Increased population numbers for Brazos (and surrounding counties) negatively impacted the massive Federal and State tax $$$ subsidies, to operate the empty or almost empty buses.
So now BTD is looking for local tax $$, the request to College Station is $340,0000!!

The last known BTD financial report had ridership revenue at approximately 5% of their budget. Tax $$ subsidies of mass transit is common....but a 95% rate is ridiculous.

Brazos County and Bryan numbers are unkown.

Kyle ditched their bus program for an alternate model of an Uber subsidy at a fraction of the cost. Before you say it isn't environmentally friendly, neither is driving around a bunch of empty busses all day.

Uber Kyle $3.14 | City of Kyle, Texas - Official Website

GSS said:

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Increased population numbers for Brazos (and surrounding counties) negatively impacted the massive Federal and State tax $$$ subsidies, to operate the empty or almost empty buses.
So now BTD is looking for local tax $$, the request to College Station is $340,0000!!

The last known BTD financial report had ridership revenue at approximately 5% of their budget. Tax $$ subsidies of mass transit is common....but a 95% rate is ridiculous.

Brazos County and Bryan numbers are unkown.

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Y'all seen the Brazos Transit District office? It's REALLY nice. Taj Mahalish nice.

Costs a lot of money to drive empty buses around all day.

I understand that there are people that need public transportation. Whether it be finances, broken personal transportation, or disability.

Those size busses are not needed.

Micro and mini busses that are ADA compliant are much cheaper to operate.

[You have been on this board long enough to know that we do not allow vague accusations or rumor posts. -Staff]

Tailgate88 said:

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GSS said:

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Increased population numbers for Brazos (and surrounding counties) negatively impacted the massive Federal and State tax $$$ subsidies, to operate the empty or almost empty buses.
So now BTD is looking for local tax $$, the request to College Station is $340,0000!!

The last known BTD financial report had ridership revenue at approximately 5% of their budget. Tax $$ subsidies of mass transit is common....but a 95% rate is ridiculous.

Brazos County and Bryan numbers are unkown.

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Y'all seen the Brazos Transit District office? It's REALLY nice. Taj Mahalish nice.

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Kinda like CS City Hall? Or like the Police Station?

Stupe said:

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I understand that there are people that need public transportation. Whether it be finances, broken personal transportation, or disability.

Those size busses are not needed.

Micro and mini busses that are ADA compliant are much cheaper to operate.

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No doubt some form of transportation help is needed, for some in society. But the decades-old BTD "experiment" it the epitome of the "insanity" definition, doing the same thing over and over, yet expecting different results...at tremendous cost to the taxpayers.

Someone on here pointed out long ago that it's cheaper to just pay for an Uber for anyone needing a ride.

BTD is the dumbest solution to a problem we have around here and that is saying a lot, since there are a bunch of dumb solutions.

Students ride busses in this town, nobody else does. I bet 90% of the time I see a BTD bus it is 100% empty.

What I continue to read people need to move out of tax districts wasting money. Can't escape county, but need to leave the cities.

I bet that you could make available five to ten $20 Uber tickets a month to every family that rides the buses and that would be half to cost to the taxpayers of the program cost now.

tu ag said:

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BTD is the dumbest solution to a problem we have around here and that is saying a lot, since there are a bunch of dumb solutions.

Students ride busses in this town, nobody else does. I bet 90% of the time I see a BTD bus it is 100% empty.

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I see a few people on them, but they are mostly empty.

How about reduce the frequency of busses?

GSS said:

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Tons of what-if info, and scenarious in the attached link:
BCSMPO (budget numbers on page 12)

but the bottom line is for FY 2022, BTD operating costs for B-CS were $5,784,000, with "Farebox Revenue" of $212,911....less than 4% of their operating budget.

And....due to the "TMA" designation (based on the increased population), Federal and TX DoT funds will be reduced, so the BTD needs somewhere between $451,000 to $690,000 from the College Station, Bryan, and Brazos county taxpayers.

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Shut it down.

(Just my opinion.)

In our budget workshop for outside agency funding, BTD came before us and asked for $334k in new funding. I voted no to additional funding. Council settled on increasing it and while I disagreed, I respect the will of the majority. The budget is not finalized and additional deliberations may take place. There were many questions remaining for Council after the presentation that were not clarified, in my opinion.

Mass transit in the US has a very poor record of fiscal performance and utilization, even in massive cities. For mass transit to work, I believe mass utilization is required. People that could otherwise afford a vehicle must also use it regularly.

Our storied relationship with the automobile is ingrained in the fabric of our society and history and we equate it with freedom and productivity. I know I do. I love my truck and don't see myself riding the bus very often.

I'm afraid this increased funding request is just the start of a slippery slope, but at the same time I am concerned about the folks that can't afford a vehicle or who can, but are unable to drive due to a medical incapacity.

The idea floated on this thread earlier about a municipal Uber is fascinating and I'll be researching it. Kyle, Texas. Who would've thought?

Respectfully submitted,

-yancy

I appreciate your response.

I don't want to see Bryan wind up in the pickle that the City of Austin is in with Cap Metro.

Bob Yancy said:

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In our budget workshop for outside agency funding, BTD came before us and asked for $334k in new funding. I voted no to additional funding. Council settled on increasing it and while I disagreed, I respect the will of the majority. The budget is not finalized and additional deliberations may take place. There were many questions remaining for Council after the presentation that were not clarified, in my opinion.

Mass transit in the US has a very poor record of fiscal performance and utilization, even in massive cities. For mass transit to work, I believe mass utilization is required. People that could otherwise afford a vehicle must also use it regularly.

Our storied relationship with the automobile is ingrained in the fabric of our society and history and we equate it with freedom and productivity. I know I do. I love my truck and don't see myself riding the bus very often.

I'm afraid this increased funding request is just the start of a slippery slope, but at the same time I am concerned about the folks that can't afford a vehicle or who can, but are unable to drive due to a medical incapacity.

The idea floated on this thread earlier about a municipal Uber is fascinating and I'll be researching it. Kyle, Texas. Who would've thought?

Respectfully submitted,

-yancy

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Uber makes sense. for $334K the CoCS could provide around 11,000 round trip rides (~$30 per round trip ride within the city limit). I am sure that number could be negotiated. Drop BTD and go with UBER for CoCS.

doubledog said:

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Bob Yancy said:

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In our budget workshop for outside agency funding, BTD came before us and asked for $334k in new funding. I voted no to additional funding. Council settled on increasing it and while I disagreed, I respect the will of the majority. The budget is not finalized and additional deliberations may take place. There were many questions remaining for Council after the presentation that were not clarified, in my opinion.

Mass transit in the US has a very poor record of fiscal performance and utilization, even in massive cities. For mass transit to work, I believe mass utilization is required. People that could otherwise afford a vehicle must also use it regularly.

Our storied relationship with the automobile is ingrained in the fabric of our society and history and we equate it with freedom and productivity. I know I do. I love my truck and don't see myself riding the bus very often.

I'm afraid this increased funding request is just the start of a slippery slope, but at the same time I am concerned about the folks that can't afford a vehicle or who can, but are unable to drive due to a medical incapacity.

The idea floated on this thread earlier about a municipal Uber is fascinating and I'll be researching it. Kyle, Texas. Who would've thought?

Respectfully submitted,

-yancy

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Uber makes sense. for $334K the CoCS could provide around 11,000 round trip rides (~$30 per round trip ride within the city limit). I am sure that number could be negotiated. Drop BTD and go with UBER for CoCS.

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Fascinating idea. Definitely worth a hard look. And, you could structure fares to encourage folks to ride together and derive even more efficiency. And, the taxpayer doesn't have to purchase and maintain vehicles. Much obliged. I'm not saying I'm giving up on BTD. This idea is very intriguing though.

Respectfully,

-yancy

https://www.uber.com/blog/case-study-how-kyle-texas-benefits-from-rideshare/

I suspect if a complete audit was done on the Transit District their cost per mile per person transported would make us all nauseated. It has been a boondoggle lining the pockets of a few for years.

What about a cooperative agreement with Texas A&M? They already own and operate a large fleet; why not shuttle some funding their way to serve a few more routes / folks?