Colorado transit agencies convinced the state legislature to subsidize free transit for the month of August based on the flimsy claim that doing so would reduce air pollution. At the end of the money, the Colorado Association of Transit Agencies claimed the program was a great success, with many agencies seeing 30 to 50 percent increases in ridership compared with August, 2021.
Transit buses in Pueblo saw a 59 percent increase in ridership in August, but Pueblo’s transit system normally carries less than 0.75 percent of all transit riders in the state, so this increase wasn’t very important. Photo from Pueblo Transit.
The problem with this claim is that Colorado transit agencies were already seeing 30 to 50 percent increases in ridership compared with 2021 before they offered free transit. Colorado transit ridership in the first half of 2022 was 37 percent greater than the first half of 2021. Most of the increase in August was due to the recovery from the pandemic, not to free transit.
Pueblo transit saw the greatest increase, at 59 percent, followed closely by Archuleta County (Pagosa Springs) at 56 percent. Yet together these two transit systems normally carry less than three-quarters of a percent of all transit riders in the state. Almost all other agencies saw increases of 2 to 40 percent.
Denver’s Regional Transit District (RTD), the state’s largest transit agency, participated in the free-transit program but hasn’t revealed how many riders it carried in August. This is kind of important because RTD normally carries more than 90 percent of all transit riders in the state.
Anecdotal evidence is that free transit increased Denver ridership by 5 to 7 percent. RTD says that it will release ridership data only after it analyzes survey data “that was garnered through customer intercepts on the system during the zero-fare period, in addition to online and telephone surveys of employees and the public alike that will commence within the next few days regarding those individuals’ opinions, attitudes and perceptions of the program.” It sounds like the agency plans to bury poor results from the program with a mountain of irrelevant survey data, which may not be available for several months.
It is most likely that the free-fare program had almost no measurable effect on Colorado air pollution. Yet the state legislature has already committed to funding free transit again in August 2023. All this shows is that transit agencies and their advocates will lie about just about anything to get more transit subsidies.
“Advocates of free transit argue that, since it is already so heavily subsidized, a decrease of or elimination of fares won’t hurt taxpayers…..”
But if they expand it with huge public projects… further escalates costs,, and exacerbates taxes which only incentives more folks to leave.
In reality…now they just wanna keep the transit workforce gainfully employed… they have lifestyles…like teachers unions fight to painstakingly keep…they also have pension obligations they know cannot be met. Public pensions are a decisive issue…and one news groups don’t talk about very much…. I said it a long time ago… what you’re gonna see in a lot of cities or states is the the inevitable “Fee, Fine,fold, and tax” era…..
I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole Defund the Police concept was nothing but a political scam…police tend to be more conservative than most public agencies. What better way to eliminate cost overheads and purge political opponents simultaneously than to phase out their salaries/pensions by making their work place miserable as possible so they quit. Politicians don’t give a shit about crime/violence ?
Teachers, transit and government office workers are more important than rampant crime….
Rovingbroker…. Next they will be paying customers to ride. This may take the form of cash, a coupon for a future ride, an entry in a drawing for $10,000 or one of a thousand $10 gift cards.
I shouldn’t give them any ideas.” No u shouldnt.
In any case…let’s look at the news cycle… in the span of 2-3 weeks…. California.
1: California set to ban all gas powered cars by 2035.
2: California says electric cars ( EVs) are the wave of the future
3: rolling brown outs, and heat, California advises residents not to charge their ev cars….they cant keep electric grid functioning
4: California to pay you 1000 dollars NOT to buy a car.
https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/news/california-sb457-car-free-tax-credit/631194/
5: ….future news…something about EVs catching on fire, transportation costs rising….people moving out of California
Were exactly did Colorado Transit Lie?
The AP makes writes words such as “flimsy claim” “most of the increase” and “most likely ” but I don’t see where they actually lie about free transit in Aug reduced air pollution like the AP is stating.
Even if air pollution is reduced by .5% from free transit their statement is still true.