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Editorial, Tampa Tribune
August 8, 2011
HART board members are taking some grief because they voted to slightly increase the property tax millage for the county transit operation.
But the alternative was for the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority to eliminate more than 477,000 passenger trips, affecting riders who depend on buses to get to work or otherwise handle necessities.
The tough economy has made buses even more critical for residents. Now is not the time to make it tougher for people to get to work, visit the doctor or go shopping.
The costs of maintaining service is slight. Increasing the millage from 0.4682 to 0.5 would increase the transit bill for the average homeowner from $44.80 to $45.21 — 41 cents.
The change should be virtually unnoticeable, especially since, as Hillsborough County Commissioner and HART board member Mark Sharpe points out, the county's slight cut to its millage should more than offset HART's hike in homeowners' bills.
Moreover, the transit tax has decreased dramatically because of falling property values. In 2007, it was $63.85 for the average home. It has fallen by almost $19. The agency, rightly, has taken a number of austerity measures, including cutting routes.
The goal now is to simply maintain existing services.
Without the small millage increase, HART would lose $1.84 million in revenue next year because of the drop in property values.
This would make necessary the elimination of several routes, curtail Sunday and holiday service and halt late-night bus service used by many workers.
Some people don't want to fund public transportation at all. But providing an affordable means for people to get to work and be self-sufficient is, we believe, a sensible government function, one that makes the community more appealing and strengthens the local economy.
It is easy to forget that many citizens — the elderly, the disabled, the poor — have no other means of getting around. Officials always should be open to private-sector solutions, but not every needed route will be profitable. Some subsidized transit is likely to always be necessary, if we care about people who can't travel on their own.
HART has had its share of problems, and the board should continue to focus on improving efficiency and service. But this smidgen of an increase should benefit residents and local businesses.
Original editoral in the Tampa Tribune
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