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Centro Announces Service Reductions to Close Budget Gap

 
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RailBus63
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PostPosted: Wed Nov 25, 2009 10:54 pm    Post subject: Centro Announces Service Reductions to Close Budget Gap Reply with quote

Centro Announces Service Reductions to Close Budget Gap

Syracuse, NY – In an effort to help close a projected $6 million budget deficit for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 2010, Centro is announcing service reductions that will go into effect in March. The changes include the consolidation, reduction or discontinuance of a select number of bus services that are performing poorly in Syracuse and Onondaga County and reconfiguration of service along one bus route in Utica.

“These reductions in Syracuse were originally proposed during a series of public hearings held in February of this year and were deferred in order to preserve these services for as long as possible for our customers,” said CNYRTA Executive Director Frank Kobliski. “However, our fiscal situation has reached a point where we can no longer financially support these services.”

In Utica, Centro is proposing a reconfiguration and consolidation of bus routes that currently serve customers along its 14 Mohawk Route.

“We are carefully looking at ways to most efficiently provide our services while maintaining our customers’ access to our bus systems,” said CNYRTA Executive Director Frank Kobliski.

“Our Utica staff has conducted research in order to try and identify neighborhoods that can be more efficiently served.”

At this time, we are focusing on the corridor along our 14 Mohawk Route which also has nearby service from the following Centro routes: 111 New York Mills, 12 Bleeker St., 15 James St., 20 Lenox, 22 South St., 24 Genesee St., and 31 Oneida – Chadwicks. Our proposal would discontinue the Mohawk route while adding evening service to the 20 Lenox route in order to meet the demands of Utica College, St. Luke’s Hospital, ConMed and the Utica Business Park. A public hearing on the proposed changes in Utica will be held in January. An exact date and time will be determined in the near future.

Centro’s budget deficit has been created by the erosion of Centro’s two most vital funding sources: New York State transit operating assistance and the mortgage recording tax. The two funding sources account for more than 50% of Centro’s operating budget.

The projected savings from the service reductions, along with a proposed route consolidation in the City of Utica, would be approximately $1.3 million. Centro will fill the remainder of its $6 million budget gap through the use of reserve funds and by shifting federal grant money previously targeted for capital expenses to cover its operational costs. The shifting of these capital funds will have no affect on Centro’s plans to relocate its transfer hub in downtown Syracuse.

Centro has no current plans to raise its base fares for its customers. There are no proposed service reductions for Centro bus services in Oswego or Cayuga counties at this time.

The following Syracuse routes will be affected:

Route 723 Minoa-Suburban East.

This route will be discontinued. Rush hour service connecting Minoa to downtown Syracuse will still be available on Centro’s 323x Minoa route. Centro will adjust its midday service on its existing 62 Fayetteville Manlius route to serve the North East Medical Center, which is currently served by the Route 723 Minoa-Suburban East.

Route 78 Fairmount & Route 178 Fairmount

These two routes will be consolidated into a single route operating during morning and evening rush hours. Midday service would be discontinued, however midday service to the St. Camillus Residential Health Care facility will be maintained on Centro’s 66 Grand Avenue route.

Route 72 East Colvin

Some trips will be discontinued. Customers will still be able to access the Loretto and Iroquois senior facilities via Centro’s 240 Nob Hill route.

Route 70 Oak-Darlington

This route will be discontinued. Customers in this area have nearby access to the Centro bus system on the following routes: 116 North Salina, 20 James St, 52 Court – Park and 80 Grant Blvd.

Route 62 Fayetteville – Manlius

Midday service will operate between Manlius, Fayetteville and Shoppingtown Mall. Those that wish to continue to downtown Syracuse during middays can make a direct transfer at Shoppingtown Mall to other Centro bus routes that serve downtown. This route will now serve the North East Medical Center in order to compensate for the discontinuance of the 723 Suburban East – Minoa route.
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timecruncher



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Location: Louisville, Kentucky

PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 10:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Funny, somehow all of the service reductions nationwide -- and it is nationwide -- don't ever make it to Metro, Mass Transit or Passenger Transport. All three of the major transit periodicals just go on talking about how wonderful our industry is, how we're helping to cure traffic congestion (not), reduce pollution (not hardly) and make the U.S. a warmer and fuzzier place to live (get real!).

The very funding sources that many of us did not forsee being reduced, even in the worst of times, are simply not adequate any more.

Those of us in the industry know the root causes: government meddling on a grand scale! We spend millions upon millions of dollars annually trying to adhere to ridiculous documentation reporting (National Transit Database), required and sctrict adherence to unreasonable emission-control standards (EPA, of course) and the ultimate unfunded mandate -- the ADA -- which requires us to provide taxi service to the disabled at a miniscule fraction of the cost of providing that ride. And no, I don't suggest that our ADA services are un-needed, its just that ADA service was never figured into the funding mechanisms for 99% of the transit systems in our country today. It wasn't part of the operating equation in the sixties and seventies when the last private for-profit transit systems were giving up to public transit agencies.

There are other forces at work here as well, pension legacy costs that were inadequately actualized, some ridiculous make-pay-not-work rules that have managed to get into union contracts, massive increases in medical insurance and fuel costs have also contributed to the decline of our industry.

Don't know where it will lead us. Surely, mass transit will need to re-invent itself into a much more lean and efficient industry as we move forward and try to keep our services viable.

timecruncher


Last edited by timecruncher on Fri Jan 22, 2010 8:02 am; edited 1 time in total
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RailBus63
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 02, 2009 11:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Update - the New York State Senate today cut another $1 million from Centro's planned 2010 state aid, so further cuts are undoubtedly coming. No word on how much was cut from other transit agencies in the state.
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HwyHaulier




Joined: 16 Dec 2007
Posts: 932
Location: Harford County, MD

PostPosted: Thu Dec 03, 2009 7:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

timecruncher -

Amen! The transit industry of old: Caesar's Legions came and had to destroy the village to save it! Realistically, we have fast attained
"fresh sheet of paper" time...

Were one to ask me, I'd say cut it all loose, and re-establish as privately held operations. It would work provided: A more enlightened
approach to regulation. That is, no oversight of pricing at all. Or, if classic, regulated controls, the required "made whole" pricing to deal
with the chronic inflation (also, so as to fund capital requirements...

Or, as I have noted before, if the area thinks the service is vital, then it ought to take on the provisions of equipment to the private
operators. The historical record tells us traditional, private operation became impossible, as all costs (including effects of inflation) could
not be recovered. So, they all went broke on installments...

Side Note: Fool's errands? You mention the National Transit Database. All that work, and how is it publicly accessed in these times of
claimed "transparent" government? For example, I can't find current, route by route performance analysis for operators of interest.

.................Vern...........
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RailBus63
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 21, 2010 11:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Centro Rescinds Plan to Eliminate Mohawk-Burrstone Bus Route

Utica, NY – Due in part to significant customer feedback, Centro will continue to provide service on its 14 /114 Mohawk-Burrstone route, abandoning a plan to completely discontinue the bus route.

In November, Centro announced that it would discontinue the 14 / 144 Mohawk-Burrstone bus route in an effort to help close a $6 million budget deficit caused by the continuing reduction of New York State subsidies which fund a significant portion of Centro’s operating budget.

However, since that announcement, Centro has reworked its original plan, designed to save nearly $600,000 in annual operating costs.

“Our redesigned concept will save close to that amount,” said Centro of Oneida General Manager Ron Bucciero. “Most importantly, we have preserved bus routes to all the areas we currently serve. However, some of those services will run less frequently.”

Under the new plan, Centro will continue to operate weeknight service along the Mohawk – Burrstone corridor, but will reduce its weekday service to mid-days only. The weeknight service will be a consolidation of Centro’s 15 James St. and Mohawk-Burrstone routes. The weekday service will be identical to the current Mohawk–Burrstone bus route.

In addition, Centro will adjust the rush hour frequency of its South Street bus service to match the frequency of most Centro routes.

“Nearly all of our bus routes currently operate on a 40 minute frequency. The South Street Service, which currently operates every 20 minutes, will now match those bus routes,” said Bucciero. Bucciero also says all South Street trips that are through routed to Lenox Avenue will be retained and only the shorter trips that end downtown will be discontinued.

By redesigning the service reductions and continuing service along the Mohawk – Burrstone corridor, Centro will continue to provide critical evening transportation services for employees at nearby hospitals and provide direct service for students and other East Side resident who wish to travel to/from Utica College, Mohawk Valley Community College, Consumer Square and other locations.

“The feedback from individuals who would have been most affected by our original proposal has been helpful,” said Bucciero. “In coming weeks, we will work with organizations such as local colleges to determine the exact trip times of the mid-day service along the Mohawk –Burrstone corridor.”

The redesigned bus routes are scheduled to go into effect on March 29, 2010. Centro will hold a public hearing on the proposed changes on Tuesday, January 26, 2010. The hearing will be held at the Radisson Hotel from 4pm -7pm.
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RailBus63
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 11:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The cuts take effect Monday, which was just announced yesterday. I'm disappointed because I was hoping for more notice to get out and photograph some of the last day of service.

From Centro's website:

Service Changes: March 1, 2010

Syracuse, NY –Centro will implement service changes effective March 1, 2010. These service changes were previously proposed in May 2009, but had been deferred. Further reductions in funding from New York State since May have forced Centro to implement these service changes at this time. The following bus routes will be affected:

723 – Minoa / Suburban East
Due to low ridership, Centro has discontinued this service. In an effort to provide critical service to Northeast Medical Center, Centro has developed a new route that will operate as a variation of the 62 Manlius route (Route 462 Manlius) providing service between Manlius, Fayetteville, Northeast Medical Center, Towne Center, and Shoppingtown Mall (See 62 Manlius service changes for details).

62 – Manlius
Centro has developed a new route, the 462 Manlius. Busses on this route will operate weekdays and travel between Manlius, Carriage House East, Northeast Medical Center, Towne Center, Wegmans, and will culminate at Shoppingtown Mall. Customers needing to continue to Downtown Syracuse may transfer at Shoppingtown Mall. This route replaces most of the midday 162 Manlius trips, while some of the current 162 Manlius trips will be retained and will now provide service to Northeast Medical Center. Please see the public timetable for details.

All buses serving Towne Center will now enter from East Genesee Street, near the Park-N-Ride bus shelter adjacent to McDonald’s. This will be the only stop inside the Towne Center complex.

Weekday 62 Manlius outbound trips leaving Downtown at 8:20pm and 9:35pm and the Sunday trip departing Downtown at 9:30am will now bypass Towne Center on the way to Village Hall but will return to Towne Center on when it returns to head Downtown.

Buses will no longer deviate into Redfield Village, however customers can continue to catch the bus at the intersection of Route 257 and Salts Springs Road.

40 – S.U. Nob Hill
The 240 Nob Hill trip leaving Downtown at 6:10am will now directly serve Loretto.

The 240 Nob Hill trip leaving Downtown at 6:59am will now leave at 6:55am.

The 240 Nob Hill trip leaving Iroquois Nursing Home at 7:40am to downtown will now leave at 7:35am and will directly serve Loretto.

The current 240 Nob Hill trip leaving from Iroquois Nursing Home at 2:45pm and arriving at Loretto 2:59pm will now arrive at Loretto at 3:03pm.

36 – Camillus
The Camillus bus line will no longer serve Elbridge. Elbridge will continue to be served on the 236 Auburn-Syracuse bus line. Each of the previous 336 Elbridge commuter trips have been changed to either a 36 Camillus or 136 Camillus trip. Please consult a schedule for details.

The 136X Camillus trip leaving from Maple and West Genesee at 7:45am was changed to a route 136 Camillus at will leave Maple and West Genesee at 7:40am.

The 136 Camillus trip leaving from Maple and West Genesee at 6:25pm will now leave at 6:30pm.

Times on the 136 Camillus trip leaving from Maple and West Genesee at 3:15pm have changed slightly. Please consult the new schedule for new time points.

A new Saturday 36 Camillus trip leaving Downtown at 6:10pm has been created.

82 – Baldwinsville
The following trips will now travel on Solar Street between Carousel Center and Downtown and will no longer serve the William F. Walsh Regional Transportation Center:

The 82 Baldwinsville trips leaving from Route 31 and Spruce Street at 8:42am and 12:12pm.

The 82 Baldwinsville trips leaving from Downtown at 11:10am & 2:40 pm.

50 Carousel Center
Many 550 Carousel – Solar weekday trip times have changed. Most of these trips will no longer continue through Manlius. Please consult the new schedule for details.

56 Stolp - Strathmore
The 156 Stolp- Strathmore trip leaving from Downtown at 3:10pm has been discontinued.

The 156 Stolp- Strathmore trip leaving from Glenwood and Bellevue at 3:40pm has been discontinued.

The 156 Stolp- Strathmore trip departing from Glenwood and Bellevue at 5:42 will no longer provide service to downtown. Its last stop will be Bellevue and Geddes.

The 156 Stolp- Strathmore trip leaving downtown at 6:10pm has been discontinued.

78 Fairmount
The 78 Fairmount and 178 Fairmount routes have been combined. The new route will be called the 78 Fairmount and will follow the current 78 Fairmount routing to West High Terrace and Newcastle Road, from that point it will continue from Newcastle Rd., to Fern Dr., to Westholm Dr., and to Onondaga Road. The bus will then continue to Onondaga Road to a right on West Genesee Street, right into Fairmount Fair. The new route will reverse this route on all inbound trips.

Most midday and many rush hour trips have been eliminated. They include the trips leaving Downtown at: 7:25am, 4:35pm, 5:00pm, 6:10pm, 8:20pm; and trips leaving from Fairmount Fair Park-N-Ride at: 6:35am, 7:55am, 5:02pm, 5:30pm, 6:40pm, and 9:00pm.

This route will no longer provide service to St. Camillus. Customers needing service to St. Camillus can ride the 166 Grand – St. Camillus or the 164/64 Western Lights bus routes.

64 Western Lights

The following trips will now serve St. Camillus:

164 Western Lights trip leaving Downtown at 6:10pm will continue to St. Camillus.

64 Western Light trip leaving Downtown at 8:20pm has changed to a route 164 Western Lights trip and will continue to St. Camillus.

All route 64 Western Lights trips leaving St. Camillus will operate on Fay Road, Bellevue Avenue, Onondaga Boulevard, to Price Chopper.

70 Oak Darlington
All route 70 / 170 Oak Darlington trips have been discontinued. Customers can utilize the nearby 52 Court - Park or the 80 Grant Boulevard bus routes for service.

72 East Colvin
All 72 Townsend and 172 East Colvin trips will now leave Downtown facing North on Warren Street. Previously they had left downtown from Salina Street.

The following changes have been made for weekday service:

The 172 East Colvin trips leaving Downtown at 5:56am and 7:27am have been discontinued.

The 172 East Colvin trips leaving Loretto at 6:18am and 7:49am have been discontinued.

The 72 Townsend trips leaving from Downtown at 12:50pm and 2:35pm have been discontinued.

The 72 Townsend trips leaving Toomey Abbott Towers at 11:20am and 1:05pm have been discontinued.

The 72 Townsend trip from Downtown at 11:10am will now leave Downtown at 11:40am.

The 172 East Colvin trip leaving Downtown at 5:12pm will now leave at 5:15pm.

The 172 East Colvin trip leaving Loretto at 5:38am will now leave at 5:35am trip.

The 172 East Colvin trip leaving Loretto at 6:50am will now leave at 6:52am trip.

The 172 East Colvin trip leaving Toomey Abbott Towers at 2:50pm will now leave at 12:00pm.

All Saturday trip times have been changed, please consult the new schedule for details.

The following Saturday trips on the 72 Townsend line have been discontinued:
Leaving downtown at: 8:30am, 11:50am, 1pm, 3:20pm, and 4:30pm.

The following Sunday trips on the 72 Townsend line have been discontinued:
Leaving Toomey Abbott Towers at: 10:53am, 1:13pm, 2:33pm, and 3:33pm.

The following Sunday trip times on the 72 Townsend line have been changed:

Leaving Toomey Abbott Towers:
The 8:43am trip will now leave at 9:13am,
The 12:03pm trip will now leave at 12:43pm
The 4:43pm will now leave at 4:13pm

Additional service will now be provided to Loretto on the following 240 Nob Hill trips:
6:10am trip leaving Downtown,
7:22am trip leaving Downtown, and
7:35am trip leaving Iroquois Nursing Home.

The following bus schedules have been reprinted and are now available:
323 East Syracuse – Minoa, 36 Camillus, 236 Auburn, 140 Nob Hill, 50 Carousel, 56 Stolp – Strathmore, Fayetteville – Manlius, 64 Western Lights, 80 Grant Blvd., 72 E. Colvin, 78 Fairmount, 82 Baldwinsville. Customers with specific questions can all Centro information at 442-3400.
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