Don't Back Down

The news in Charlotte has been buzzing lately. It seems that the eagerly anticipated transit system is edging ever closer to reality, with the City Council recently agreeing to spend slightly more than $50 million for 16 new light-rail cars. I'll give them this: The picture of the rail cars makes them look rather nice. And shiny.

In case you didn't know, the Charlotte voters passed a half-cent sales tax a few years ago to pay for rapid transit, which was supposed to cost $1 billion. Recent estimates peg the total cost at closer to $6 billion. When first estimated, the initial rail line was slated to cost $227 million. Recent estimates put that at just shy of $400 million. Much of the work hasn't even started and the first of the shiny new rail cars hasn't even been to the city yet. Does anyone else see a problem developing?

Perhaps we should look at how effective spending has been in the past at increasing ridership before judging. It seems that the transit folks recently pegged Charlotte's daily ridership at something north of 15 million for a year (the year in question was 2002). That increase was 31% - that is, 31% more riders - than those who had used the system just four years earlier.

Not a bad increase at all. Until you realize that it actually cost nearly 90% more to increase ridership by that 31%. Spending $23 million resulted in increased ridership of about 3.7 million, or about $6 per new rider. $6 each isn't a big deal, but when you nearly double costs and only pick up a third more riders, it indicates a very disturbing trend.

Maybe things will be different with the rail lines? Let's see!

Another source agrees that the current cost estimate of the South Boulevard rail line is not quite $400 million. The same source tells us that we can expect nearly 18 thousand riders per day, for a yearly total of slightly more than 6.5 million riders. Have you done the math yet? That's a whopping $61 dollars per rider. While it is true that the costs will decline after the first year, it's a mighty big hump to overcome.

Meanwhile, the cost estimate keeps going up and the ridership estimate keeps going down. What's more is that some of those riders will undoubtedly be pulled from existing bus routes, decreasing those numbers and making it an even more pricey proposition!

Surely the new rail lines will reduce congestion? With such low ridership, that outcome is doubtful.

Maybe people will ride the rail lines uptown instead of driving? Then why do we need more parking spaces uptown? With transit doing so well, surely you'd need fewer spaces.

I know - people will ride the new bus line to Carowinds! At $1.55 per rider each way, it means a family of four will pay more than $12 just in bus fare, compared to $7 parking at Carowinds. Plus they'll have to carry their packs and everything with them on the bus, find a place to park uptown and be subject to the schedule of the bus. You tell me - would you ride?

It seems that Charlotte is guilty of building something that doesn't actually do anything. Nothing other than waste money, at any rate. Oh well. At least we're not alone.

If you're not happy with the way the city council is spending your money, tell them about it. Complaining that they do something, while doing nothing to let them know they are doing it incorrectly, doesn't help anyone.