Public transit is a vital force for the American economy.
The American Public Transportation Association estimates that 87% of trips directly benefit the local economy, with $1 invested in public transit believed to generate $5 in economic returns. Meanwhile, nearly $42 billion in transit spending goes directly to the private sector.
But the state of public transit in the U.S. Is declining rapidly as transit across the nation faces a fiscal crisis. Philadelphia’s SEPTA predicts a deficit of almost $269 million by 2027.
“The federal money that goes to transit services is largely limited to the capital costs,” said Peter Norton, an assistant professor of history at the University of Virginia. “That means building the infrastructure or buying the vehicles. But the operating costs are where the transit services are really pinched.”
What’s more, according to Nicholas Dagen Bloom, a professor of urban policy and planning at Hunter College, “the cost of living, operations and construction over the last 40, 50 years has far exceeded what is collected in fares.”
These financial deficits have led directly to deteriorating services.
“If a transit system doesn’t have enough money, we can limit the hour of services and the frequency of service,” said Norton. “But all of those things also deter ridership and encourage people to depend on their car instead.”
Ridership has continuously declined since 2015. And after seeing a steep drop during the pandemic, ridership has failed to recover to its previous levels.
“It’s a vicious cycle, right? If we have fewer users and riders, it’s difficult to justify significant public investment in that system,” said Yingling Fan, a professor of urban and regional planning at the University of Minnesota. “Therefore, it’s become more difficult to provide quality service. And because you have a lack of quality of service, you will continue to have a lack of users and riders.”
Watch the video to learn more about public transit in the U.S. And why it is in decline despite its economic benefits.
For six weeks, Florida Matters will explore how the state’s population boom is affecting important issues in our lives. In “Our Changing State,” we’ll share stories from local residents about how change has affected them. We’ll then invite experts in to answer questions you and your neighbors submitted through an online survey about each of these issues.
In the third part of our series, we’re talking about transportation.
You can see the signs of our growing population just by taking a drive anywhere in Florida. Whether it’s a commute that takes twice as long as it did a few years ago, the frustrating search for parking, or the chaos around road expansions, the simple fact is more people means more cars on the road.
WUSF’s Matthew Peddie met with Tampa resident Sharon Tagle on one of the many tree-lined streets around Tampa’s Seminole Heights neighborhood.
They talked about how Tagle gets around and how that experience of getting from place to place has changed.
Interview
WUSF’s Matthew Peddie talks with Tampa resident Sharon Tagle in Seminole Heights about how Tagle gets around and how that experience of getting from place to place has changed.
Listen • 5:42
As part of our exploration of what Florida’s growing population and rapid change means for the people who call this state home, we reached out to you — our listeners — to ask what you think. We’re putting those comments and questions to our expert guests.
This week, host Matthew Peddie talks with:
- Carl Mikyaska, staff director of the Pasco County Metropolitan Planning Organization
- Ruth Steiner, professor of urban and regional planning and director of the Center for Health and the Built Environment at the University of Florida.
Here’s a sampling of questions and comments submitted through our online survey (some have been edited for length and clarity):
Traffic is so congested, we do not have good public transit. — Nancy Hapner, Clearwater
Ruth Steiner: The way I think about this is great public transportation … Occurs frequently enough and goes from where people live to where they work or where they’re going to go. So the challenge is it’s a many-to-one relationship. Historically, it’s been many people going from the suburbs to jobs in the city. The dilemma is that, first of all, a part of what means, we can get frequently enough transportation generally speaking … You want no more than 15 to 20 minutes between buses.
Now, even with technology, you can predict when it’s going to occur. But you don’t want to have to think about if I randomly go to a bus stop, I only want to wait a few minutes. The dilemma is that, in order to get to that many-to-one relationship, we need higher density than large parts of Florida have, or we need a high penetration of transportation, meaning lots of people in a single neighborhood are going from one place to another. So then the question becomes, how do we get to that critical mass that’s necessary to have public transportation that’s effective and works well for the community?
Matthew Peddie
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WUSF Public Media
A Sunrunner bus in downtown St. Petersburg. The city launched the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service in October 2022.
Traffic even all the way up/out here is untenable. Too many housing developments approved in Eastern Pasco county with farm town infrastructure/roads. — Connie McMahan, Zephyrhills
Carl Mikyaska: It is absolutely a challenge. When we’re doing transportation, we’re looking at those new developments. And we’re looking at where they’re going so that we have that forecast to where we’re going to have future traffic demands. Simultaneously on the land use side, and Pasco County is currently working on their comprehensive plan. They’re looking at where the transportation improvements are going to be, we’re trying to link the two together by having them feed off of each other so that they are responsive to each other. And for the listeners, if they’re interested, we’re currently doing the Comprehensive Plan looking out to 2050. And that’s something that will be implemented between now and 2050.
Traffic is quite chaotic, and that isn’t new information. Highways are congested at all hours of the day. The construction/expansion of the highways i.E. 275. May be helping to resolve this issue for the future, but the amount of migration happening in Tampa is profound. I no longer have a car and rely on Lyft/Uber, or the HART system to get around. I do not want to spare no expense to be in Tampa traffic with a car and the cost of insurance. Public transportation needs alternative options such as more bus stops, rail, etc. — Margaret Stahl, Tampa
Carl Mikyaska: So that’s built into the overall cost of transportation via automobile. The problem that we have with the insurance is that it’s something you pay regardless of how much you drive. And so it’s a bit of a sunk cost, much like buying the automobile. Once you’ve purchased it, now it’s available. And so I don’t think it really goes into a decision-making process at the individual level for each trip. And that decision making — or look at it is — really only on the gas used and the time that it will take Yeah, the insurance doesn’t factor into there.
Matthew Peddie: What about things like Lyft and Uber? Where does that fit into Pasco County’s transit plan?
Carl Mikyaska: In terms of transit, one of the things that does work well with Lyft and Uber and even the little scooters is that for that last mile to get between either your home and transit or transit and your destination, you can use these. And particularly with as warm as it gets here, the idea of walking a mile or a mile and a half is not appealing to a traditional transit rider. And that fills a niche and really can help transit.
Ruth Steiner: I would say there’s another way that Uber and Lyft could be used. First mile and last mile is very important but I would also say late night service — whether we know there’s not enough service to have a large bus and maybe you could serve it with micro transit. But if this volume is small enough, someone knowing that they can get a ride home after eight o’clock at night may be important in getting them to take transit to go wherever they’re going in the first place.
Next week: Cultural history
You can listen to the full conversation by clicking on the “Listen” button above. Or you can listen on the WUSF app under “Programs & Podcasts.
Press-Citizen editor Brandon Hurley spent two years as a Cambus driver more than a decade ago. Pictured is a local Cambus in 2022 on the Pentacrest in Iowa City.
My brief yet fulfilling career as a bus driver got off to a bumpy start.
The memory is still crystal clear 15 years later.
After some struggle, I’d passed my written tests, the first step in obtaining a CDL. It was time to train. My experienced colleague led me to a neighborhood in the Hawkeye Drive area, ready to give me a lesson a two.
Once I’d completed the walk-through around the bus, I strapped in and began my career as an official bus driver.
Not so fast.
My first left, not even 45 seconds into the drive, ended in near disaster. I didn’t fully consider the bus’ protruding side mirrors and collided with the nearby speed limit sign.
Thankfully, the posted speed limit was 15 MPH, so the impact wasn’t too significant and no damage was done, but I still was left filing an accident report.
I was embarrassed and figured my lightning-quick bus driver career was over. Remarkably, I rebounded to drive two full years with Cambus, touring Iowa’s campus while developing a soft spot for public transportation.
All this recent local news of fare-free public transportation and the Department of Motor Vehicles moving to Coralville has me reminiscing just a bit.
More: Iowa City Transit will add four electric buses and build new bus barn with federal grant money
My Cambus struggles started well before I took the wheel.
The DMV was an arch-nemesis of sorts during my college years, as I made three bus trips in one week to the old Iowa City location.
I failed the written air brakes test twice, and it wasn’t even close.
I needed money, but the only job I’d applied for was quickly slipping away. The third time was the charm I needed.
Driving for Cambus was a spectacular college job. Which, as a sports nerd, consisted mostly of fantasy football podcasts and the old Bill Simmons podcast. I also jumped on the early days of the Dan Patrick Show, though I did play to the crowd on occasion and pumped out music.
Story continues
Unfortunately, my stint with Cambus ended a year too soon, and I never experienced the new bus station (adjacent to Kinnick Stadium) in all its glory. Believe it or not, dispatchers crammed into the old building barely bigger than most dorm rooms. There weren’t any fancy digital monitors, no air-conditioned waiting area, and pulling a bus in and out of the nearby passenger lane was a bit of a pain.
Editor Brandon Hurley loved his time as a Cambus driver.
Speaking of, I was also terrified of pulling the old, creaky Cambuses into the bus barn. I was afraid I’d smack my mirror again, this time either on a hard support beam or another bus.
I enjoyed driving for Cambus because of its simplicity. Clock in, jump behind the wheel, buckle up and shift into gear. There’s something rather tranquil about paid windshield time, navigating the elegant streets of Iowa City, and helping students get to and from class or the bars. Finding a rhythm is easy, especially on longer routes with limited stops.
My success as a Cambus driver even led to a short summer stint as a shuttle bus driver at the Iowa State Fair. That was another cool experience: I drove passengers to and from the fairgrounds on an extra-long DART bus.
Having a fare-free transit operation in Iowa City is a brilliant move.
Cambus has been operating like that for decades, and it works well. Yes, there are plenty of times when the buses are likely over capacity (take it from a former driver, we tried cramming as many passengers in as we could on Thursday nights. That radio came in handy for polite nudging), but I rarely had problems.
As a driver, avoiding customer issues was always a plus. Eliminating payments drastically decreased the opportunity for conflict. Though, I always appreciated it when my passengers thanked me for driving. It’s not a requirement, but appreciation is often free. Heck, one slightly drunk guy insisted on tipping me on a quiet Saturday night, forcing a $10 bill into my pocket. He was thankful he didn’t have to walk.
Taking the bus around campus was a huge time-saver, and its consistency was key. Safety is a bonus, too.
Buses were a huge part of my college life.
I even took a Greyhound bus to see my son’s mother in Illinois several times. I’d be a different man without buses.
I appreciate a good bus system and applaud Iowa City’s ambitious plan.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Tales from a former bus driver: A past built on public transportation
Thanks buzziova
