Comments on: Mind the Gap: MBTA To Hike Fares, Leave Passengers Behind http://www.clf.org/blog/massachusetts/mind-the-gap-mbta-to-hike-fares-leave-passengers-behind/ For a thriving New England Tue, 17 Sep 2013 23:46:02 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.6.1 By: Emily Long http://www.clf.org/blog/massachusetts/mind-the-gap-mbta-to-hike-fares-leave-passengers-behind/#comment-2064 Emily Long Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:44:58 +0000 http://www.clf.org/?p=6976#comment-2064 Thanks for your comment, Wayne. I’m glad you understand the importance of a good public transit system. This message needs to heard loud and clear: whether you take the T or not, you benefit from a good transit system. More people choosing to use public transit to get to work means fewer people driving and less traffic congestion. Fewer people driving also means fewer pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions thus better air quality for all. If everyone benefits from the T then we need to share the burden among everyone, not just among transit users. Fare increase and service cuts are but band-aid fixes. T4MA is asking the legislature and administration to identify revenue sources to reduce the T’s deficits and develop adequate funding for years to come so we do not have this conversation again next year. The Dukakis Center and CLF released a report last year that identifies a list of these potential revenue sources.

Unfortunately, transit service in the Boston area is not comparable to those in other cities. New York City, Philadelphia, and Chicago have train service throughout the night (at least some) and D.C. trains stop at 3am on the weekends. Even San Francisco has a form of a “Night Owl” bus service that Boston cut in 2005. Boston’s last train leaves at 12:45am. So yes, residents in Boston do pay less for transit but considering what they get for it, it should cost less.

]]> By: Wayne http://www.clf.org/blog/massachusetts/mind-the-gap-mbta-to-hike-fares-leave-passengers-behind/#comment-2034 Wayne Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:59:55 +0000 http://www.clf.org/?p=6976#comment-2034 We should feel lucky comparing to other cities in which people are paying much higher for the same service. It also must be fair to our future users and all tax payers in MA no matter who take T or not, a good core service of T should be maintained. If money could come from other resource other than fare increase and operation saving, please do not hesitate to share. Every one would appreciate it.

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