DEAR EDITOR:
On April 11, the Gilroy Dispatch ran two great stories on the
Santa Clara County Valley Transit Authority.
DEAR EDITOR:
On April 11, the Gilroy Dispatch ran two great stories on the Santa Clara County Valley Transit Authority. The first story appeared on the front page bemoaning the fact the VTA was on the “brink of bankruptcy.” The story went on to declare that additional taxes, fare increases and even borrowing “from future revenues” would be necessary to bail the Authority out of its current financial crisis.
The second VTA story was buried on page A7 and told the stories of Mr. James Archer, and Michael Margherita who both will now have to pay increases as much as 100 percent for VTA services. (If anyone in the system is worthy of transit services it is Mr. Archer and Mr. Margherita).
Scott Burher, the VTA Finance Director simple-mindedly summed up the increase in seniors and disabled persons fares “at the end of the day, our board either needs to find a new revenue source or share more of the cost in fares.” He naively pointed out that “70 percent of the VTA cost is labor. Labor is every transit agency’s biggest cost.”
Has anyone in the VTA considered that reducing labor costs might grant Mr. Archer and Mr. Margherita the opportunity to continue affordable ridership? Most of the taxpayers in Santa Clara County have experienced labor reductions, pay reductions and unemployment in recent years. Why should VTA be exempt and continue its out-of-control labor spending practices? This year alone the labor costs for VTA increased over $5 million; ballooning to a whopping $228 million! VTA you are not on the “brink of bankruptcy,” you are a bloated bureaucracy out of touch with the times and the taxpayers.
May I suggest that the VTA quickly re-align its priorities towards serving the taxpayers by significantly reducing labor costs rather than seeking to increase our taxes and fares?
John Murphy, San Martin
Submitted Saturday, April 12 to ed****@****ic.com
The Golden Quill is awarded occasionally for a well-written letter.
