I hope this letter in today's Herald jogs your memories Miami Dade County Commissioners, (Yes you too Katy Sorenson), get a NEW copy of the OLD grand jury report because we don't want you screwing with our transit sales tax money which was for new service and to use for matching federal funds not for operational needs:
Transit fixes ignored
Re Miami-Dade County Commission chair Dennis Moss' Jan. 3 letter A 'new day' for public transit in Miami-Dade: I sat on a grand jury in 2001 with 11 other jurors and three alternates. We studied Miami-Dade's transit system for six months. We heard testimony from several experts as to why our system was a mess. We studied the 1970s reports of the original urban plans.
What we ended up with in the transit system, and those plans, were clearly political. For instance, in the original plans Metrorail was to go to the airport and along the Interstate 95 corridor. That would have been so helpful for relieving today's gridlock. To help the immediate problems we had to come up with a plan to get matching federal tax dollars. We suggested the increase in sales tax. However, we clearly did not want the mistakes of the past to occur again and insisted on an oversight committee. Our report addressed immediate needs: an increase in bus and Metrorail routes.
It had been discouraging to read about the waste of our money because of another ''gravy train.'' The public is not getting what it deserves. I hope Moss' ''new day'' approach will be the answer. We should all remember this when Election Day returns.
BARBARA P. LIPCON, Miami
6 comments:
Miami-Dade County needs good transit very very badly. But our Commissioners do not give a damn for the people and will try very hard to use the money for what they want and the public be damned.
Mensa - did you intend that moniker to be ironic?
How does using transit money for the transit system say to the public "be damned"?
Someone please post some ideas about how you would fix the problem of an aging and decrepit transit system if none of the new funds can be used to fix it?
What good are new bus routes to new places, and new trains to connect to a system that is falling apart at the seams help improve transit?
I ride the bus and take the train pretty regular so maybe I am just a bit slanted in my view. My big problem with the half cent is that too much of it was put into roads to begin with.
How would the readers here fix the transit funding problem?
Cut routes that are empty of riders and start charging every passenger. Many people are exempt from paying, except the taxpayers.
I ALREADY EXPLAINED THIS IN MY LAST POST TRANSIT RIDER WHO HAS PROBABLY NEVER EVER TAKEN A RIDE ON TRANSIT.
If you can't use the funds now to build new because the base of transit is in shambles...SAVE THE FUNDS TILL YOU CAN build new. You need matching funds to get federal dollars. Use the SAVED funds to secure more money federally. Put away our money in a safe place so we will have it when we CAN use it FOR WHAT WE WERE TAXED FOR...when the county gets their act together.
OUR TAX FUNDS WERE NOT COLLECTED TO BAIL OUT A MISMANAGED DEPARTMENT OF THE COUNTY. BAIT AND SWITCH.
The person who said:
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Someone please post some ideas about how you would fix the problem of an aging and decrepit transit system if none of the new funds can be used to fix it?
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Did you read what the grand jury lady said? That grand jury was 8 years ago. Why haven't they done anything with the department in that time? It is decrepit because they let it get that way. Why did Bradley hire all those new people...why is Larry Lebowitz writing expose's on mismanagement every few weeks? We should fire Burgess for a start.
First: Throw the above ground havey rail out the window. Too expensive.
Second: Yes, start charging even at 1/2 price to the elderly who can afford it.
Third: Build it on high ridership routes (Baylink, North/East along the FEC tracks, Extend the current line to 152 st, and yes a Kendall Corridor) No line pays for itself with ridership, but you'll still get a better return per rider on the routes listed above than East/West or North 27th Ave.
Forth: Time for a new collective bargaining agreement with TWU. Maybe a 2 teir system where new members may not have the same benefits as those grandfathered in.
Fifth: Bus routes should be run on grids Long straight routes down major streets: 8th, Flagelr, NW 7th, etc... and Avenues 7th, 17th, 22, 27, 37, 42, etc... with some smaller circulators in heavily populated areas.
Sixth: Stop waste: Illuminated Street signs, beautification, etc...
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