ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority decided not to eliminate public bus routes for now, instead promising to seek $5 million in new funding.
The board made the decision at its meeting on Wednesday. It says it received 300 comments by phone, email and in person from the public, as well as from people who showed up at the meeting.
One of the comments called bus service "a blessing."
“St. Anthony’s Hospital (has) been good to me," said PSTA rider Melissa Curry. "They hired me. They accepted me, and I would like to keep working there. I cannot walk to work (because of my bad knee) … I can’t afford a car. I can’t afford car insurance right now. I have to save money to get a car later...so I can do better. I’d appreciate it if you let bus 5 stay the way it is."
If the $5 million is not established in time for the 2020 fiscal year's budget, however, the service cuts could take effect in October.
The chairwoman of the authority, Pinellas County Commissioner Janet Long, said the bus service is "terribly underfunded." PSTA has a budget of roughly $80 million, but comparable agencies across the nation typically have more than $200 million.
“Please keep in mind that PSTA provides the best service that we are able to do with the dollars that we have and you don’t drive ridership when you are consistently cutting your routes," she said. "What folks look for is efficiency and dependability so they know that they can get back and forth to work.
"With that said, our total budget is approximately $80 million. In any other similar-sized community across the United States, a bus system with the numbers of population that we have in our county, they spend approximately $220 million."
PSTA officials said county leaders will meet in May and June--and hope to have a final answer on where the money would come from.
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