More voices are calling on Congress to increase federal support for transit agencies that continue to grapple with fare hikes and service cuts. The Community Transportation Association of America, which represents small transit agencies across the country, and the Amalgamated Transit Union recently announced a new national coalition called The Alliance for Transit Operating Assistance, focused on this cause.

Currently, only transit agencies in urban areas with less than 200,000 in population may use any federal funds for operating purposes.  All other metropolitan areas may use their federal transit funds only for capital projects (a policy which dates back only to the 1990s, as MTR has previously described).

The Alliance is supporting H.R. 2746, introduced by Congressman Russ Carnahan of Missouri and co-sponsored by 85 members of Congress, which would allow transit systems in areas above 200,000 in population to use some federal transit funds for operations. (Smaller systems would get more flexibility, and systems could “flex” transit funds to operations only if state or local governments increased transit operating aid to match.) According to the Alliance, more than 2,100 public transportation workers in at least 20 cities were laid off in 2009.

The effort may most immediately make an impact on the “jobs bill,” which President Obama identified as a priority in his State of the Union address. The House version of the bill (H.R. 2847), passed last year, would provide $8.4 billion for transit and allow transit agencies to use up to 10% of some types of funding received under the bill for operating aid. The Alliance is urging the Senate, which has not passed its version of the bill, to increase the percentage of funds available for transit operating assistance to 20%.

In New York, Pressure on MTA Builds

To minimize the economic hurt of service cuts and fare hikes, the MTA must take advantage of the flexibility federal lawmakers added to the stimulus and redirect 10% of its stimulus funds ($90 million) from construction projects to the operating budget, the Tri-State Campaign and a group of elected officials, transit advocates, and unions said at a rally at the Broad Street subway station this morning.  The agency should also keep $50 million in operating funds in the operating budget instead of using it for construction as planned, they said.

“Using stimulus funds to stop service cuts will certainly not solve the MTA’s longer‐term financial problems,” said TSTC’s Kate Slevin, “but this onetime solution will save riders money and buy lawmakers more time to find more permanent and sustainable revenue options.”

Participants included:

• City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Council Transportation Committee Chair James Vacca, City Councilmember Margaret Chin, and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio;
• State Senators Martin Dilan, Bill Perkins, and Diane Savino and State Assemblypersons Jose Peralta and Catherine Nolan;
• Transport Workers Union Local 100 President John Samuelsen, Norman Brown of the International Association of Machinists, and representatives from Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1056, DC37, Teamsters Local 808, and SEIU NCFO;
• and representatives from the Straphangers Campaign, Tri-State Transportation Campaign, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense Fund, Transportation Alternatives, WE ACT for Environmental Justice, the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA, and the NYC Transit Riders, LIRR Commuters, and Metro-North Commuters Councils.

MTA board members Doreen Frasca and Allen Cappelli have also said that these steps are warranted. The need for emergency measures grew even stronger yesterday, when New York State revealed worsening budget projections that mean the MTA’s budget gap has grown by another $400 million.

Rally participants are organizing a lobbying trip to Washington, DC to advocate for increased federal support for transit operations, and have invited MTA Chairman Jay Walder to join them.

[Story updated 4:11 pm.]