Transit Budget Hangs in Balance
By Frank Juliano, Connecticut Post, Bridgeport
Apr. 4–MILFORD — Henry Jadach, the Milford Transit District director, has been down this road before.
On one hand, there is a proposal in the Legislature to spend $275 million over several years on bus service statewide that would significantly improve local service and the popular Coastal Link along Route 1.
On the other hand, there is Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s proposed budget, which if passed unchanged would likely mean cuts in bus service, Jadach said Tuesday.
“We’re hopeful” that the recommendations of the Transit for Connecticut Coalition study “will get enacted,” he said, noting that Milford Transit is part of the coalition. “Subsidies for bus and rail service in the state have been stagnant for some time.”
House Bill 6366, which adopts the recommendations of the Transit for Connecticut study, would provide $215 million for new equipment and $64 million for operational improvements, spread over five years.
Among the items affecting Milford are expanded service on the Coastal Link, which connects the Westfield Connecticut Post mall here with downtown Norwalk by following Route 1, Jadach said.
New vehicles for Milford Transit’s six-bus fleet, a global-positioning satellite system for all public transit buses and a pre-paid fare card system similar to New York City’s Metro Card are also part of the proposed bill.
State Rep. Paul Davis, D-West Haven, who serves on the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, said the committee has approved the bill and forwarded it to the Appropriations Committee.
“We’d like to see an expansion of bus service all along the route because it is relied upon by many people who use it to reach entry-level jobs,” said Davis, whose district includes part of Milford.
The Coastal Link now operates every 20 minutes until 11 p.m. and has about 125,000 riders a month who pay a $1.25 for the trip, officials said. Few ride it for the entire length, but even one segment, if it crosses into another transit district, would have previously required a transfer, a wait and possibly even an additional fare, Jadach said.
The seamless connectivity is one big advantage to the service, agreed Tom Ivers, the city’s fair housing officer. “Any expansion to public transit that is well-conceived is a wonderful thing, and can take pressure off I-95,” he said.
Frank Juliano, Milford bureau chief, can be reached at 878-2130.
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Copyright (c) 2007, Connecticut Post, Bridgeport
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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