So Democrat Ellen McClung wants to spend money on NH Mass Transit?
I commented earlier that the Democrats are not worried at all with what they wrought with the latest State budget ("The senator insisted that “new” spending measures added up to “barely
3-percent”, with the rest of the increase caused by “things we had no
control over”).
Well, in the same article (Daily Sun, P20), an NH House Democrat candidate was quoted this way:
Looking around the Lakes Region, it is clear that this fundamental necessity for success, high population density, is missing. In fact, even the Winnipesaukee Transit System own numbers shows that taxpayers might as well give each rider almost $26 each time they get on one of those always empty buses. It would probably be more cost effective to give out taxi vouchers and let the private sector provide that service more efficiently.
From the Coordinated Transit Study Final Report:
The Downeaster, running down from Portland to Boston still requires a taxpayer subsidy of pretty much $20 / rider / trip. We are talking millions in subsidies!
Once again, Democrats seem willing to provide a solution for which there is no problem. Once again, they are willing to spend lots of other peoples' money to benefit very few.
Well, in the same article (Daily Sun, P20), an NH House Democrat candidate was quoted this way:
The problem with her statement is that it may well be true that, indeed, the only places that mass transit may be needed is at the area's ski lifts. Mass Transit systems only work where the population is high density (think large urban areas like Boston and New York City). Even with that as a given, Mass Transit systems are not self sustaining - they continue to operate only with massive taxpayer subsidies that yield a "reasonable" fare per rider. Thus, many are dinged for the few."Ellen McLung of Gilford — a candidate in House District 5 – got off the best one-liner of the day, saying she was interested in mass transit issues but her home state’s only real example to date is ski lifts."
Looking around the Lakes Region, it is clear that this fundamental necessity for success, high population density, is missing. In fact, even the Winnipesaukee Transit System own numbers shows that taxpayers might as well give each rider almost $26 each time they get on one of those always empty buses. It would probably be more cost effective to give out taxi vouchers and let the private sector provide that service more efficiently.
From the Coordinated Transit Study Final Report:
No way that this could be judged to be a successful program (unless you are one of the very few riders that WTS does have). It could be said that all that the WTS seems to provide is jobs for the bus drivers and their management. And just think of all the carbon offsets that are needed to compensate for burning all that gas / diesel while running empty the vast majority of the time.
- A budget of $194,077 per year
- A ridership of 7,566 people per year
- This breaks down to $25.65 / rider - trip
- Given an 8 hour operational day, that is only 21 riders / day, or if you prefer 2.5 riders per hour.
- That is out of a possible ridership (as estimated in 2000) of 15,500 living with 1/4 mile of all the stops.
The Downeaster, running down from Portland to Boston still requires a taxpayer subsidy of pretty much $20 / rider / trip. We are talking millions in subsidies!
Once again, Democrats seem willing to provide a solution for which there is no problem. Once again, they are willing to spend lots of other peoples' money to benefit very few.
