METRO RESPONDS TO MY FIRST ROUND OF QUESTIONS- WITH MARKETING PROPAGANDA, NOT ANSWERS

This is a link to the original post, which was sent as the body of an email to Metro's Chief of System Planning and Development. http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/dear-metro-some-questions-for-you.html

Talking to Metro executives is almost exactly like talking to their website.

The first time I spoke with this executive it was before the first Fare Increase hearing in City Hall.  I was furious (but polite, if demanding). So furious that I started this blog and printed up leaflets the day before.  I had called Metro to ask a number of questions, but my main one seemed like a "no-brainer".

So simple a question that I expected these Executives to be able to answer it off the top of their head.  (I then would have gone to immediately have a money wizard check to see if it was accurate, but I expected it to be an easy answer.)

My question: You propose three fare options?  How do they all equal up to 2.5 million dollars a year?  (I actually didn't know the 2.5 million number, my question was how do all these equations add up to x amount of dollars?)

Metro Executive's answer: "How is that even relevant?"

Dumbfounded.  Me. Really.  Almost made me speechless. (Almost.)

I'd spent the last two or three days (since seeing the sign posted that fares were going up) reading through their ridiculous website.  (They bought some used big buses from a place in California, and quoted the owner of the used bus company saying they were "great stewards of federal funds."  Because they bought buses from him.  Really.)

They site many population statistics and talk about growth and decline, but come to no conclusions on what they mean for determining the public transit needs of those areas.  They base their entire system-wide development on three "tiers" from a study done in 1989.   They boast about how great they are doing, while explaining that it wasn't their fault that they cut 24 bus lines in 2009 and twenty to thirty percent of other services.

Metro executives, you are "stewards" of HUGE PILES OF FEDERAL MONEY, plus MORE OF MY MONEY WITH NO SERVICE IMPROVEMENTS.  If you want me to buy your propaganda that you need 2.5 MILLION MORE A YEAR, please explain to me exactly how that is going to come about from each of these options?

(Accountants and money wizards, am I wrong?  They supply a spreadsheet in the answers section, but it doesn't show how they are computing it.  They don't seem to show any data on how many of these passes and train fares were purchased in the past.  Or who and how often rides the Metro and bus?   Plus ONLY 22% of their revenue comes from rider fares!!! I am against privatization of public transit for political and sociological reasons, but it doesn't appear that is going to catch on, anyhow!)

And based on looking through the website, there is almost no solid statistical data on who the average bus rider is, and what fares they pay, frequency they ride, etc.  SO HOW THE *&@! did you come up with those numbers?  Just some previous years data?  Hoping it will all plug in the same?

If you can't explain that to me clearly (see the response below for what they did send me) HOW DARE YOU ASK ME TO PAY FOR YOUR MISMANAGEMENT OF FUNDS?!!

Especially considering you do not seem very focused or aware of the people that need your services the most.

Most of this is just cut and paste from the website.  But it is worth reading.  The truth is, if they fired this Executive tomorrow, only the face would change, not the job being done.  If Metro hired someone that knew how to make things work, they would fire that person.

This entire agency is set up to provide mediocre service, funneling the most government funds to wealthy developers, and selling itself by comparing it to deplorable service in other cities.  

Below is the whole response.

**************************************

Jessica Mefford-Miller

Chief of Planning and System Development

Metro
707 North First Street
St. Louis, Missouri 63102-2595
Ph: 314.982.1479
jnmefford@metrostlouis.org

**********************************************************

Dear Metro (in particular, Chief of Planning and System Development):

1) What funds are going into developing sanitation facilities (toilets) at Metro bus transfer centers and MetroLink stations?  What consideration is being given to this most basic of human needs?

Metro will make efforts to add restroom facilities at new construction projects.  Current restroom facilities on the alignment are made possible through arrangements with retail contractors.  For example, at Riverview Hall MetroBus Center, the owner of the convenience store maintains a public restroom as part of his rental agreement with the agency.  Similar arrangements will be sought at the facilities we are creating in north county and downtown.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/metro-bus-and-train-stations-need-more.html

2) You say that one million people ride public transit every year.  How do you count the number of individual people that ride?  I can see where it would be easy to count your 55 million boardings, but how are you counting individuals?  Do you do surveys? Do you know what neighborhoods use your services the most? What are your busiest buses?  What are your busiest transfer centers?  What are your least-used bus and train lines?

Metro counts individual boardings on its buses and trains using two primary mechanisms. On MetroBus, fare boxes count passengers boarding. Each time a customer swipes a pass or uses the fare box to insert currency or coin, or the operators inputs a boarding, that information is recorded. On MetroLink, Metro counts boardings using automated passenger counters, which are infrared sensors located above each door on each train. This information is uploaded to servers nightly. Metro reports this information, called ridership, on a monthly basis.

Metro also completes periodic customer surveys, in which we ask customers questions about how often they ride (number of days per week) and how often they transfer per trip. This information can be used to produce an estimate of the number of people who use Metro on a regular basis. In addition, the US Census long form asks respondents to report their usual mode of travel for their journey to work. This does not include everyone who ever uses Metro for any propose, but it is useful information.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/how-much-does-metro-know-about-its-most.html

3) You say that you are connecting people with jobs, yet your own maps (actually the East West Gateway Council of Governments' maps) of areas with the lowest ownership of cars are underserved, as are many of the areas with the most jobs.  The connectivity between the areas is also badly served in all but a few places (Central West End, Downtown).  Shouldn't that be your highest priority? What are you doing to change that?

Metro's highest purpose is to connect people with jobs, which is why Metro's routes are intended to move residents from home to work. Routes are designed with both residential and employment density in mind, as well as the specific characteristics of individuals who work/live in each place. Metro's service plan responds to these transit needs as budget permits. You'll find that routes are spaced more closely in higher-density areas, and are more sparse in lower-density areas and communities with relatively low utilization. 

It is critical to understand that Metro's ability to provide transit service is bound by available funding. The majority of the funds required to support transit service are provided by local sales tax proceeds. About 22% of the cost to provide service is supported by passenger fares, and even Metro's most productive routes require taxpayer subsidy to operate. 

4) When will more Metrolink service be available in north Saint Louis, and south city areas such as South Grand and Dutchtown?  Can you proved the public and OPTINSTL with maps of existing tracks, development plans, and feasibility studies?  If so, how do we access them?

Major capital expansion projects are the result of regional decisions led by elected officials who are members of the East West Gateway Council of Governments.  This body has not made a decision about the next MetroLink expansion.  Funding is a more immediate consideration.  Currently, the cost of light rail alignments averages $70 million per mile to construct.  Federal and State funding will be required for expansion. The St. Louis County Council passed a measure that mandates acquiring federal funding support for future projects.  The federal government also requires matching funds from the local community.  In the past, federal support for light rail projects required 50% from the local community.  Progress was made toward that end in 2010 when voters approved Proposition A.  Funds from Proposition A are being used for two purposes -- to support current operations and to build a matching fund suitable for an expansion project. 

5) You allow universities and employers to subsidize transit passes for employees, seemingly at their discretion.  You also sell "semester passes" to college students. Do you have any plans in development to offer passes at a discount to low-income people on welfare, and the unemployed?  Have you reached out to these agencies to look for ways to provide low cost passes to the disadvantaged-- which would seem to be your largest rider base?

Universities have the option of contracting with us for group discounts.  Social Service agencies are also able to purchase tickets at a discount based on the volume of tickets they buy.  We do not discount for employers.  Their advantage is found in the payroll tax benefit they get for subsidizing transit.  The student semester pass sold to individuals is available to full time students 23 years or younger regardless of their financial status.  

6)  Can you point me to the official story of how the proposed St. Charles MetroLink was rejected? What lessons did Metro learn from this? Also, why was a train put into Shrewsbury when north Saint Louis has the greatest need?  Can you offer any assistance to the public and OPTINSTL on how to make sure future trains are not blocked?

While many residents and some elected officials talk to us, on occasion, about expansion possibilities, the majority of St. Charles County voters have voted against bringing MetroBus and MetroLink into that county.  Those voters will decide when and if they want to tax themselves in order to operate Metro transit in their county.  

Major capital expansion projects are the result of regional decisions led by elected officials who are members of the East West Gateway Council of Governments.  The Shrewsbury expansion decision was a regional one and the next expansion will be the result of a regional decision as well.  The public, as it did with the Shrewsbury alignment, will have opportunity for input well before final decisions are made about future expansion.

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-apalling-racist-fiasco-of-2005-and.html

7) Many of your bus stops are badly placed and many are not marked with the identifying information for the bus lines that stop there. None of them have schedules, routes, or fares posted.  There seems to be a lack of coordination and planning with the cities (who decide where the bus stops can be placed) on trash cans, lighting, sidewalk repair and so forth.  Especially in low-income areas where families with young children ride the bus, this seems like it should be an obvious priority.  What plans are in place to create better bus stops?
In particular, to post route, schedule and fares?  I have suggested two sheets of acrylic, three sided (the top would be sealed to prevent moisture from precipitation) with holes at the top and bottom, to be bolted to the metal poles that the bus stops signs are mounted on.  I was told it was too expensive.  Can you direct me to the feasibility study that was done that determined this cost was too high?

Metro has worked to improve bus stop spacing and locations. However, Metro does not own the land our over 7,400 bus stops are placed on. We do not have the authority nor funding to install sidewalks, lighting, benches, etc. at all bus stops throughout the region. However, we are working with our partners including MoDOT, the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County to make improvements to bus stops throughout the region. We are completing this work through federal grants to the greatest extent they are available (which typically support 80% of project cost, matched by 20% local sales tax proceeds). 

Metro is also working to improve signage at bus stops. We have secured some funding to replace bus stop signs throughout the region, though we do not yet have enough grant funding to begin the project. As funds become available, we anticipate replacing existing bus stop signs with new, larger signs that include more customer information including: route(s) served, Customer Service phone number, Metro website and brief instructions on how to obtain information about next bus times. We are working now to implement several new features that will provide customers with more transit information, including real-time arrival information via desktop applications, mobile applications, text messaging and Metro's Transit Information call center. 

Posting print schedules at all MetroBus stops is not feasible due to issues of cost and durability. We do not have sufficient manpower to post schedule information at all bus stops (and re-post when schedules are damaged, stolen, or changed). A better solution is to rely on the channels mentioned above, as well as Metro's print timetables. Schedule information is posted at all Transit Centers and MetroLink stations, and could potentially be included at Metro's busiest bus stops as part of the signage project.

8) Are there any plans to extend the Customer service information?  It is nice that you started the phone and email alerts, but many low-income people do not have data service on their phones.  When people need to reach Metro the most, it is usually late at night and on weekends.

I understand your concerns about Metro's limited hours of Customer Service. We reduced our workforce in 2009 due to budget shortfalls and have not restored our manpower to prior levels. We do have a couple of options for improving our delivery of customer information, one of which would be to extend hours. This is the most expensive option and funding this increase in staff may be difficult. Other options are to provide more, better, and more timely information using the channels referenced above including subscription service alerts, text messaging, mobile applications and desktop applications. These channels require less funds to support, freeing up more resources for putting transit service on the street.

9) You are raising fares by 5%, but offer no explanation of how the three fare options all will equal the same amount of money -- 2.5 million dollars per year.  Can you direct me to the studies that were done, and how each of the three options totals up?

Metro staff reviewed a number of potential fare structures to identify several options that are estimated to meet revenue goals of $2.5 million per year in increased passenger revenue. Those scenarios, along with projected revenue increases are shown below. These are projections only.

10) You also own Downtown St. Louis Airport, and the Arch and Riverboat Trams.  How much of the revenues generated from those entities are used for public transportation?  Have you investigated selling these entities to private companies?  If so, have you done any discovery of what impact this would have on the public transit system?  Would sale of these entities provided you with needed funds to improve existing services?

The Bi-State Development Agency (BSDA) owns and operates the Downtown St. Louis Airport and the Gateway Arch Riverboats.  By contract with the National Parks Service, BSDA operates the Arch Trams, Arch retail operations and Arch Garage.  A fee from each of these enterprises is paid to the agency and thereby in part supports the administration of the transit operation.  These entities were purchased (or supported) by BSDA to do what the agency was created to do -- be an economic development engine for the bi-state St. Louis area.  The airport had been shuttered for several years. At the request of the region, BSDA reopened it and turned it into the third largest airport in the state of Illinois.  The boats were going to be sold to another city, leaving little on the riverfront for families to enjoy after visiting the Arch.   The region came to BSDA and asked the Agency to keep them for the St. Louis riverfront.  The Parks Service needed BSDA to help complete the vision for the Gateway Arch.  These are all very similar situations to when the region asking the agency to purchase 15 failing bus companies and turn them into what is now Metro transit. 

11) Can you explain why there is not more outreach work done-- such as rider surveys, and having Metro officials available on buses and Metrolink to make feedback more convenient to the riders?  To come to your hearings, those of us that don't have the money to buy bus passes have to pay to come, in addition to having our day disrupted.  And you would reach a much greater portion of customers by coming to them.

Metro has reached out to customers about the fare increase through the following mechanisms: Posting signage on buses, trains, MetroLink Stations and MetroBus transit centers; publishing news releases that have been covered by local news media; advertising in local newspapers including the St. Louis Post Dispatch, Belleville News Democrat and St. Louis American; posting on Metro's website at www.metrostlouis.org; and via Metro's blog at www.NextStopSTL.org; and via social media (Facebook and Twitter). 

Through these outlets, Metro has published that we are soliciting feedback not only at the four scheduled meetings, but also via a telephone hotline; e-mail; a web survey; and US Postal mail. 

12) Why doesn't Metro require employees that are not drivers or train operators to ride public transportation from the closest park and ride location from their homes, at least once a week?

Mandated use of transit is not a condition of employment.  However, we encourage employees to take advantage of the transit system and many employees do.

13) In 2009, a year after the economic collapse in the U.S., and after four years- by your own statistics-- of increasing ridership, you had to severely cut services.  Do more riders equal more revenue?  And how so?  Can you direct me to the mathematical algorithms and statistical models (excuse me if my terminology is wrong) that you use to determine how many riders and at what fare structure you need to increase services?

Metro reduced service in 2009 in response to an approximately $50 million budget deficit. This deficit was created after years of increased costs and service expansions without sufficient revenue to support those expansions. Without revenue to support service, Metro was forced to scale service back to a level that could be supported within the available financial resources.
As discussed above, passenger revenue supports only about 22% of the cost to operate transit service. The remainder of that cost is supported primarily through local sales tax proceeds. Passenger revenues could not have been increased to a level that would have sustained service in the face of this budget deficit.

Metro's policy moving forward is to grow passenger revenues at a rate that will keep pace with inflation, in part to prevent future service cuts (assuming other revenue sources including local sales tax proceeds and federal funding are not diminished).

http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/why-were-so-many-bus-lines-shut-down-in.html

14) Your website says that for every $1 a community invests in public transit, it receives $4 in federal money via Metro/Bi-State.  Can you explain to me exactly how that works?  Where does the $1 come from, and who gets paid the $4 in return? Also, is this true equally, for all communities?  And if so, does that mean that lower-income areas are lower served, because they have fewer dollars to contribute?

The American Public Transit Association (www.apta.com) reports that for every $1 invested in transit service, $4 in economic value are returned through development spurred by transit and wages generated by transit riders. Metro does not calculate these statistics, nor are they calculated by APTA for service sub-areas. 

14) The Loop Trolley Transportation District was just awarded $25 million from an Urban Circulator Grant.  The reasons for the Public Transit riders to oppose the proposed Trolley are numerous.  What partnerships are Metro building with local communities to put Urban Circulators in areas that really need them?  How much exploration has been done on Urban Circulators?

Metro is not working to advance the construction of any particular streetcar routes. Metro's long-range plan (http://metrostlouis.org/MovingTransitForward.aspx) includes several options for expanding transit service. If Metro's funding partners, the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County were to become interested in constructing a streetcar route to serve a particular transportation need, we would conduct a feasibility study.

 http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-loop-trolley-is-about-getting.html

These are the answers I can provide for you without requiring that you file a Sunshine request for research and compilation of documentation.  If you need such documentation, please contact Shirley Bryant in the agency’s Legal Department at sbryant@metrostlouis.org.

JOIN THE MOVEMENT FOR BETTER PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IN SAINT LOUIS

I hope you are reading this because you want to live in a city with a great public transportation system.

I started this blog on March 24th when I heard about the upcoming fare increase in July.

I rely on public transportation, and occasional rides from friends.

I am white, but I currently live in Riverview Gardens, about 2 miles from the Riverview Transfer Center.

The difference between bus and train service south of the "Delmar Divide" is shocking.  Especially considering that north St. Louis city and county have the largest population of people that rely on and use public transportation.

I am tired of Metro's failure to provide decent service, and the obvious racism of the East West Gateway Council of Government , the people that tell Metro where they can put a train or bus, the "Local 1%", the "Good Ole Boy Network."

I don't have a plan (yet), but I am researching Metro and writing as much as I can, and sharing it.

I believe we can change the system so that it serves us better! I hope you do to!

If you want to do something else, or take this from a different angle, please let me know and I will post your link on this blog.  I just want this system changed.  It doesn't matter to me who does it or how. there is a lot to do.

If you want to use anything on this blog, please do with full permission.  Spread the word!

If you have any ideas for action, suggestions about what Metro can do (tell them too!), information, or if you want to share your "stores from the bus", please email optinstl@gmail.com
 
DON'T JUST RIDE THE BUS! OCCUPY IT!

READ THIS POST FOR ACTIONS TO TAKE

TODAY'S HEARING ON THE FARE INCREASE AT CLAYTON GOVERNMENT CENTER

Metro says they love feedback, but they don't make themselves accessible to the public.

These "hearings" seem designed to be inconvenient to their riders.  Unless you are in the neighborhood, or somewhere right on the train line, and have time off during the week at lunch or during rush hour, you probably won't go.

If they really want responses to their "Fare Increase Options" they should bring those things to the riders.  If they had set up at a metrolink or bus transfer center they would have gotten many more responses.  They could have talked to their customers.  Gotten real feedback.

I don't work for Metro, and I am out handing out flyers, and I have heard so many stories today.  I had one twenty minute wait time between transfers and one 25 minute wait time between buses, and I talked to fifty people.  That is twenty more than I saw show up for the whole 2 hour period at the Metro Fare Increase Hearing at City Hall, and in less time.

They also could have had representatives ride the buses and trains and hand out those surveys.

Metro, your actions speak louder than all those fancy words and fluffy statistics on your website.

METRO TO OPTINSTL: DO OUR JOB FOR US

At yesterday's public hearing on the Fare Increase, OPT IN STL (me) handed out flyers with this blog address to several Metro executives.

One of the upper level (white, upper middle class, male) executives commented, after I introduced myself as "his worst nightmare", that I was Metro's dream come true.

"We love feedback!"

OPT IN STL detailed many of the improvements that could be made, and suggested that Metro read this website for more.

After every suggestion for improvement, the executives responded with "you should send that in to our customer service website."
(This one in particular: http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/why-dont-bus-drivers-sell-day-passes.html

People, this is what I am talking about.  I am doing this on my own time and my own dime.  I have ALREADY written all this stuff down and provided you with the information to access it.

Is Metro too lazy to read?  We've already determined that they don't use their own services.(http://optinstl.blogspot.com/2014/03/do-metro-executives-ride-public-transit.html)

And instead of conducting rider surveys, or holding the hearings at bus and metrolink transfers centers, which would be far more convenient for the people that use their service, and get a much higher return of surveys and feedback, they hold only three hearings at inconvenient times, in inconvenient places.  (They didn't even post that many signs about the hearing.  Only a few at the main Metrolink stations.)

Apparently they don't know how to use the internet either.

When you hold a public hearing, and 30 people show up, OPT IN STL thinks that maybe Metro should be prepared to actually listen to (instead of talk at) those people.

Metro should be prepared to do the legwork to get the information they need.

DO METRO EXECUTIVES RIDE PUBLIC TRANSIT? METRO REPRESENTATIVE: "RIDING THE BUS IS NOT CONVENIENT"

At today's public hearing about the Metro fare increases, one of the questions I asked the Metro Representatives was if they rode the buses themselves.

They all had such cute, humorous stories.  Like the big-time Executive that picks a bus line to ride once or twice a month, because "it's my job".  One time, he thought he'd see if he could get off, get take-away food, and get back on.

"They just laughed at me," he said.  "Didn't even take me seriously.  But I was able to get on and off."

Of course, he didn't have to worry about paying the babysitter extra if the food was late and he missed the bus.  He didn't have to worry about his pass expiring and having to pay another $2 or $3 for another transfer. He didn't have to eat his food during the 20 minute (or more) wait for his next bus connection, or let it grow cold until he finally made it home.  It was all just for fun.

Another executive, Jessica Mefford-Miller, Chief of Planning and System Development, found my question offensive.  How dare I question her about her use of public transit?  How dare I suggest that Metro Executives should have to ride the transit that pays their salaries?! She finally confessed that for six years she rode the #90, about three times a week (6 boardings).  Then she moved to an area that is not served by public transportation. (She didn't say where that was.)

(I have a whole other post to write about Ms. Mefford-Miller.  If I had to pick a poster girl for the narrow-minded, self-congratulating, bureaucratic face of Metro, it would be her.  She does not listen, but waits to respond.  And when she talks, it is in carefully rehearsed marketing double-speak: a lot of words with little content.)

The last executive I asked this question of had ridden the train only a few times. I asked her if CEO Nations, who lives in Chesterfield, rode the bus to work?

"Of course he does!" She exclaimed. 

"So he rides the #91 to the Delmar Metrolink and then the train? Because that is a long, boring trip"
I didn't go into it, because she has never ridden the #91, but the route does a detour between Olive and Spoede and Olive and North Warson that takes more than 20 minutes, depending on the time of day and which direction you are travelling. 

Even without the detour, for the CEO of Metro to "Ride to Work" would take him close two hours.

"So how often does he do that?" I wondered.

"Well, not very often, of course," she said.  "The buses aren't convenient."

Realizing what she had said (the truth, instead of the platitudes and rehearsed marketing speeches spouted by her co-worker, Ms. Mefford-Miller), she tried to backtrack. 

"Well, I mean, it's not convenient to an important CEO, he can't take hours out of his day like that."

So I said, "But it is okay for customers, likely traveling to minimum or low paying jobs to make that trip?"

The buses aren't convenient for anyone.  The bus robs people of their time.  Just ask a Metro executive.

HOW MUCH DOES METRO KNOW ABOUT IT'S MOST FREQUENT CUSTOMERS?

Here's another gem from the Metro Website. As with all their models and figures, these numbers come from 2008, before the economic crash.

http://metrostlouis.org/Libraries/MTF_documents/Moving_Transit_Forward_plan_document.pdf

Why is transit important?

Great cities have great transit systems. The St. Louis region is a

wonderful place in which to live, work, and play, but in recent decades

its population and job growth has stagnated. To change this, the

region must move forward and boldly redefine itself as a catalyst for

entrepreneurism, an attractor of talented young professionals, and a

place that considers the needs of all its citizens. Transit alone will not

make this happen, but it does play a vital role in shaping the region’s

quality of life and growing its economy. Here’s how . . .

Transit moves thousands of

people every day to work,

school, and life:

✦

More than 50 million times

each year, someone boards a

MetroBus, MetroLink train or

Metro Call-A-Ride van

✦

Most Metro customers ride to

work or school

✦

Metro customers in Missouri alone

earn more than $2.2 billion in wages

annually

✦

Metro carries nearly 2 million riders a a

year to special events

 

Nice Orwellian double-speak in the first paragraph- "great city" that has become economically "stagnant".   And that part about considering the needs of all its citizens.

Where do these numbers come from? That 2.2 Billion in wages? How is that divided? How many people is that? What is the average income?  Who is your average rider?  How often does he/she ride the bus or train?  How many transfers does he/she make? What is the average time of waiting for/riding public transportation?  Are there more train riders than bus? Do you make more money from the Metrolink or Metro bus?

Where did you gather that information?

IS YOUR MOST FREQUENT, PUBLIC TRANSIT DEPENDENT CUSTOMER ABLE TO SUPPORT A 5% INCREASE IN FARES?

53,767,000 PUBLIC TRANSIT BOARDINGS IN 2008

According to page 18 of this document on the Metro Website, "ridership" in 2008, was 53,767,000.

http://metrostlouis.org/Libraries/MTF_documents/Moving_Transit_Forward_plan_document.pdf

Ridership increased steadily, according to the Metro chart, from 2004-2008.  Yet, even with the every-2-year-fare increase,** and their 20 year "plan" from 1989, 24 bus lines were shut down in 2009.

(** CORRECTION/EDIT: in the past, according to a Metro representative, fares were raised sporadically and for more than 5%.  And they still couldn't manage.  So now we get an automatic increase every 2 years, and still no guarantees that service will remain stable.)

Was there any change, with the increased riders, in types of fares used to board? (More two hour transfers? more weekly passes? more one-way Metrolink cash fares?)

In what geographical locations did the ridership increase the most?

Were they suburban, park and ride, train commuters? Or was there an overall increase in people using the buses and trains more after the economy crashed and the price of gas got to high?

Did the steady increase in riders (from 2005-2008) result in more revenue or less?  Because if more riders means more revenue (and it may not), why did the system fail so badly in 2009?

Sorry, no information to be found.

It seems like it would be pretty easy to count the number of people that boarded a bus, but our Metrolink system uses the "Honor System".  (That means that randomly security and police officers board the trains.  This is an easy way for the police to legitimately harass people.)

Hard to know just how many people actually ride the trains, though.  You can count ticket and pass sales at the stations, but not much else. **

EDIT/CORRECTION:  I have been informed by Metro representatives that there are heat sensors that count -- as far as I could understand-- humans by their body heat, over the train doors when they open and close.  They assured me they were accurate.  I suppose they are.  

Metro operates with 160 million a year budget.  Yet they offer no coherent, understandable breakdown on where that money goes.  Or where it comes from.

WHY WERE SO MANY BUS LINES SHUT DOWN IN 2009?

According to page 16 of this document (see link below) on the Metro Website:

http://metrostlouis.org/Libraries/MTF_documents/Moving_Transit_Forward_plan_document.pdf 

Throughout 2009, the Metro Transit System faced several major challenges in maintaining consistent quality and levels of service. Escalating budget constraints forced Metro to make severe reductions:

32 percent of MetroBus, 23 percent of MetroLink, and 30 percent of Call-A-Ride service was cut throughout the entire St. Louis area. In August 2009, a $12 million special appropriation by the State of Missouri partially restored bus service to the Metro Transit System.  These reductions have negatively impacted ridership and the system’s overall geographic coverage.

WHY?  As with all their "statements" this one is not backed by any substantial information on what caused this crisis.  WHAT ARE THEY DOING WITH THEIR MONEY?

In 1989 they did a big government survey and came up with a "20 year Plan".  The document the above information comes from is part of their NEW 30 YEAR PLAN.

Since they failed to do what they said they would do in 20 years (and failed to predict or foresee how the 2008 economic "crash" in U.S. would effect them-- because a 20 year plan is rarely flexible and only updated when crisis) they now want us to back a new plan?  That runs for 30 years?

Have all the people that were involved in the 1989 plan fired?  Because that was former Mayor Vince Schoemehl's watch, and he is still on the Metro Board.  The 1989-2009 crew has proved their ineptitude and/or corruption.  They need to be removed from Metro.

Wouldn't inflation and an economic crisis result in MORE riders?  

From 2004-2008 Metro's own website claims that there were consistent increases in ridership.  So why didn't that make up for lost revenue?  Why did they need that 12 Million grant from the government?

And if bus service is supposedly restored, why isn't it better?

BRAND NEW BIG BUSES FOR THE 4, 64, AND 70, BUT WHAT ABOUT SMALLER BUSES?

Ah Metro, you are so perfectly designed to suck up federal money, sales tax, and rider revenues, without having to do any real work to make St. Louis Public Transportation viable for the people that depend on you!

You complain that you cannot operate without a 5% increase in fares every two years (without offering any substantial budget and operating costs for public audit).  You blame this on "inflation" (shouldn't that increase your ridership?), and also on diesel fuel costs.

Congratulations on the new bigger buses for your busiest lines! A Metrolink train would have been much nicer, but okay.  In St. Louis, we just have to take what we can get, right?

Hey now, what about all the buses that drive around mostly empty?!!!!!
Have you explored smaller van-type buses or shuttles?  
How many miles per gallon for the regular-size bus?  
How many transit passengers, using what fare structure, do these buses need to operate?  
Have you been monitoring lesser ridden routes to see if smaller vehicles would save you money?

Do I need to name some lines?  Okay, I will name two of them. The #14 (from the CWE station through the Shaw and Hill neighborhoods) and the #57.  I'll add more as I think of them. 

UNIVERSITY CITY TO MAPLEWOOD IS A ONE HOUR TRIP , ONE WAY

From fall of 2010 until the end of 2011 I rode Metro five days a week, Tuesday through Saturday, to and from my home in University City near Midland and Vernon, to my job in Maplewood near Sutton and Manchester.

When I first started this job I had use of a car.  It was 15 minutes drive, door to door, in the mid-morning, and about 20 to 25 minutes home at night during the end of rush hour.  It was such an easy drive, and pleasant, down Big Bend most of the way.

Then the car died.

No matter how I configured it, the trip always took at least an hour on public transportation.  And that was when the sidewalks weren't piled with snow or slippery with ice.

I could get the #2 at Schnucks, and ride it the whole exhausting way-- all it's Washington University subsidized twists and turns, through the campus and down Wydown, through Wal-Mart parking, etc.  (See the link to the route map, below).  It was an hour ride, plus another 15 to 20 minutes on foot, to and from the bus stop.  And the 2 only goes down Manchester once an hour.  It runs every 30 minutes, but goes as far as the Maplewood Metrolink, and does not travel on Big Bend at all when it goes down that route.  (Big Bend is much closer to Sutton than the Metrolink.)

http://www.metrostlouis.org/Libraries/Metrobus_Maps/Map02121313.pdf

I could ride the 2 to Enright and Eastgate, get off, and jog two blocks over to Skinker and Delmar and catch the #16 to Bellevue and Manchester, and walk the rest of the way.  If I had missed the #16 I got back on the #2 as it came from the Delmar Metrolink, and either ride it to the Blue Line Metrolink at Skinker and Forest Park Parkway, and then walk from the Maplewood Metrolink or wait for the #32 if the weather was bad.  Sometimes the wait for the #32 was shorter than my walk, sometimes it was a 40 minute wait.

Usually I just walked, even in bad weather, and sometimes out in the street, on Manchester, when the snowplows had just gone through and piled all the snow on the sidewalks.

I could also walk 25 minutes over the hill from Midland down to Big Bend and Forest Park Parkway to the Big Bend Blue Line station, catch the Metrolink Blue Line to Maplewood, and, again, catch the 32 if the timing was right, or walk the rest of the way.

(The Hanley bus to the Clayton Blue Line station required I leave 15 minutes earlier than any other option, and I am not a morning person.  I did that route once. It still took over an hour.)

No matter how I travelled, it was an hour, minimum, if I made all the connections on time.  (You cannot be late at all if you are dealing with public transit.)

In the 1980's the bus used to run down Big Bend.  It was a 30 minute ride from Webster Groves to the University City Library.  Then all of the buses were re-routed to the trains, during the 1990's, and then in 2009 Metro mis-managed itself so badly, it had to cut 24 lines and many were re-routed to pick up the slack.

And, of course, Washington University was allowed to subsidize several bus lines to more suit its' students, including the #2.

They say service has improved, but I made the trip in July of 2013 and it took me the same amount of time, and it was the same travel options.