NJT in the proposed state budget
February 26th 2008 02:23 pm
If I’m reading the new proposed state budget correctly, NJ Transit’s funding would go from $298.2 million to $358.2 million, an increase of 20%.
Elsewhere in the above document, I see references to increasing NJT’s funding by $100 million, then reducing it by $40 million. (That’s where the $60 million figure comes from.) The $40 million is tallied-up as a budget cut, even though the $100 million was never spent. It’s like telling your wife you just saved $80,000 by not buying a Mercedes, but in reality, you didn’t save anything because you never had the $80,000 in the first place.
Keep that in mind when you hear the politicians telling you how much they cut spending.
Joe Versaggi responded on 28 Feb 2008 at 3:25 pm #
Let’s be glad of small miracles. Last year, NJT requested a subsidy flat-lined with the prior year’s, and then many incorrectly blamed the legislature for the fare increase, but they simply did what NJT requested.
Clark Morris responded on 07 Mar 2008 at 5:54 pm #
As a motorist, I have to pay vehicle purchase costs and vehicle direct operating costs (fuel, vehicle maintenance, insurance and my time as driver) while making at least a nominal contribution to the cost of building and maintaining the roads and vehicle storage. Why shouldn’t transit fares cover those costs. The high cost of British fares suggest that the US may be underpricing transit.
Eine Kleine Multi-level responded on 08 Mar 2008 at 7:55 pm #
When trains are full, they do cover those costs. Quite often, transit agencies report surplus versus deficit.
Joe Versaggi responded on 09 Mar 2008 at 3:35 pm #
Sales and gas taxes on everything auto-related don’t make it down to county and municipal levels of government who also own and maintain roads. Your time spent driving is slave labor, sorry.