Comments on: MTA Student MetroCard Petition

By: P

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:48:21 +0000

Letters should be sent to the State Legislature instead which failed to vote on Bloomberg’s plan to add millions of dollars each year to their budget and then passed a phony ‘bailout’ by taxing payrolls just before pulling $150 million dollars of state aid.

They are pathetic and destroying New York. Jay Walder is just trying to make the best of the crappy hand he’s been dealt.

By: Phil

Phil — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:03:21 +0000

The anger about this is palpable. Its a grotesque example of government bureaucracy at its worst. But I do notice that people will take out their anger on the closest target at hand which may be the conductor on a train or the toll booth operator or even a cleaner. Just remember that he or she are only working a job and lucky at that. The crisis is really the fault of the many from the MTA to the federal government. Even the mucky-mucks at the MTA aren’t entirely to blame.

http://gothamist.com/2009/12/17/who_to_blame_for_mtas_doomsday_plan.php

http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/16/why-is-the-mta-always-in-trouble/?partner=rss&emc=rss

By: no_slappz

no_slappz — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:19:44 +0000

The MTA Student Metrocard brouhaha is a red herring. Transportation for students is the responsibility of parents or the Department of Education. Not the MTA.

Funding for the yellow school buses that carry grade-school kids is covered by the DOE, which means the money ultimately comes from the pockets of those paying property taxes.

Since transportation is part of the fabric of education in NY City, the MTA bill for student transportation will eventually land in the offices of the DOE.

About 67 cents of every dollar collected by the MTA comes from fares. The other 33 cents comes from government subsidies. Thus, the bill for students must come from higher fares and/or larger subsidies.

Obviously the best choice is higher subsidies.

Actually a better, though unrealistic choice, is to get the MTA union members to accept a wage, pension and benefit CUT. Not counting on that, however.

The student MTA card is valuable. Two trips a day for 180 days of school at the current rate is $810. But the kids get three rides daily. Thus, the value of the pass can reach $1,215 this year.

The NY City DOE already spends over $16,000 per student per year. Looks like that number will jump when the new transportation expense is included.

By: carrie mclaren

carrie mclaren — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:25:55 +0000

Sorry, but this petition is stupid. Leave it to Marty Markowitz — a man who loves his car and considers Transportation Alternatives the enemy — to blame the MTA for cutbacks. Without more funding for public transit, the cuts have got to come somewhere.

This Daily News writer gets it right:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/12/17/2009-12-17_yes_shelly_you_owe_kids_a_fareless_trip_to_school.html