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TriMet delays LIFT increases after heartfelt testimony in Portland

TriMet's board of directors was poised to pass fare increases for LIFT service at its meeting on Wednesday. Instead, it did the Portland thing after listening to an hour of tearful and table-pounding testimony:

It postponed the discussion until January.

Yelps and cheers erupted in the room, packed with people on wheelchairs and holding white canes. Although their disabilities varied, their message did not. Just about everyone who testified urged the board not to raise ticket prices.

And so, in the end, it did not. Not now. But fare increases could come in the future.

"We all generally believe an increase should occur but it's a question of how much and when," said Steve Clark, one of the seven board members.

The proposal calls for increasing the cost of a LIFT ticket from $1.85 to $3 in January 2015. A monthly pass would rise from $52 to $92 over the same period. Initially, TriMet proposed phasing in price hikes over three years but extended that period after holding dozens of meetings.

Neil McFarlane, TriMet's general manager, told the board the increases would put the agency on firmer financial footing.

Mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act, LIFT service transports about 1 percent of TriMet's riders. They take about 1 million trips a year, at a cost of about $31 million annually or about 11 percent of the agency's operating costs.

McFarlane indicated that postponing an increase would not damage the agency's operating budget for this year: The first price hikes were not due to take effect until January.

But even then is far too soon, said Michael Levine, an advocate for the homeless.

"You'll force people to be homebound," he said, pounding the table. "This is wrong, wrong, wrong."

Several people who testified said that already they're struggling on fixed incomes. Some are unemployed. Others survive on Social Security disability payments. And a few work, though they said business is not bountiful.

"I don't have the kind of money you are asking for," said David Morris, a graphic artist who uses a wheelchair. "Where do I make my cut? Food? Housing?"

The room rippled with applause after just about every speech. But some of the loudest clapping followed testimony from David Kay, an official with the Amalgamated Transit Union No. 757.

Joey Harrington bike crash; Portland Broadway Bridge headaches ...

The Obama Administration's new fuel economy rules are drawing some “high-octane reactions.”
This morning, TriMet rider “yalestar” tweeted about something that blew his mind out in a bus (to borrow liberally from The Beatles). “Whoa, Trimet cops boarded the bus and found + ejected 3 fare scofflaws! My question is: how'd they get on in the first place?” Little known fact: TriMet bus drivers aren’t required to demand fare from a passenger. If a rider refuses to pay, the driver is required to only press a dashboard button recording the time and location. Looking at the data, inspectors know where fare cheats tend to ride and plan missions accordingly. Looks like it just may work.

...on Tri Met's renaming of the #75, are they sure it will all fit on the destination sign?

They already made the name change in their Transit planner which makes it a real pain. 39th is heck of a lot simpler and quicker to enter than "Cesar E. Chavez Blvd" If you don't type it in exactly, it routes you to Cesar Chavez School up by University Park.

If you type in SE or NE 39th you get a "Trip Planner Error". I wonder if their programmers know how to use an "if...or...

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