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VTA Considers Service Reductions in Response to Continued Decline of Revenue
| Release Number: | nr07-08 |
| Release Date: | Jul 17, 2009 |
Recent Sale Tax Receipts Down 21%
San Jose, Calif. –In response to the continued decline in sales tax revenues, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) Board of Directors will begin the process of evaluating a list of proposed reductions to county bus and light rail service. If approved by the board in October, service changes will be implemented in January 2010. Several community meetings have been scheduled in the coming weeks to gather public input before the board is asked to act on the proposal.
Transit agencies across California have been forced to implement service reductions and fare increases as a consequence of the complete elimination of state funding for transit, as well as declining sales tax revenue. In the third quarter of FY 09, sales tax receipts fell by 21 percent, representing a loss of $5.8 million. VTA’s budget projected an 8 percent decline in the same period. This latest decline exacerbates the budget deficit that VTA has been working diligently to address in recent months. In June, the VTA budget gap was $30 million. With the latest decline in sales tax revenue, the gap has increased to approximately $36 million.
In June, three VTA unions (TAEA, AFSCME, SEIU) joined with the non- represented executive management and their support staff in agreeing to $17.3 million in labor savings concessions, including furloughs and wage freezes for the coming two fiscal years. One other union (ATU) is still in discussions with VTA. These labor concessions have greatly minimized the proposed service reductions.
The VTA Board also approved a fare increase in June, which was originally planned to go into effect in January 2010, but, may be implemented as soon as October to partially address the continued decline in revenue. The acceleration of the fare increases also includes changes to paratransit fares, paratransit services, and scheduling options. The VTA Board will be discussing the need to accelerate the fare increase at their August meeting. The revenue generated from this proposal is estimated at $1 million.
Despite VTA’s efforts to reduce costs and raise revenues, there is still a large gap that necessitates consideration of service reductions. The proposed changes include an 8 percent cut to bus service and a 6.5 percent reduction in light rail service.
“We continue to look for ways to respond to this unprecedented economic slump, while minimizing the impact to our riders,” said Sam Liccardo, City of San Jose Council member and VTA Vice-Chair. “I’m proud of the way VTA employees have stepped up to contribute to the solution. Unfortunately, this is a situation where cuts to service may be unavoidable until the economy bounces back and revenues begin to flow again.”
VTA is seeking public input on the service reductions and will be conducting an environmental review of potential impacts. There will be seven public meetings from August 10 to August 13 throughout Santa Clara County. Information on all meeting dates/times/locations and the proposed service reductions will be posted on the VTA web site, advertised on transit vehicles, and in local newspapers.
“VTA provides a critical public service, and we know that for many of our riders we are their only source of transportation,” said Michael T. Burns, VTA General Manager. “We’ve implemented cost cutting strategies throughout the organization. Service reductions are a last resort.” VTA is one of the last transit agencies in the Bay Area to deliberate reducing service in response to sales tax revenue loss. Many other transit agencies have already implemented service reductions.
Next steps: Public meetings are scheduled from August 10 through August 13; VTA advisory committees will review the item at their meetings in mid-August; a public hearing on the environmental analysis will occur on August 18; the VTA Transit Planning and Operations Committee will review this item at its September meeting; and the board will take action on this item at its October 1 meeting. If the board decides to move ahead with service reductions, changes will go into effect on January 11, 2010.
For complete information about the VTA budget, service reductions, fare increase, and public meetings, please visit www.vta.org.
Background
The VTA Board of Directors consists of 12 Board Directors, 2 Ex-Officios, and 5 Alternates. The VTA operating budget for FY 2010 is approximately $353 million and for FY 2011 is approximately $360 million. There are 2,085 VTA employees. There are four bargaining units at VTA; they are the Transportation Authority Engineers and Architects Association (TAEA), Association of Federal, State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), and Service Employees International Union (SEIU). There is also a non-representative group which consists of management and their support staff.
On July 13, 2009 VTA implemented its Annual Service Plan, a continuous process to improve service based on the ever changing needs of riders in Santa Clara County. The service change impacted more than 40 VTA bus routes.
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About VTA
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is an independent special district that provides sustainable, accessible, community-focused transportation options that are innovative, environmentally responsible, and promote the vitality of our region. VTA is responsible for bus, light rail and paratransit operations; congestion management; specific highway improvement projects; countywide transportation planning and provides these services to cities throughout the county including Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Mountain View, Palo Alto San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga and Sunnyvale. VTA continually builds partnerships to deliver transportation solutions that meet the evolving mobility needs of Santa ClaraCounty
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