Not "Chicken Little" To Question Bus Fare Increase

Our St. Augustine Record has a misguided editorial calling people questioning the bus fare increase CHICKEN LITTLES?
To whom does it think it's talking?
No cost of living increase for Social Security this year.
Stagnant wages.
Low-paying jobs.
High rent.
High priced groceries.
Lousy bus service.
Poor routes.
Buses that are often late.
No bus service on Sundays.
Higher prices for our Council on Aging "Sunshine" busses?
Thanks to citizen Thomas F. Reynolds, Jr. for raising the issue at County Commission.
No thanks to the St. Augustine Record for (once again) insulting people engaged in First Amendment protected activity.
And our St. Augustine Record has an energumen editorial calling people questioning the bus fare increase CHICKEN LITTLES?
How gauche, louche, condescending and insulting to public participation.
Sounds the WRECKord won't do policy research and doesn't give a hoot in hell about poor and working people.
Are you out of your cotton-picking mind, St. Augustine Record?
To whom do y'all think you-re squawking?



Editorial: Sunshine Bus delivers more than a bargain
Posted: January 5, 2016 - 8:43pm | Updated: January 6, 2016 - 12:24am

The Sunshine Bus Company has raised its rates. There are a few Chicken Littles out there crying that the sky is falling, but the truth is much more Shakespearean theater than folk tale — fact is, it’s much ado about nothing.

To put it simply, the Sunshine Bus is the best deal around in terms of bang for the local tax dollar. We don’t usually compare the federal and state dollars because that’s a pot seemingly further away, but just as dependent upon our tax dollars.

Any way you slice it, riders of the Sunshine Bus are getting a lot more than they’re paying for, and that’s not about to end.

The federal and state dollars add up to $2.8 million. County money has been a constant $276,000 for nearly a decade. And that money is a match for a larger pot, which leverages resident dollars to the tune of 10 to one.

It’s interesting — and completely coincidental — that the county ante this year was nearly equal to the number of customer trips made by the bus company in 2015 — 277,000. That’s a pretty good return on investment for the county. “We’re so fortunate that the county participates to the full extent (of the match),” said Becky Yanni, who heads the Council on Aging, which runs the bus operations.

That’s not 277,000 riders.

That number is far fewer.

That’s because so many customers ride the heck out of the buses.

And that’s because so many need to.

The convenience of the bus is a selling point, but the necessity of it closes the deal locally.

Students ride it to school when they have no other way. Seniors ride it to doctor appointments. Moms ride it to grocery stores. Veterans ride it to their clinic. The county health and human services complex is a popular stop for so many.

The Sunshine Bus Company currently recoups about 11 cents on the dollar from customer fares toward its total operating expense. Most of the state, we’re told, is about double that.

The price hike is minimal and only applies to the monthly pass, which will go from $25 to $30 for the all-you-can-ride buffet. A big chunk of the monthly pass holders are over 60, students and the disabled. Their pass is half price, making the increase $2.50.

And it is worth noting that the Sunshine Bus is the only game in town set up to transport the disabled regularly and safely.

Yanni says the increase is needed primarily in order to plan expanded routes and increase pickup times — make the service better.

From from where we sit, “better” is a wonderful goal — but think it represents icing on the cake of the “best” thing going for those who depend upon mobility and a measure of independence and self-respect without the means to achieve it otherwise.