Published 28 Jun, 2011
Transit workers and riders scored a victory in New York when the State Legislature passed a bill that prevents funding dedicated to public transit from being raided, which will help prevent fare hikes, service cuts and layoffs, especially at the MTA in New York City.
The Transit Funding Lockbox Act passed the State Senate on June 22 and is headed to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s desk for his final signature. Under the legislation, the State budget director would be prohibited from diverting money allocated for mass transit to other projects, unless there is legislative approval and a statement on the assessed impact of reallocating funds. In the past three years, a total of $260 million in funding for the MTA has been diverted, which has contributed to rising costs for riders and cutbacks in service.
“It’s not only a win for public transportation, but for good government. It also demonstrates that transit workers teaming with transit riders and responsible legislators is a winning combination,” said TWU Local 100 President John Samuelson. “Had this bill been in place last year, we wouldn’t have had to face the massive service reductions and layoffs that caused so much pain for workers and riders.”
The bill was strongly supported by TWU Local 100 and a diverse coalition of organizations including transit riders, environmentalists, community groups, fellow unions and business.