature adjourned and most members have left town.
Eric Zorn over at the Trib didn't post on it until this morning and has a more thoughtful post on why the politics of the last minute change is wrong. I don't have anything to really expand on his three points (1. Seniors don't need the assistance any more than any other age group. 2. There are groups that need help more. 3. The idea has not been properly vetted through the democratic process) so go read it.
I don't have any particular problem with the idea in general, although Zorn's first point makes me think we don't need it. Still the free rides come at a cost and that cost seems up in the air. According to the Tribune this moring it is being forecasted to be between $11M and $19M per year. By reading this article it seems like the only costs they are considering are lost fares. But there is going to have to be some kind of infrastructure around this.
How will a bus driver or rail station attendant know a person is a senior? Are they going to check ids? Imagine your Grandma Edna digging through her suitcase sized purse looking for her dirvers license so she can board for free! That is certainly going to slow down boarding. A "senior transit card" could work but would only really be good for those that use public transit regularly. Those that are infrequent riders or from out of state aren't going to have any new "senior transit card".
Gov. Gonad says that he started thinking about this back around Thanksgiving. From what I've read and heard on local news radio it doesn't look like he's thought about it any further than as a way to garner more votes.
Eric Zorn over at the Trib didn't post on it until this morning and has a more thoughtful post on why the politics of the last minute change is wrong. I don't have anything to really expand on his three points (1. Seniors don't need the assistance any more than any other age group. 2. There are groups that need help more. 3. The idea has not been properly vetted through the democratic process) so go read it.
I don't have any particular problem with the idea in general, although Zorn's first point makes me think we don't need it. Still the free rides come at a cost and that cost seems up in the air. According to the Tribune this moring it is being forecasted to be between $11M and $19M per year. By reading this article it seems like the only costs they are considering are lost fares. But there is going to have to be some kind of infrastructure around this.
How will a bus driver or rail station attendant know a person is a senior? Are they going to check ids? Imagine your Grandma Edna digging through her suitcase sized purse looking for her dirvers license so she can board for free! That is certainly going to slow down boarding. A "senior transit card" could work but would only really be good for those that use public transit regularly. Those that are infrequent riders or from out of state aren't going to have any new "senior transit card".
Gov. Gonad says that he started thinking about this back around Thanksgiving. From what I've read and heard on local news radio it doesn't look like he's thought about it any further than as a way to garner more votes.
Labels: Blagojevich (D - Gonads), Chicago, Ill Politics
posted by LP Cards Fan at
12:02 PM
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