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Friday, September 13, 2013
OPAL's Pitch to TriMet - Portland Transport
OPAL's Pitch to TriMet - Portland Transport
Actually I believe transit should be free, a publicly provided service like police/fire/sidewalks/streets etc.
The problem has always been, and will continue to be, that transit in this country makes too much money for the people that are involved in it.
It shouldn't cost 100k a year to operate a bus (with overtime), executives shouldn't be making mid six figure salaries and obscene pensions. Layers and layers of bureaucracy exist now with each layer siphoning off money that could be used to transport people
Transit funds lately in this country has been more about building things than transporting people, billions are made available for capital projects but nothing to move people around now.
And I just don't believe what the Trimet executives say, we have no way to prove or disprove their budget analysis.
Last year Mcfarlane claimed the sky was falling cut routes and raised fares, all the while he hid $970,000 in raises for himself and his executive staff that will continue in perpetuity.
This year he says there is money to restore something, but in 20 years 70% of everything will have to be cut.
How can anyone believe anything that comes out of Trimet?
Actually I believe transit should be free, a publicly provided service like police/fire/sidewalks/streets etc.
The problem has always been, and will continue to be, that transit in this country makes too much money for the people that are involved in it.
It shouldn't cost 100k a year to operate a bus (with overtime), executives shouldn't be making mid six figure salaries and obscene pensions. Layers and layers of bureaucracy exist now with each layer siphoning off money that could be used to transport people
Transit funds lately in this country has been more about building things than transporting people, billions are made available for capital projects but nothing to move people around now.
And I just don't believe what the Trimet executives say, we have no way to prove or disprove their budget analysis.
Last year Mcfarlane claimed the sky was falling cut routes and raised fares, all the while he hid $970,000 in raises for himself and his executive staff that will continue in perpetuity.
This year he says there is money to restore something, but in 20 years 70% of everything will have to be cut.
How can anyone believe anything that comes out of Trimet?
Sunday, September 8, 2013
MaxRedline: More Union Thuggery
MaxRedline: More Union Thuggery
Shoving
attendees, spitting on a speaker, barging into a room rented by the two
libertarian organizations with bullhorns - really? Yeah boy, makes me
want to sign right up. Not.
~~~>No not good at all. My experience at Trimet makes me more pro union than anti union. I had some protections as a result of the union. We also had a good contract because of the union.
It is a fact that GENERALLY speaking union employees get better wages and benefits than non union employees. Not always but most of the time. Collectivism does work occasionally.
Shoving
attendees, spitting on a speaker, barging into a room rented by the two
libertarian organizations with bullhorns - really? Yeah boy, makes me
want to sign right up. Not.
~~~>No not good at all. My experience at Trimet makes me more pro union than anti union. I had some protections as a result of the union. We also had a good contract because of the union.
It is a fact that GENERALLY speaking union employees get better wages and benefits than non union employees. Not always but most of the time. Collectivism does work occasionally.
MaxRedline: More Union Thuggery
MaxRedline: More Union Thuggery
So, letting union workers decide if they want to be in a union is cutting half their wages?
~~~> I support allowing workers to decide for themselves if they want to be in the union
Yes. But if I'm on the public payroll, and have a vastly better deal than the taxpayers, I could see their point.
~~~>Understood and agree, as I said I am on the fence with this issue.
So, letting union workers decide if they want to be in a union is cutting half their wages?
~~~> I support allowing workers to decide for themselves if they want to be in the union
Yes. But if I'm on the public payroll, and have a vastly better deal than the taxpayers, I could see their point.
~~~>Understood and agree, as I said I am on the fence with this issue.
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Human Transit: portland: TriMet's new mobile ticketing app reviewed (guest post)
Human Transit: portland: TriMet's new mobile ticketing app reviewed (guest post)
This telephone app is indeed a positive development for Trimet riders who for years have suffered the horrible Trimet ticket machines and the brutality of Trimet's policy forcing riders to get off at other stations and buy tickets if the machines are not working at the embarking station.
That truly is a fascist policy if there ever was one, placing the responsibility on the rider to cover for Trimet's failures.
So in that respect this is a giant step forward.
I do have some problems with this however.
First there are ex trimet executives that stand to make a quite a bit of money from this. I am never pleased to see ex government officials enter into that 'revolving door' of public/private enterprise.
These connected people (already wealthy) get themselves richer from their inside connections, its a societal problem but should not be so readily acceptable.
Secondly as the author noted, many people do not have a smart phone, those people will still have to suffer the brutality of the TVM policy. Trimet has created a sub class of riders now, transit equity this is not. This is another example of catering to the so called 'choice rider' which is code for UPPER CLASS WHITE PEOPLE.
Third, Trimet has been paying for all the advertising for this. Since when is it appropriate for a government agency to use tax funds to advertise a 'for profit' company?
Fourth, the hype was way over the top. Completely blown up into some sort of major earthshaking event which it is not. Mobile ticketing has been around for a long long time, especially in Europe and it is used at other transit districts here in America. Sure Trimet is the first to allow it on its buses and trains instead of just the trains. But the reason for that is Trimet is a relatively small system compared to places like NY or Boston. Those places have multitudes of fares and many different types of services. Trimet basically has only 3 fares, Disabled, Youth, and Adult, and only two types of services, bus and max (WES doesn't count its ridership is so tiny and its fare is the same)
And we shall see how long it takes for some highly intelligent computer geek to counterfeit this software into a look a like app. Are the fare inspectors going to have time to scan all the QR codes for each person that has this app to verify it? I doubt it.
This telephone app is indeed a positive development for Trimet riders who for years have suffered the horrible Trimet ticket machines and the brutality of Trimet's policy forcing riders to get off at other stations and buy tickets if the machines are not working at the embarking station.
That truly is a fascist policy if there ever was one, placing the responsibility on the rider to cover for Trimet's failures.
So in that respect this is a giant step forward.
I do have some problems with this however.
First there are ex trimet executives that stand to make a quite a bit of money from this. I am never pleased to see ex government officials enter into that 'revolving door' of public/private enterprise.
These connected people (already wealthy) get themselves richer from their inside connections, its a societal problem but should not be so readily acceptable.
Secondly as the author noted, many people do not have a smart phone, those people will still have to suffer the brutality of the TVM policy. Trimet has created a sub class of riders now, transit equity this is not. This is another example of catering to the so called 'choice rider' which is code for UPPER CLASS WHITE PEOPLE.
Third, Trimet has been paying for all the advertising for this. Since when is it appropriate for a government agency to use tax funds to advertise a 'for profit' company?
Fourth, the hype was way over the top. Completely blown up into some sort of major earthshaking event which it is not. Mobile ticketing has been around for a long long time, especially in Europe and it is used at other transit districts here in America. Sure Trimet is the first to allow it on its buses and trains instead of just the trains. But the reason for that is Trimet is a relatively small system compared to places like NY or Boston. Those places have multitudes of fares and many different types of services. Trimet basically has only 3 fares, Disabled, Youth, and Adult, and only two types of services, bus and max (WES doesn't count its ridership is so tiny and its fare is the same)
And we shall see how long it takes for some highly intelligent computer geek to counterfeit this software into a look a like app. Are the fare inspectors going to have time to scan all the QR codes for each person that has this app to verify it? I doubt it.
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