Apparently, RTD's previous proclamation that our transit fares are similar to other cities no longer holds water. According to RTD's own records, our express and regional transit are on average nearly a full dollar ($.96) higher than other cities. Anyone who has ever took a $10 SkyRide trip to the airport fully understands this. Supposedly, the local transit fares are on par with other cities though I wonder if it takes into consideration our awful zoned system which makes light rail potentially cost upwards of $4.50 just to travel through a few zones. Many if not most cities have one fare for all local transit, regardless of how far you travel.
Because of the higher fares, RTD has gained 12 percent more fare revenue for the first quarter of 2009. I doubt the revenue increase will continue much further into 2009 since the system-wide cuts that just went into effect will certainly effect the fare box.
So while it's good news that RTD probably won't raise fares in 2010, the bigger worry is what RTD is going to do in face of massive revenue declines from its take in sales tax. During this recession, sales tax revenues decreased 12 percent for the first quarter of the year. Since RTD gets the vast majority of its revenue from taxes, this is definitely a bad situation. The genius analysts at RTD said they are only expecting a seven percent tax revenue drop for the year, which I think is dubious since we are already at 12 percent for the first three months and its not like the economy is steadily improving. I expect deeper revenue declines and severe slashes in the service as a result.
With the economy in trouble its hard to expect RTD to do anything but remain in a holding pattern, but they should also really be considering its place within this city and how to get Denver a truly great transit system if they are going to have any long term viability. Sure FasTracks will help when (or if) that is completed, but a lot of the problem is at a systematic level with policies that do not fully consider the transit experience for its riders. RTD needs a much less complicated fare structure (get rid of zones already), an increase in neighborhood service, stops that actually provide accurate schedules, and a greater ability for regular people to simply take transit instead of driving. We are a long way to go before RTD is anything close to cities with real transit, but I have been encouraged by a few recent developments (acknowledging that RTD is overpriced, the upgraded web site, the fact that Cal Marsella is no longer in charge). But what else should RTD be doing NOW to make sure it has a healthy future.
