FULL REPORT: Fair Fares: A Campaign for Better Transit

Cleveland, OH, February 20, 2018

Riders from Clevelanders for Public Transit will be presenting a vision to improve public transit at the RTA board meeting today.

At just 39.5 million rides per year, RTA ridership reached an all-time low in 2017; falling by more than 30 percent since 2007. Over the same decade, RTA riders have endured ever increasing fares for continually diminished service. Fare increases combined with service reductions have resulted in a death spiral.

“I have used public transit as my sole form of transportation for the over 20 years that I have lived Cleveland,” said Lynn Solomon, RTA rider and member of Clevelanders for Public Transit. “For decades, RTA was a great mode of transportation, but recently I have been very, very concerned about the service cuts and the cost of the fares.”

Since 2007 fares have nearly doubled while service has decreased by nearly 25 percent. RTA Riders today pay a larger share of their income for transit than any other mid-sized city in the country. RTA’s board must act to reverse this death spiral.

Clevelanders for Public Transit’s Fair Fares platform is the solution to the issues facing transit in Cuyahoga County. More affordable fares and rider friendly policies are needed to reverse the death spiral. Given that the State of Ohio has not adequately funded public transit for years, Clevelanders for Public Transit supports transit funding at the local level.

RTA’s board must act to create a ballot initiative this year for more local funding. The death spiral of public transit results in the decline of our entire region’s economy. As the Fund for Our Economic Future has stated, bringing “jobs to people” is only half of the story; RTA must also be able to bring “people to jobs.” Northeast Ohio will continue to decline without adequate transit.

Clevelanders for Public Transit will present their Fair Fares platform at the RTA board meeting, today at 9 a.m at RTA’s Main Office, 1240 W. 6th St. In addition, riders will be meeting at 6 p.m. at Neighborhood Connections, 5000 Euclid Ave. Anyone who is interested in learning more about the Fair Fares platform should attend. Food will be provided.