DESPITE OPPOSITION FROM THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION, lawmakers on Beacon Hill funneled more money on Thursday to the state’s 15 regional transit authorities, which provide bus service in communities outside the MBTA service area.
The House approved an amendment to its fiscal 2019 budget plan that increased funding for the authorities by $2 million – from $80 million to $82 million. The Senate later in the day amended a supplemental budget for the current year, fiscal 2018, that would funnel an additional $4 million to the regional transit authorities, which would bring total spending for the current fiscal year to $84 million.
Both actions still require the approval of the other branch, but they represent a growing recognition by lawmakers that the transit authorities need additional funding. Several of the authorities have announced fare increases and service cutbacks to deal with deficits, and many officials are worried the service cutbacks will lead to less ridership and more deficits.
Gov. Charlie Baker, in his fiscal 2019 budget, level-funded the regional transit authorities at $80 million. Earlier this week, state Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said more money was not the answer to the problems the regional transit authorities are facing. She said they needed to seek smaller, regular fare hikes and improve their operations.
The amendments approved by the House and Senate on Thursday included language calling for some operating reforms. The House budget would create a 17-member Task Force on Regional Transit Authority Performance and Funding to make recommendations by December 1 on the development of service standards, predictable revenue streams, and performance indicators.
Another provision would set aside $2 million in funding to be handed out by the Department of Transportation to regional transit authorities that develop remedial plans to eliminate any unfunded deficits within three years. The Senate approved an amendment that mirrored the House language on remedial plans.
Matt Casale, a staff attorney for the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group, said after the House vote in the morning that the regional transit authorities need $88 million in annual funding to maintain existing services in the face of rising costs for maintenance, fuel, healthcare, and wages. “The additional $2 million will help, but still falls far short of what the RTAs need to provide the service the people of Massachusetts deserve,” he said.
