Eau Claire to receive public transit money
City gets $2 million as part of stimulus, will be used to update equipment
Allison Proite
Issue date: 4/30/09 Section: Campus News
Last Thursday Gov. Jim Doyle was in Eau Claire to announce that the city will be receiving $2 million in economic stimulus money to improve public transportation.
The $2 million will buy five new diesel buses, a new bus surveillance camera and a new maintenance truck.
"Investments that make travel safer, easier and more affordable will not only improve our quality of life, they will help get our economy back on track," Doyle said while in Eau Claire, according to his Web site.
Gwen Larson, the transit manager for Eau Claire, said this money is badly needed.
"We have eight 12-year-old buses that are in dire need of replacement. They have 600,000 to 700,000 miles on them, and they are literally falling apart," Larson said. "Our maintenance costs have skyrocketed in the last year due to these vehicles."
Besides having new vehicles for public transport, Larson is also pleased the city is receiving new surveillance cameras.
"The digital system can record up to eight cameras at once, meaning we can cover every inch of the bus, both inside and out," she said. "This will greatly increase our safety and security and reduce our liability costs."
Larson said the transit department deserves this money greatly because people depend on its services.
"I've been saying for years that public transit is an economic stimulus in and of itself," she said. "When we link our passengers to jobs, school, medical facilities, grocery stores … it has a tremendous impact on the economy."
The money the transit department is receiving will help stabilize bus fares, since there was a 50 percent increase two years in a row, Larson said.
"(Increasing bus fares) was a horrible thing to do to our transit-dependent passengers, particularly when they are struggling to keep and find jobs, pay their mortgages or rent and to put food on the table," she said. "A good portion of that fare increase was necessitated by the continued loss in state transit aids, along with the increase in maintenance costs, and the city's inability to cover the full difference."
Eau Claire is one of 48 small urban areas that are receiving money for transit projects around the state as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding for Wisconsin. The projects total nearly $34.5 million, according to the governor's site.
Larson said there was a 10 percent increase in bus ridership in the United States last year. She added Eau Claire's demand for public transportation is at an all-time high. She said they served a record number of riders, almost 1.15 million, last year.
"It's time to begin thinking about public transportation on a regional level," she said. "It's still too difficult to travel out of Eau Claire on public transportation."
The $2 million will buy five new diesel buses, a new bus surveillance camera and a new maintenance truck.
"Investments that make travel safer, easier and more affordable will not only improve our quality of life, they will help get our economy back on track," Doyle said while in Eau Claire, according to his Web site.
Gwen Larson, the transit manager for Eau Claire, said this money is badly needed.
"We have eight 12-year-old buses that are in dire need of replacement. They have 600,000 to 700,000 miles on them, and they are literally falling apart," Larson said. "Our maintenance costs have skyrocketed in the last year due to these vehicles."
Besides having new vehicles for public transport, Larson is also pleased the city is receiving new surveillance cameras.
"The digital system can record up to eight cameras at once, meaning we can cover every inch of the bus, both inside and out," she said. "This will greatly increase our safety and security and reduce our liability costs."
Larson said the transit department deserves this money greatly because people depend on its services.
"I've been saying for years that public transit is an economic stimulus in and of itself," she said. "When we link our passengers to jobs, school, medical facilities, grocery stores … it has a tremendous impact on the economy."
The money the transit department is receiving will help stabilize bus fares, since there was a 50 percent increase two years in a row, Larson said.
"(Increasing bus fares) was a horrible thing to do to our transit-dependent passengers, particularly when they are struggling to keep and find jobs, pay their mortgages or rent and to put food on the table," she said. "A good portion of that fare increase was necessitated by the continued loss in state transit aids, along with the increase in maintenance costs, and the city's inability to cover the full difference."
Eau Claire is one of 48 small urban areas that are receiving money for transit projects around the state as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding for Wisconsin. The projects total nearly $34.5 million, according to the governor's site.
Larson said there was a 10 percent increase in bus ridership in the United States last year. She added Eau Claire's demand for public transportation is at an all-time high. She said they served a record number of riders, almost 1.15 million, last year.
"It's time to begin thinking about public transportation on a regional level," she said. "It's still too difficult to travel out of Eau Claire on public transportation."
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