Higher transit fares don't sit well with riders

On the last day of hearings on a proposed 25-cent bus and train fare increase, the Metropolitan Council chamber had become an echo chamber.

At least 20 people in a row came forward with the same theme: You've heard this from everyone who spoke before me, but raising fares is a bad idea.

Opponents of the increase, which would go into effect Oct. 1, include Minneapolis' mayor, social service providers, advocates for greener living and everyday bus riders.

Though they have suggestions on other ways to get the money, they appear unlikely to change the outcome of the Met Council's planned vote on Aug. 13: a fare increase that would provide $7 million toward filling a $15 million deficit in the transit budget.

A second increase of 50 cents would be a possibility next year.

"Twenty-five cents is a big jump when you're paying $1.50 per ride," said Carol Kist, who gets to work in St. Paul on the bus. "If I have to pay 50 cents more a day to go 6 miles to work, it's going to be cheaper for me to drive."

At the hearing Tuesday, Kist and other opponents of the increase questioned the wisdom of raising fares at a time when public transit ridership in the metro area is at an all-time high, warning that the extra cost would especially burden homeless, disabled and low-income residents.

Waiting for the light rail Tuesday, Minneapolis resident Quincy Thomas is among those who would be most affected by the increased fares.

Thomas, who lives in a group home for people with mental illness, was on his way to apply for an apartment at Riverside Plaza.

"It's a nice transit system, but I think there shouldn't be a rate increase," he said.

Local social service providers said raising fares should be a last resort.

"One of the biggest challenges [the homeless] have is to get good work and transportation to their work," said Terence Goudy, a co-founder of Homeless against Homelessness.

"I really feel like there should be another way to find this money."

There are few options, said Met Council Public Affairs Director Steve Dornfeld. The last time the council raised fares, in 2005, diesel fuel was $1.59 per gallon.

It now costs more than twice that amount.

Falling car sales have also resulted in less money for mass transit, because transit gets most of its state revenue from the motor vehicle sales tax.

One option is leaning more heavily on the Met Council's $20 million contingency fund until the state Legislature could vote to provide more funding, a possibility recommended by Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, as well as advocacy group Transit for Livable Communities.

Increasing fares will drive away riders, even with gas prices soaring, Rybak said.

"The last tough choice we should make is to raise bus fares at a time when more people than ever are considering switching to mass transit," he said.

But the contingency fund is already being used to cover some of the budget deficit, and the council is reluctant to dip deeper.

"Revenues fluctuate from month to month, so you need to keep a little extra in your checking account because you don't know how much your paycheck is going to be from the state," Dornfeld said.

The state has had tight budgets, as well, so more funding from the Legislature is not a guarantee, he added.

For St. Paul transit rider John Garcia, who gave up his car in favor of a bicycle and the bus last year, transit is an area where the Legislature's funding can do "the most good with a pittance."

"The price doesn't bother me," he said of the potential increase. "But the trouble is it excludes people who really need it."

The legislature would probably support increased funding for public transit, said state Sen. Scott Dibble, DFL-Minneapolis, a member of the Transportation Finance Subcommittee.

"The public will have to make its case and legislators who care about this will have to make a case," Dibble said.

"But budgeting is a function of values and priorities, and it's clearly a huge priority politically."

Libby Nelson • 612-673-4758