Still frustrated about bus service cuts

The city is expected to announce what changes are to be made to the bus system on Thursday. Bing has now backed away from the idea of ceasing all service from 6pm Saturday until Monday morning. An article in Workers World claims this as victory of the masses (Mass outrage stops Detroit bus cuts). I am cynical. I wonder if the plan all along was to rile people up about impossible to survive cuts and then offer us less severe cuts that we will more easily accept.

While Bing demands that Council stop "playing politics" and support the cuts to the system, he has yet to provide them with the ridership data used to determine which routes will be reduced. Further his bolstering about the DDOT not receiving complaints when 50 drivers called out (the Saturday after 113 layoffs were supposed to take effect) was the most ridiculous political braying. If I called DDOT every time a bus was late or did not show up, they would certainly use up all my day-time cell phone minutes. I have OFTEN waited 40 minutes for a Hamilton bus to arrive in the afternoon. The only time I have called to complain about waiting for a bus was when I waited over two hours in below freezing temperatures at night for one bus that may have come early and a second bus definitely never showed up. I think I got home at 1am that time. So, yeah, I'm probably not calling if a bus is late on a Saturday when the whether is good. DDOT riders have very low expectations at this point.

The article Dread builds for Detroiters as decision looms on bus cuts lays out why the bus system is a core service of the city. It lists such statistics as an estimated 20% of Detroit households without vehicles and the city's unemployment and poverty rates. It also gives voice to some individuals who use the bus service and need it to go about their daily lives. Ironically enough, the picture used with the story is taken at the brand new Rosa Parks Transit Center.

Once more, alternatives to cutting bus service:
1. use smaller coaches on less used routes
2. increase fares
3. take advantage of stimulus money
* update the fleet to be more efficient, to create less pollution, and use less fuel
4. partner with SMART to effectively handle the region's transportation needs
5. increase rates on parking meters
6. increase cost of parking tickets