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Friday, 10 February 2012 08:48

Written by Jon Schmitz

The House version of a five-year transportation authorization bill continues to draw scorn from many quarters. Thanks to Marty Marks of the AFL-CIO for a heads-up on this New York Times editorial about how the bill shafts public transit and the environment.

Patrick McMahon, president of Local 85 of the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents Port Authority drivers, mechanics and first-level supervisors, has this to say about a provision that he says would require privatization of some transit service for localities to continue to receive federal funding:

The ancillary benefits of public transit in reducing traffic congestion, easing urban parking demands, contributing to cleaner air and better health and energizing local economies go far beyond the cost per rider and money collected in fare boxes. Private companies have no reason to care about these ancillary benefits because they do not add to the profitability of their ventures.

In Pennsylvania, nearly 20,000 people work in public transit. Half-a-million more use transit to get to their jobs. Millions more who drive and businesses who use our streets and roads for purposes of commerce benefit in nearly immeasurable ways from less congestion and faster access to their destinations.

The fact is public transit workers don’t just drive buses and trains, they drive our economy. Congress cannot strike another crippling blow to economic recovery.

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