Erika Smith, IndyGo Reporter

It seems like every time I see an article in the Star penned by Erika Smith, it shills for IndyGo or light rail, which I suppose would become an extension of IndyGo. It makes me wonder: Is she on the Star's payroll, or on IndyGo's? Or, is there a difference?

In Smith's latest ad, er, column, she points out something I point out about IndyGo with regularity- the combination of taxes and fares fails to cover the operating budget.

Another year, another shortfall.

This is IndyGo's story.

(Wait! Wait! Let's put on our surprised faces. Ready? OK, cool.)

This time around, the transit agency says it expects its budget to come up $6.4 million short in 2012. That's twice as big as the hole that IndyGo predicted and narrowly skirted last year.

Without an infusion of cash, possibly from a tax increase, fares could go up, bus routes could be eliminated and the frequency of service might be reduced.

Smith then does two things I don't do.

1. She promotes a tax hike
2. She fails to point out that taxes already make up about 80% of the IndyGo budget.

It would be nice if the officials who say they support building a robust regional transit system would prove it by voting for a tax increase, but I'm not holding my breath. That solution is too logical.

So instead, I've come up with some -- shall we say? -- out-of-the-box solutions to IndyGo's funding woes. When logic fails, it's time for the ludicrous.

My solution is to raise fares. The riders should pay for the service they use. Making those who do not ride pay to subsidize those who do ride is simply unjust. Now, THAT is too logical, I'm sure. It's the American Way anymore, to take from the majority and give to a small segment of the population. We wonder why we're in an economic freefall. To what extent is the fare a gift? Double it, and you still haven't reduced the operating ratio to half.

It would be nice if the promoters of mass transit were honest enough to read a balance sheet and to disclose how heavily subsidized it already is, rather than making it sound like the riders are bearing the huge burden of paying full fare, while the taxpayers stand by and admire the buses.

I've written many times on this subject. Here is a link to those many, wonderful, redundant posts- many of which have links to IndyGo balance sheets.

Big Surprise! IndyGo Does Want More Tax Money

To no surprise whatsoever, the bus system that requires some 80+ of its funding to come from taxpayers, now wants even more. From the Indy Star:

IndyGo, another agency dependent on property taxes, also adopted a 2011 budget Monday, and it, too, will pursue a shortfall appeal as expected.

If approved by the City-County Council, the appeals would bring in $1.8 million for the library and $1.5 million for IndyGo. But for most homeowners, the increase combined would be only a couple of bucks.

The one-time levy, which would not increase the actual tax rate, would increase taxes by $1.21 for a $100,000 property, said library Chief Financial Officer Becky Dixon. The IndyGo increase would be roughly $1 per $100,000.

And just as typical is the Republican response:

Angel Rivera, a Republican who initially expressed opposition to the move, said because the increase was small, he "would give it a lot more consideration," though the council is still exploring other options.

"I don't like tax raises," Rivera said. "But if it's $2.50 per parcel, I think we'd have to seriously consider it."

Republicans are against tax hikes, until they are for them.

There are too many other things the Library and IndyGo can still do to generate revenue. They can charge their users for the services they use. Hike the fares, charge more for overdue videos, and charge to use the internet. Is this so hard to figure out?

I suppose it's easier to simply claw at the community as a whole.

IndyGo "Could" Nick The Taxpayer?

Way to go Indy Star headline writer! You gave me the chuckle that will carry me through this Monday! It read, "Action by IndyGo and library could nick taxpayers".

No kidding! Could nick the taxpayer? Bwaaahahahaha! That's about the only thing IndyGo does with any consistency!

As pointed out many, many times on this blog, IndyGo is heavily subsidized, with taxpayers making up a minimum of 80% of the bus service's funding. Fares, on the other hand, make up less than 20%.

As pointed out many times before, this represents a transfer of wealth from those who don't ride to those who do. What's that old saw about the sum of good government being not picking my pocket or breaking my leg? How's that go? Not IndyGo, that's for sure.

So here's the trick, per the Indy Star:

Municipal corporations that receive less tax money than expected can file what's called a shortfall appeal with the Department of Local Government Finance. If approved, that will raise how much the corporations receive the next year, but it also will raise property taxes for those who are not paying the maximum under the tax cap.

It's time to scale back our empire building. No, I'm not talking foreign policy in this case. I'm talking the empire of government. The money is not there. When the property tax reassessments happened a few years back, we were not in the midst of a down economy. Hit people now, with a 10% unemployment rate? For buses people don't ride?

Here's an idea: Raise the fares. Let the people who use the services pay for the services. Either that, or scale them back just as surely as families have scaled back on eating out or grilling t-bone steaks.

When Economic Reality Steps In

IndyGo, Marion County's government owned and operated bus line, is not immune from dealing with fiscal reality. This is a remarkable statement when you consider that generally, IndyGo gets some 80% of its operating budget not from rider fares, but from government subsidies.

I'll give credit to IndyGo on this: With tax revenues down, and therefore their operating budget short, the bus line has decided to cut routes and hike fares. This is a sensible reaction, unless you can have a stable of unicorns pull the busses or fill the gas tank with fairy dust.

IndyGo has been holding public meetings, and the riders showed up in force to bitch. Reading the Indy Star account kind of reminds me of hearing my 4-year-old whine when I turn the TV off.

But in the end, emotion -- not figures -- seemed to rule the day.

Several riders shared stories about how they depend on the bus to get to work, school, grocery stores and doctors' offices.

"It took me an hour and a half to get from my house to Washington (Street to catch the bus)," said regular IndyGo rider Nora Wright, her voice shaking with anger. "I don't think that's right."

Another asked in amazement: "You expect us, the poor and disabled, to pay more while you actually make the service worse?"

I remind my little girl, "You just got a gift of watching some TV. You should be saying 'thank you', not stomping your feet and pouting".

The vast majority of citizens do not ride the bus, yet all pay taxes to subsidize the rides of a few. I don't think I've ever seen an example of a bus rider acknowledging the gift they get from the taxpayers. Not a gift? Pay for the full cost of your fair share of the operation, and it ceases to be a gift, when the riders pay a fare such that the operating budget requires zero tax dollars. Here's the telling quote:

They explained that the door-to-door paratransit service, known as Open Door, is far more expensive to operate than fixed-route service -- $35 per passenger versus about $4.

So, what are the fares for these rides? Per IndyGo's website:

Single ride: $1.75 (free ride of $2.25 per ride)
Half fare for those over 65, disabled, or under 18: $.85 (free ride of $3.15 per ride)
Open Door: $3.50 (free ride of $31.50 per ride!)

So, IndyGo is proposing to raise the fares? Great! It's about time. IndyGo loses money every time somebody hops aboard. Time to go the whole route towards fiscal solvency and sustainability. Pay for what you take.

Either that, or acknowledge the gift the taxpayers are giving and quit acting like 4-year-olds. This entitlement attitude is killing our country.

Green Line Eats Green

The Indy Star is touting IndyGo's Green Line from the airport as some kind of winner. If it's a winner, the bar must be set below the low hurdle of mediocrity. From the report:

So far, the Green Line isn't profitable. All of the express lines need a federal subsidy.

"It is unlikely to make money given the hours" that public transportation has to be available, Terry said. The Green Line runs from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Green Line driver Dennis Harrell said the bus is often full and, sometimes, his passengers are celebrities, such as the players and managers attending this month's winter meetings of Major League Baseball in Indianapolis.

"We do see the Green Line starting to pick up, and it is one of the areas we will focus on next year. It has been getting better as we continue to tweak the routes," Terry said.

The Green Line was carrying about 300 to 400 passengers a month when it started in 2007, but the numbers had grown to 3,868 in October. There were nearly 23,000 through the first 10 months of this year, an increase of 94 percent from the same period last year, said IndyGo spokeswoman Jenny Brown.

Why is it unlikely to make money during those hours? Given the quote, one might expect the buses running from Midnight to 4am.

23,000 passengers? That many cars pass over I-465 in half a day. Etc.

I tire of the waste. If there is to be public transportation, the riders should pay for it. Raise the fares, and make it so. And, don't hand me the similarly tiring line, 'Well the roads are also subsidized'. No shit. You don't say. So, because we do one thing wrong, we should do another wrong, eh? We can as easily make user fees pay for the roads entirely as we can the buses. So, the reality is that our system is designed really as a transfer of wealth, to those who enjoy transportation, public or private, from those who very frequently do not.

There's your waste. Cut, cut cut.

IndyGo Chief Quits

Is it a glutton for punishment to go from head of the BMV, to IndyGo president? After six years in the latter post, Gil Holmes is leaving the Marion County socialized bus company. From the Indy Star report:

Gilbert Holmes took over leadership of the IndyGo transit system in 2002, inheriting an agency mired in turmoil after federal and local auditors discovered financial mismanagement and other problems.

He confronted a fiscal crisis in 2004 that nearly led to deep service cuts, but he landed a loan from then-Mayor Bart Peterson to cover much of the shortfall. Still, during his tenure, Holmes had to raise fares because of rising fuel and other costs.

At the same time, Holmes pushed a bigger vision for IndyGo, developing a 15-year expansion plan and adding express buses, Downtown shuttles and other features.

Yes, if it doesn't work, expand it. Whether it's a big corporation or a bus system, this seems to be the prevailing, destructive attitude.

I had the opportunity to debate Holmes on WXNT's "Abdul in the Morning" program last year, and Holmes' attitude was most interesting, indeed. He acknowledged IndyGo's greatly unbalanced balance sheet, and was unapologetic for it. He repremanded me for being philosophical and political in my opposition to taxpayer funding of public transportation, but at the same time used philosophical and political justifications in favor of the public transportation.

My blog post from the debate.
My NYC transit experience post, and a Holmes reference.
A Wayne County transit numbers post, and a Holmes reference

It's no secret that I think that at best, public transportation should be left not to government but to private operators, and at worst, it can stay in government hands but the riders should pay the full fare. I can understand a man such as Holmes, with an apparent deep conviction to the redistribution of wealth, taking the positions on transport that he does. I was mystified at the Republicans who are on the bandwagon. The only conclusion I can draw is that they have friends who stand to make a lot of money improving and building trackage, or building and supplying locomotives and cars.

Public transportation is just a bad sign to me. I understand it as a placebo for high gas prices. But like war, these days, public transportation is the health of the state.

Mass transit post on regionalism and "conservatives"
Master link to Kole's posts on "mass transit"