Saturday, March 1, 2008

WRT Wants to Cut More Buses

Plan to save $510,000 kills 2 routes, alters 6

By Lee Hammel TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
lhammel@telegram.com

Worcester - The Worcester Regional Transit Authority has proposed more cuts in bus service to close a budget deficit.

The cuts, which will be voted upon by the WRTA Advisory Board on April 17, would eliminate, merge and modify several bus routes. They make up about 4 percent of service, compared with the 20 percent to 25 percent in service cuts proposed in October by WRTA Administrator Stephen F. O’Neil but not adopted by the Advisory Board.

Although the proposed reductions come on top of several service cuts already approved for July 1, Mr. O’Neil said they do not put the authority on a “death spiral” of less service resulting in fewer riders and leading to even more cuts. That is because the service changes are “creative and innovative,” the routes involved are among the least used in the WRTA system, and they will be partly replaced with a new type of service called “flex routes.”

The reductions, which were proposed last week, would eliminate Route 9 and Route 21 on the west side and in northern Worcester and modify Route 10 and Route 25 to College Hill and Auburn Mall, Route 15 and Route 18 to Lincoln Park Towers and Shrewsbury, Route 3 to Mill Pond apartments and Route 4 to Crompton Park.

The WRTA is working on maps of the exact changes.

The proposed changes would be in addition to changes already approved that will eliminate Route 32 and Route 110 to Clinton, Holden and West Boylston. The Advisory Board also has already approved eliminating bus service on six holidays — New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, July Fourth, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas — but will keep service on Easter.

Under the new plan, the authority would introduce a flex route in the area of the eliminated Routes 9 and 21. Under that concept, a bus will deviate as much as a quarter mile from the route to pick up any caller who gives the WRTA at least two hours notice.

The authority will use its 20-passenger buses for the flex route rather than its 35- or 40-passenger coaches.

After Local 22 Amalgamated Transit Union worked with management and the WRTA to get a promise of more money from the state Legislature, cutting service rather than borrowing money “is a slap in the face to all of us,” union business agent Christopher W. Bruce said. He said the transit authority in Springfield did that while waiting for the state Legislature to come through with funding.

“I really believe we should be going in the opposite direction: adding service and discouraging parking in the downtown area, where it’s too congested,” Mr. Bruce said.

He predicted that the flex route will be a “major failure” because, he said, RTA Transit Services — WRTA’s contractor — has not thought out how the wishes of callers will be conveyed to the bus drivers, nor has the contractor bargained over it.

Mr. O’Neil replied, “If the union has a better idea and more innovative and creative ways of providing service, then it’s up to them to share those ideas with management.”

Because of a hiring freeze begun in October and ending this week, John F. Carney, RTA Transit Services general manager, said a reduction in positions needed to close the budget deficit will be accomplished by attrition, not layoffs. He said he could not say how many positions would go, but Mr. Bruce estimated 10.

The authority also will reduce the number of elder shopper vans from six a day to three. Mr. Carney said RTA will be able to provide service to just as many elders with the reduced number, although it will reduce the latitude elders will have in choosing their van.

The plan proposed by Mr. O’Neil and RTA Transit Services also would eliminate “school extra” buses, which are buses that follow scheduled buses past schools at school closing times to help with the extra passenger loads at those times.

The plan is designed to save $510,000 to finish eliminating what started as an approximately $1.2 million budget deficit projected for fiscal 2009. The cuts voted on Jan. 31 will save $167,000, according to Thomas J. Coyne, WRTA finance director.

The authority also will save $400,000 when it stops financing Assabet Valley Council on Aging Transportation Co. On July 1, the year-old MetroWest Regional Transit Authority will assume responsibility for service to Marlboro and Southboro.

WRTA will get another $200,000 in savings that will not come from transportation services, Mr. Coyne said.

The WRTA will hold three public hearings during March in Worcester on the newly proposed cuts during March, Mr. O’Neil said.

© 2008 2008 Worcester Telegram & Gazette Corp.