SnoVally Star just recently published an editorial, Get real, no more fees for buses, on July 20th. In it states, “The King County Council should not approve a new $20 car tab fee to support Metro or send it to the voters to decide.” Oh really, not even send it to the voters?? How can a local newspaper that directly serves a community that has been begging for more bus service be so irresponsible to the people it supposedly serves to inform? It also states, “The Valley will have some service reductions without the fee, but no lines will be cut.” You got that right and it is only just the beginning. Service on the #209 and #214 will be reduced and I will almost guarantee that there will be further reductions on these two routes and also on the #215 if some additional revenue is not secured.
The editorial touts that Metro should get efficient, tighten its belt, do what it can with what is has, and the problem lies in the fact that its main source of revenue is from the sales tax! Metro has gotten more efficient on the backs of its drivers. I should know, I am one! Our schedules have become so tight (efficient) that they are next to impossible to be kept in a safe manner. Our rest breaks are at a minimum, rest room breaks have to be well planned, accidents are on the increase, system on time performance is plunging, and passenger complaints are on the rise. Some anti transit foes even want to reduce driver wages! I would like to see any of them do my job for a month and see if they still agree with that assessment! I just cannot understand the attack on the middle class wage earners because that is what is the foundation of this country! Drivers have made enough concessions in the last contract and it is now time for Metro and mainly the King County Council to seek out more stable sources of future revenue that will maintain and increase service and performance of the transit system.
I have always touted a 3-2-1 fare structure plan (this is my own idea). Adults would pay $3, Youth $2, and Seniors $1, all day with no zones or no or off-peak. The Ride Free Area in downtown Seattle would be eliminated and transfers would still be issued as is. Fare enforcement would be strictly adhered to, no fare no ride period! This would generate vast amounts of revenue without implementing the car tab fee but I doubt anyone in the council would ever even consider it. Right now I have to be in favor of this TEMPORARY car tab fee. It should go into effect immediately and expire in two years but Metro and the Council MUST implement the following: eliminate the downtown ride free area, eliminate all paper transfers, and make adult fares at the peak hour rate of $2.50/3.00 with no off-peak structure, and explore new revenue sources other than their portion of the sales tax. This compromise must be met to implement the car tab fee.
Additional taxes right now are not a welcome sight. As the editorial stated, we in the Valley are already paying a fee to the city of Snoqualmie for transportation improvements, but we the citizens did not even get a chance to vote on it, it was just decided for us. Put this car tab fee to the voters of King County and let them decide for themselves. Why start cutting service when ridership is on the increase? Finally, the editorial states, “Many Valley residents depend on the bus. There is no doubt that sharing a ride is the wave of the future. But reality also says that bus service will never be accessible to all. Now is a good time to tighten the system.” To that, be carefull what you wish for. Tightening the system means tightening the web of service. Where does the cities of North Bend and Snoqualmie sit in that web? I have been a driver for 16 years and saw what it took to get the level of service the Valley has and in this “tightening”, it will be the first to go! My subscription to the Seattle Times has now been cancelled for their similar opinion, and I will no longer support the SnoValley Star either!
The Snoqualmie Joe Podcast & Blog 