[PRCo] Re: Pittsburgh - think tank blasts possible new transit taxes

[Joshua Dunfield]

Bill Robb wrote:
> What you fail to realize is that subsidies did not exist before the early 70s.

So what?  Cities weren't heavily dependent on cars once, either.
The mere fact that it was once possible for urban transit to have operational
self-sufficiency (a phrase from a slightly different context...) is no reason
to demand that it do so today.

Really, why should urban mass transit make money?  Should we require that police
departments break even (operationally)?  Should they charge user fees?

> Subsidized transit service is
> not available to the majority only an (largely) urban minority.

Looks like a pretty big minority.  Pennsylvania has 12 million people.  The SEPTA
region has 3.8 million people.  Allegheny County (PAT goes outside the county a
bit, but not enough to matter) has 1.3 million people.  That's close to half
already and I haven't started in on Harrisburg, Altoona, etc.

[...]
> The concept of service to
>  all within a community is now close to be dropped by several places, notably San Jose
>  and Toronto.

I knew the TTC was going through a budget snafu, but I didn't know they
were going through an existential crisis.  The "Transit City" plans don't
look like an existential crisis to me.

[...]
> Subsidies are evil.  They are what is
>  killing transit.

If transit is dying, why is ridership increasing?

-j.