Making the Poor Subsidize the Rich

Utah Transit Authority executives are overcompensated, the agency has underfunded its high rail maintenance costs, its bus service has suffered due to financial constraints, concludes the Utah State Legislative Auditor. Moreover, as reported in the Salt Lake Tribune, the agency’s fare structure makes the poor subsidize the rich, which the agency has signed cushy deals with developers that sometimes financially benefit agency board members.

Sounds like a typical rail transit agency. Naturally, the agency claims (in an appendix to the report) that it is innocent of any wrongdoing. However, it cannot deny that bus service (as measured by vehicle revenue miles) declined nearly 20 percent between 2009 and 2012, years in which the agency spent close to #1 billion on commuter trains that, as of 2012, were carrying fewer than 3,200 round trips per day.

The American Public Transit Association recently named Utah Transit the transit system of the year. But it’s clear from past awards that APTA admires agencies that are best able to con taxpayers out of their money, not ones that provide the best service to transit riders. UTA, which is proud of spending more per capita than any other transit agency, seems to have done a good job of conning taxpayers. Let’s hope audits like this one will open their eyes.

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About The Antiplanner

The Antiplanner is a forester and economist with more than fifty years of experience critiquing government land-use and transportation plans.

3 Responses to Making the Poor Subsidize the Rich

  1. metrosucks says:

    Corruption is spilling from these “enterprises” like a ruptured pustule spills pus. You can tell things are coming to a head by the frequent stories of our glorious governments throwing money left and right at these boondoggles. Give it a few years and all these embarrassments called “transit investments” will fade into the woodwork where they deserve to be left.

  2. JOHN1000 says:

    Hopefully, the Utah State Legislative Auditor has some political support. Otherwise he will be pressured to revise his audit or go find another job.

  3. lbh says:

    AP UTA cut bus service for two reasons. First, the recession left a large hole in their budget, and much like many government agencies and private sector actors you saw cutbacks. Second, the start of rail projects meant certain commuter buses were redundant, and were replaced with cheaper rail. Local buses are much cheaper than commuter rail, but express buses are not.

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