"While slightly better than the initial proposal, the Governor’s new budget deal still reduces frequency and weekend service on 46 of RIPTA’s routes..."
McKee is torturing RIPTA, its employees and its riders with these halfway measures. The $7 million still needed, is a drop in the bucket compared to state spending, for example about $250 million to widen I-95 north in the center of historic Providence, and about $238 million every year to eliminate local property taxes on cars, a big gift to those with many expensive cars. And in June, even the Gov said he could provide $15 million to RIPTA from unallocated funds. So at this point I think it is still appropriate to call the Governors Office, 222-2080 and ask him to fully fund RIPTA and avert the cuts.
And it is ludicrous that despite the service cuts he is OK with, the Governor is still calling for RIPTA to spend (borrow?) a fortune to move its Kennedy Plaza hub to an inferior location where few passengers want to go, but it shows he thinks there is money available for what he wants - in this case to clear KP of its passengers - too many of which are low income and/or people of color so nearby real estate interests want them gone. Sad!
There is a RIPTA board meeting at 1:30 this Thursday. (They've changed the time twice.) They will take public comment. It's at 269 Melrose St Providence, off Elmwood Ave, near the #20 bus line. Basically the RIPTA board agenda Thursday contains almost nothing except voting on McKee's proposal.
McKee is torturing RIPTA, its employees and its riders with these halfway measures. The $7 million still needed, is a drop in the bucket compared to state spending, for example about $250 million to widen I-95 north in the center of historic Providence, and about $238 million every year to eliminate local property taxes on cars, a big gift to those with many expensive cars. And in June, even the Gov said he could provide $15 million to RIPTA from unallocated funds. So at this point I think it is still appropriate to call the Governors Office, 222-2080 and ask him to fully fund RIPTA and avert the cuts.
And it is ludicrous that despite the service cuts he is OK with, the Governor is still calling for RIPTA to spend (borrow?) a fortune to move its Kennedy Plaza hub to an inferior location where few passengers want to go, but it shows he thinks there is money available for what he wants - in this case to clear KP of its passengers - too many of which are low income and/or people of color so nearby real estate interests want them gone. Sad!
There is a RIPTA board meeting at 1:30 this Thursday. (They've changed the time twice.) They will take public comment. It's at 269 Melrose St Providence, off Elmwood Ave, near the #20 bus line. Basically the RIPTA board agenda Thursday contains almost nothing except voting on McKee's proposal.
McKee continues to demonstrate clielessness and the only thing to do is implement the millioinaires tax.