Community Transit to Hold Public Hearing On Service Cuts

Community Transit will hold a public hearing at the Rosehill Community Center on July 7th to listen to public testimony on proposed service cuts. The 2012 service cut will equal about another 80,000 hours of service, roughly the same amount of service that was cut in 2010.

"The economic downturn has really hurt public agencies that rely on sales tax revenues," said Councilmember Dave Gossett, who also chairs the Community Transit Board. "In 2007, Community Transit collected $76 million in sales tax revenue, its primary funding source. The past two years, sales tax collections have been stuck at about $62 million."

This round of cuts is in addition to service cuts of 15 percent in June 2010, including elimination of Sunday and holiday service. In the last three years, Community Transit has cut about $29 million in program and administrative expenses, raised fares twice, deferred projects and purchases, and cut service by 15 percent.  More than 100 positions have been eliminated at the agency so far due to budget cuts.

By summer of 2012 Community Transit will have cut about a third of the service and about a third of the employees compared to the beginning of 2010.

"No one likes these cuts but they are necessary to keep the agency viable, so that Community Transit can provide transportation for Snohomish County residents well into the future," said Gossett. "We need to recognize that revenues will not come back quickly."

On June 2, 2011 Community Transit released to the public three alternatives for achieving the 20 percent cut. Two of those alternatives focus on reducing the frequency of trips, while the third alternative proposes a restructuring of bus service in Snohomish County. At least one of the alternatives will restore a skeletal level of Sunday service, which will mean deeper cuts the rest of the week.

Throughout the month of June, the agency took public comment on the alternatives at five community open house meetings and a dozen rider forums and bus ride-alongs. Details of the proposals are available on the agency's website http://www.commtrans.org/News/SystemChange.cfm.

"The Board hopes to receive a lot of input regarding the service cuts," said Gossett. "These are hard decisions and we welcome the public's comments."

The public hearing on the three alternatives will take place at 5:00 pm at the Rosehill Community Center (304 Lincoln Ave, Mukilteo) on July 7th. The board is expected to take action on a final service cut scenario in September. The cuts will take effect on Feb. 19, 2012.

Public Works Committee Will Hold 3rd Transportation Panel

A third transportation dealing with mobility will be held on Tuesday, July 5, at 9:00 am. The two previous panels discussed transit and the impact of transportation on economic growth and jobs.

"We're going to focus in this panel on mobility," said Councilmember Dave Gossett. "We'll look at how people get to work, how customers get to businesses, and how freight and goods move to and from those businesses."

The members of the third panel are Catherine Keck Anderson, Bayer Health Care; Victoria Lindsey, Esterline Control Systems; Carrie Dolwick, Transportation Choices; and Kim Espy, Naval Station Everett.

Panelists will be asked to address three questions:

• How do your employees get to work? What modes of transportation are most important? How do they work together?
• How important is ease of transportation to your operations in terms of your employees, your customers, and your needs for freight?
• How important are transportation choices and the amount of congestion in your future decisions about growth and expansion?

"Transportation is a key issue for Snohomish County residents," said Gossett, who chairs the Council's Public Works Committee. "We need to make sure we understand all the modes people use as we look for solutions."

The panel will be held on Tuesday, July 5 at 9:00 am in the Jackson Board Room (8th Floor of the Drewel Building). It can also be viewed at that time or a later time over the internet by clicking on  http://snohomish.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2  Then click on "Public Works Committee" and choose the video for the July 5, 9:00 am meeting.

Happy Independence Day

The 4th of July weekend is a great opportunity for family fun while remembering our history and those who sacrificed to keep us free. We should all take a moment to think about how much we owe our service men and women, past and present.

There are many local celebrations to take part in. Visit the Snohomish County Tourism Bureau at http://www.snohomish.org and enter "4th of July" in the "Search" box to view a list of events.

Wishing you and your family a Safe and Happy Fourth of July Holiday Weekend!