GILROY
– In an effort to sew up a devastating budget hole, the Valley
Transportation Authority announced earlier this week its proposal
to reduce or eliminate 65 of the county’s 72 bus lines – five of
which operate in Gilroy.
GILROY – In an effort to sew up a devastating budget hole, the Valley Transportation Authority announced earlier this week its proposal to reduce or eliminate 65 of the county’s 72 bus lines – five of which operate in Gilroy.
Facing a local economy that saw sales tax figures drop 21 percent below projections last fiscal year, the VTA – which receives 80 percent of its bus and rail opperations funding from sales tax – is scrambling to make up the $71 million decline in agency revenue over the last year.
Highlighting the financial woes, a $42 million VTA reserve at the beginning of this fiscal year will trickle to $6 million by summer. If the economy doesn’t improve by 2005, only $150,000 will remain in emergency reserves for the agency that operates on a budget that approached nearly $350 million this year – leaving the agency essentially bankrupt.
In recent months, the VTA already has cut more than $164 million in spending, downgraded services and eliminated more than 300 jobs – 11 percent of its workforce.
“The reality is that, because of the economy, something needs to be done,” said John Pilger, spokesman for the VTA. “(The VTA) is not in a position to operate in debt, so service changes are being done to address our money issues.”
Changes to local bus routes outlined in the VTA’s proposal include Lines 17, 18, 19, 68 and Express Line 521. Line 18 is the only route being proposed for elimination; the four others could be reduced to consolidate distance covered, number of stops, operating times or any mix of the three. If approved by the 12-member VTA board of directors – which includes District 1 Supervisor Don Gage – the changes will be effective April 1. The majority of rider fares will stay the same.
The VTA will hold meetings at 3 and 7 p.m. Dec. 3 in the City Council Chambers, 7351 Rosanna St., to discuss the proposed transit changes with members of the community.
“We want to make it clear that these are only proposals here, and we aren’t going to do anything until we get some community feedback,” Pilger said. “We always take account of what the public has to say and frequently change our plans based on their comments. If 100 people show up and express concern over a reduction, we will probably change our minds.”
Some of the more prominent changes proposed to Gilroy bus routes would reduce the amount of ground Line 17 covers downtown, eliminate Miller Avenue from Line 19, eliminate Gavilan College from late-night trips on Line 68 from San Jose and consolidate two morning trips on Express Line 521 from the Gilroy Transit Center to Lockheed Martin/Moffett Park into one.
Reducing or eliminating any bus route is a hard decision to make, but there’s no alternative at this stage of the VTA’s budget deficit, Gage said.
“(The reductions are) all determined scientifically by ridership,” he said. “The cutbacks are all over the county – South County is being treated no differently. The routes with the least ridership are the ones being reduced most.”
Even with the proposed slashes, bus fair will remain $1.40 for round-trip and $4 for a day pass, but paratransit fees could increase dramatically. The VTA board currently is discussing raising the pick-up fee for elderly and disabled paratransit riders from $2.80 to $15, citing the cost of having drivers pick up paratransit riders at flexible times.
“This is a budget crisis,” Pilger said. “Not one segment is being targeted. Ridership determines our changes, and we have a lot of work in front of us.”
While Pilger said the VTA is not currently planning any other transit service changes that would effect Gilroy, Mayor Tom Springer thinks more cuts are inevitable.
“There will be more changes to come,” said Springer, an alternate member of the VTA board. “We are talking about mass transit, and in mass transit you can’t worry about pleasing one or two individuals who might be affected by some of these changes – we have to worry about moving the masses.”
Throughout the rest of the county, planned light rail extensions in San Jose and the voter-approved BART extension to downtown San Jose will be in jeopardy because of the VTA’s morbid economic status. There already has been talk of a new sales tax measure on the 2004 ballot that would ask voters to approve another one-quarter cent sales tax raise for public transit – producing an extra $140 to $200 million annually for the VTA.
“This is a real tough situation for everybody involved,” Gage said. “We are dealing with some very big issues right now. We realize some people totally depend on public transit, and we want to be fair, but (the VTA) will be bankrupt in five years if nothing is done.”
VTA proposed service reductions
For more information on VTA’s Dec. 3 meeting in Gilroy go to www.vta.org.
• Line 17 (Gilroy Transit Center to Saint Louise Hospital): The routing would be modified to operate on Lewis Street between Forest Street and Monterey Road, and on Monterey Road between Lewis and Eighth Street. On weekends, service would operate every 60 minutes.
• Line 18 (Gilroy Transit Center to Monterey and Farrell): This line would be discontinued. In conjunction with this change, Line 19 would be rerouted to pick up the portion of Line 18 operating on Wren (between Sixth and First) and Monte bello.
• Line 19 (Gilroy Transit Center to Sunrise and Santa Teresa): The routing would be modified to pick up the portion of Line 18 operating on Wren (between Sixth and First) and Monte Bello. All service on Miller would be eliminated. Service on Monte Bello would be limited to approximately 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. In coordination with school hours at Gilroy High School, one morning and one afternoon trip would operate to Sunrise, Rancho Hills and Longmeadow.
• Line 68 (San Jose Caltrain Station to Gilroy/Gavilan College): The routing through Gilroy would be modified to operate through downtown Gilroy via Monterey instead of Eigleberry. On weekdays, the 1:05 a.m. southbound trip would be deleted; the 10 p.m. northbound trip leaving Gavilan College would be shortened to start from Gilroy Caltrain Station; and the 8:05 p.m. southbound trip would end at Gilroy Caltrain Station.
• Express Line 521 (Gilroy Transit Center to Lockheed Martin/Moffett Park): The 5:21 and 5:44 a.m. northbound trips would be combined into one trip.
Changes would be effective in April 2003.
The VTA will hold meetings at 3 and 7 p.m. on Dec. 3 in the City Hall Council Chambers, 7351 Rosanna St., to discuss the proposed route changes and listen to concerns of community members. Comments can also be sent by e-mail at www.vta.org.
