MCAT Will Seek Fare Hikes

By Duane Marsteller, The Bradenton Herald, Fla.

Dec. 28–MANATEE — More people are riding Manatee County Area Transit’s buses and trolleys, but property-tax reform and the agency’s growing red ink soon could result in higher fares.

MCAT’s top official said Thursday he plans again to propose several fare increases early next year. Bus fares would rise by up to 25 percent, and riders would begin paying for transfers under the proposal. The proposal mirrors one offered in July with one major exception: The Anna Maria Island trolley would remain a free ride.

But that could change depending on the outcome of a Jan. 29 tax-cut referendum, said Ralf Heseler, the county’s transit manager, who said he likely will resubmit the proposal to county commissioners in February.

“They might consider putting a fare on the trolley if money gets tighter,” he said of commissioners. “It’s hard to say right now.”

But Commissioner Carol Whitmore said she would oppose it, citing surveys that show the majority of trolley riders use it to get to and from work.

“I wouldn’t support any increase in fares because transit has never, ever supported itself, and it’s going to adversely affect those who need it the most, especially in this economy,” said Whitmore, who lives in Holmes Beach.

When Heseler first proposed charging for trolley rides, commissioners rejected the idea. They also deferred a decision on the proposed bus fare increases.

But operating costs continue to outpace revenue despite record ridership, according to data MCAT published recently.

MCAT’s fixed-route and trolley systems carried almost 1.7 million passengers in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, a 23 percent jump from the previous year’s 1.3 million riders.

“That’s really quite encouraging,” said Heseler, who attributed much of the increase to more frequent service on a Palmetto-Sarasota route, an extension of another route and more trolley riders in a red tide-free year.

Yet fares and other operating revenue covered just 9.4 percent of operating costs, which rose faster primarily because of escalating fuel prices. That’s down from the previous year’s 9.6 percent and continued a long-term trend. State and federal grants, plus a subsidy from the county, covered the rest.

The county already has taken several cost-cutting steps, primarily its Handy Bus system that provides on-demand service to senior citizens, the disabled and others who have no other access to transportation. Its ridership plunged by more than half in the last fiscal year — to 47,000 from the previous year’s 100,000 — primarily because of the elimination of non-essential trips and higher prices, Heseler said.

If approved, the bus fare increases won’t be the only changes for MCAT in 2008. The agency also plans to begin serving the Colony Cove community in Ellenton in February and hopes to complete two new transfer stations next December, Heseler said.

Duane Marsteller, transportation and growth/development reporter, can be reached at 745-7080, ext. 2630.

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