Submitted by MD_till_i_die t3_10hbg6w in baltimore
Shame!
Comments
pathofwrath t1_j5cffyw wrote
There is an manpower shortage transit industry-wide. It's impacting pretty much every transit agency in the US. During the height of the pandemic, most transit agencies did major service reductions to compensate for lower ridership and the growing transit manpower issue. Those agencies are now going through the process of restoring service as possible.
Meanwhile, MDOT MTA didn't do similar levels of service reductions. One of the reasons for that was that transit ridership in this area did not tank nearly as much as it did in other places. The drawback to this is that MDOT MTA wasn't immune to the industry manpower shortage and we're seeing that play out now with daily cut trips.
Over the last year, MDOT MTA has performed some planned service reductions to help with the daily cut trip issue. That effort is ongoing. The result is less scheduled service, but also less cut trips. For awhile, daily cuts were in the mid-teens, percentage wise; currently, it's averaging in the single digits.
One of the few things the Governor can do is budget for signing and retention bonuses for transit workers. People can make similar (or more) money in other jobs without having to deal with things like problematic riders (operator assaults are a thing) so why would someone opt to drive a bus instead?
MD_till_i_die OP t1_j5gfdix wrote
Manpower shortage or insufficient pay?
pathofwrath t1_j5ggcwy wrote
Manpower shortage. Is pay part of the equation? Likely, yes. But it isn't the whole story. MDOT MTA bus operators are paid pretty well compared to operators around the industry (adjusted for COL).
Before the pandemic, MDOT MTA was pretty steady with the number of operators on hand. As in they stayed just about maxed out. The pandemic is what triggered this. It's industry-wide.
katonakob t1_j57ij98 wrote
and you can bet at least half of them will be late
Longey13 t1_j59t7u7 wrote
That's a CityLink bus lol they're supposed to be the more frequent ones
A_Damn_Millenial t1_j5aah79 wrote
What a joke. With such crap frequency and reliability it’s absolutely no wonder why nobody takes MTA seriously.
Dangerous_Wave t1_j5c62av wrote
And yet there's a thing on here about "oh, charge residents to park their cars in their neighborhoods, theyll give them up and take buses!! Teehee!!"
I've been laughing at them for three days. Utterly delusional.
TerranceBaggz t1_j5c762i wrote
Buses by and large are unreliable because they get stuck in car traffic. So once again, cars are the problem. We should charge market rate for parking cars. Owning a car shouldn’t be subsidized by people who can’t afford to own one which is what currently happens.
ElectricStar87 t1_j5j7g9s wrote
That also doesn’t include the property and other general tax contributions (income, sales tax, etc.) of those drivers.
Fare box recovery rates for MTA in Baltimore is currently less than 13%, although that’s lower than normal (I think it was around 20-30% prior to coronavirus — and note that prior to 2017 there was a legally required 35% recovery ratio).
I put this out there because there are certainly very good ways to make the argument that you are making, but I don’t think you’re going to have much luck saying that non-drivers are subsidizing drivers. It’s simply not factually accurate.
Dangerous_Wave t1_j5dob7c wrote
85 minutes is not "oh boo hoo, those nasty cars! Boo hoo."
Who tf is giving me cash for my car btw? Because I use a street I pay taxes to live on and repair?
Its a goddamned wonder that twit Cox didnt get in with the return to the 30s attitude around here.
A_Damn_Millenial t1_j5c7wzn wrote
On principle, I’d generally agree with parking should not be free. However, convenient and safe alternatives to driving are a requirement if the goal is reducing the number of cars in the city.
Infrequent busses and painted bike lanes aren’t good enough.
physicallyatherapist t1_j5dl0hk wrote
Lol out here trying to do straw man arguments when permit parking was to actually raise money for public transportation so this stuff improves. What a 🤡
Edit: dude blocks me because I call him out. Never claimed that if we charge people for parking then all of a sudden they can just take the bus. It's to raise money for public transportation and not just give away free parking
Dangerous_Wave t1_j5dno1j wrote
You and your strawman shit again. "Doesn't affect me so it's invalid la la la."
"Raise money to improve public transportation" riiiiiiiiigght. Like the sports betting goes to the schools. I got a bridge to sell you real cheap and some ocean front property in Wyoming.
queen_icyday t1_j59sphv wrote
This is what happens when busses run on headways instead of times tables
pinball_sprout t1_j5a6dlo wrote
What app is this? Other than bad bus schedules it looks very helpful
SimonGarfunkel-Thyme t1_j5a9o5c wrote
Transit app and it’s very helpful! The best part I learned is a lot of cities (not DC though) also run on transit so you can plan your routes when traveling.
destroy_the_machines t1_j5bezff wrote
I use Transit in DC, but only for subway and trains, I haven't looked at buses there since I only need it to get to and from work.
Shiny_Deleter t1_j5b9z0d wrote
That is disrespectful.
PleaseBmoreCharming t1_j5aeu8g wrote
OP, when did it end up arriving??
MD_till_i_die OP t1_j5gfbb6 wrote
Some say I'm still waiting for that bus.
Velghast t1_j5a74uo wrote
Just saying the bus in Miami would come maybe once an hour. I'll take the MTA over dade county any day.
Blatmore t1_j59vqc9 wrote
We just need to do bike lanes and it will fix this, apparently. Personally I think we should use the bike lanes for skinny buses.
TerranceBaggz t1_j5c7hja wrote
I mean we do need to do bike lanes. We also need to improve our bus system. More busses with more frequency, signal priority and separated, protected bus lanes. Cars are the problem. Bikes aren’t making busses late, cars and disinvestment are.
Blatmore t1_j5d2cep wrote
Bikes are literally ableist but go off
physicallyatherapist t1_j5dmpq6 wrote
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Blatmore t1_j5eo4xs wrote
It's unreal how problematic you're being. You haven't even begun to imagine the intersectional nature of your offenses. This does real harm to vulnerable folx.
physicallyatherapist t1_j5etjre wrote
Lol
Blatmore t1_j5ffvor wrote
Ok I'm glad we're at a place where we can have fun now. ♥️
TerranceBaggz t1_j5ha1ja wrote
It’s ableist of you to claim disabled people can’t ride bikes. Come up with something that’s not a BS retread as to why you’re carbrained.
Blatmore t1_j5jje1c wrote
This seems very yikes!
TerranceBaggz t1_j5lra8z wrote
Yes you are very yikes. Go troll somewhere else.
Blatmore t1_j5m3u9m wrote
Wow so you're ready to exclude 85% of disabled people?
TerranceBaggz t1_j5pxevz wrote
Wow you’re generalizing all disabled people which is the definition of ableist. While I simply said “it’s ableist of you to claim disabled people can’t ride bikes.” So I cited data that showed you were wrong, you doubled down and proved me correct, then since you knew you did, you goal post moved to yet another incorrect and easily disprovable position. Again, just go away troll.
Blatmore t1_j5qpzdc wrote
You said I was trolling, then you continued to try to argue. So I tried to be even more absurd.
I still say bike lanes are ableist. Particularly when 85% of disabled people can't use them.
TerranceBaggz t1_j5r0x78 wrote
Just because “only” 15% of disabled people cycle (actually surprisingly high IMO) doesn’t mean 85% of disabled can’t use bike lanes. That’s a logical fallacy and is easily proven wrong. People in wheelchairs and mobility scooters etc use them all the time to get around. In fact that was a primary motivator for the Big Jump on Druid Hill Lake Dr. I’ve seen plenty of disabled people using Maryland Avenue also. But if you never bike, and only ever drive around sheltered in a car, you don’t notice these things. Also, you are trolling. It doesn’t mean your stupid arguments aren’t worth swatting aside and disproving so that others can learn from your stupidity.
Blatmore t1_j5r3dxn wrote
You know, I never actually opposed bike lanes before, but you're so insufferably sanctimonious and condescending that I will now be a single issue voter: no bike lanes. In fact, I will now call them bike "lames" because of how lame they are.
ElectricStar87 t1_j5jfqbj wrote
Pretty sure there are some great 2D busses made by Calvin & Hobbes Motor Coaches LTD.
Blatmore t1_j5jjsjg wrote
I think it's great that people think I'm serious when I've proposed "skinny buses"
Xanny t1_j58a7k5 wrote
I really hope Wes does something about this, its just embarrassing on a national stage for a state this rich to be unable to run busses.