From the Daily News:The cash-squeezed MTA is considering eliminating free MetroCards for the hundreds of thousands of students who use the passes to get to school, the Daily News has learned.
Under a possible budget-saving measure, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority would charge students half-price fares next year - and full fares starting in 2011, sources told The News.
About 550,000 schoolkids get free or discounted bus and subway passes under a program the state and city once fully funded.
The proposal to end free student MetroCards is bound to draw howls of protest from parents, especially those struggling to make ends meet or with more than one child in school.
Eligibility depends on age and how far students live from school, not income.
Sounds like local school zoning is going to be more important than ever.
30 comments:
Hey MTA, instead of making it harder for minority children to get to school. How about ending both the “Senior Citizens” and “People with Disabilities”, reduced fairs. And while your in a chopping mood, also eliminate Paratransit/Access-A-Ride completely. The biggest waste of tax money since meeting UFT demands. Oh, wait a minute those people all vote and children can't. Now I get it, smart business move MTA.
From the article:"Albany and City Hall slashed student travel funding in the mid-1990s to a combined $90 million a year. Despite rising costs, the state and city contribution has stayed the same since 1995."
Hmmm now who was in control back then?
Giuliani and Potaki. just like everything else that serves working people but might raise taxes on the rich, our great gop servants didn't have the guts to kill it outright so they let it slowly die in red ink.
And who has been in control for the past 8 years? Bloomberg.
local school zoning? there are already huge sections of queens without a zoned high school, and those numbers will only increase with the just-announced round of school closings...and with whatever closings come next...
Wa wa wa, I don't want to pay a toll to drive over the bridge, wa wa, wa, make the kids pay more to take a bus to go to school, wa wa wa . . .
How about wa wa wa, let's give Bruce Ratner a sweetheart deal for the railyards, wa wa, wa, make the kids pay more to take a bus to go to school, wa wa wa . . .
It's ok, folks, there's been a plan revealed that will solve the childhood obesity problem and get the kids to school. Buy em all bikes!
Yes, let's buy the children bikes. This way if they live in Astoria and attend the Bronx High School of Science they can get to class sometime around 6:00 pm, three hours after class ends.
Just let them hop the turnstyle like I used to.
All wise cracks aside, this is wrong to do to our kids. This tactic just makes for more angry people.
As I said before, this agency needs a complete overhaul. It is so mismanaged that they are now taking it out on kids and elders. Shame on you MTA.
BRING BACK THE COMMUTER TAX
So are they expecting kids to be home-schooled from now on? Take Glendale, for example. There are NO high schools within walking distance. Many other areas of queens in the same boat.
What's wrong with walking?
If kids went to their neighborhood schools like they did years ago, the city would save money by not having to provide transportation and kids could get to know their neighbors and friends. Life was much simpler when we had neighborhood schools. Kids went home for lunch instead of McDonalds. Neighborhood schools would solve a multitude of problems: Financial, Transportation, Childhood Obesity. Anyone listening?
Mr. Green Mayor Bloomburg was the one who scrapped neighborhood schools in favor of applying for whatever school you wanted to go to. Think of all the emissions from all those school buses beause of him, not to mention the cost of gasoline for every run.
Wake up folks, this is a plan to reinforce segregation. If the poor kids (read minority) can't get to another school, the rich folks can send their their kids to the local high school without worrying their children will become too "urban".
To the Poster "Whats wrong with walking".....You probably don't have any kids.
To Anony 2 - what neighborhood do you live in. My child goes to PS 58, a school for kids in Maspeth, and it's pretty diverse, as the majority of neighborhoods are now
PS 58 takes a lot of kids from Elmhurst. And it's not a high school.
how do you segregate a city public school population that is already 80 to 90 % minority?
the per pupil bus cost ,one way, on the yellow union bus, is $25 to $35 per day. multiply that times about 1
million pupils in the n.y.c school district.
walking to school is cheaper and more healthy ,if possible. but the unions would suffer great pain in the dues pocketbook and corruption payoffs to you know who?
Walking to school would be great, if they had a school to walk to and if they had no interest in a specialized vocation such as learning aircraft mechanics and if they do not suffer unique handicaps such as blindness, deafness or brain damage.
If you want to learn how to fix aircraft or any one of many trades that are available in a limited number of sites, how will you walk to that school or bike there? You may be an hour or more away by car.
When I attended The Bronx High School of Science in the 1970's my commute to and from the school consumed 3 hours of my day. My brother was also a Science graduate.
I had one sister who was minimally-brain damaged attending a school with a special program. She received a diploma and is an employed working mom to this day.
I came from a working class family with 4 children and no means to pay for an expensive private school.
Your Ratner Atlantic Yards argument is just a dumb straw man Crapper. One has nothing to do with the other, and Atlantic Yards would not have enough of an effect on long-term operating budgets to affect this. You can't justify being against tolls on the bridges, you just knee-jerk don't want them because you don't think about the big picture.
Ok how about throwing in the Hudson Yards as well?
The point is there is no oversight of these authorities, they spend foolishly to help their real estate buddies, and we are expected to pay for it. There is no reason people who use the bridges should be responsible for the folly of MTA honchos. Period.
Someone has to explain to me how congestion pricing would have fixed this. It wouldn't have been in place by now and the costs just to start it up would make it financially unfeasible.
why not charge for the staten island ferry can anybody tell me why it is free? at least charge $1.50 thats a fair price and it would raise 35 million dollars a year now it is free just sucking money from the public coffers . if u want to make it free then queens should get a free ferry also and brooklyn also . maybe i am wrong it is just politics if the city charged for this service then the elected officials would be voted out so we the taxpayers pay for this so the fat cats can stay in office.
If the MTA is so strapped for cash, then why are we building a 2nd Ave. Subway line. OR LIRR Access to GCT? They projects should be put on hold until there is cash to pay for them
If our financial situation is so dire...
Why did we throw a parade for the Yankees?
Why are we setting up seating areas in Times Square?
Why is marijuana still illegal when it can be taxed and its legalization would free up law enforcement to pursue more important crimes?
Why are spending money on initiatives like banning trans fats?
Why hasn't Mayor Bloomberg's congestion plan been enacted?
Why aren't we charging motorists for coming into the city at every bridge and tunnel?
Why are we not collecting the millions of dollars in unpaid tickets and fines owed by diplomats in NYC?
Why are we building Atlantic Yards?
Why are we building Willets Point?
why should children suffer because adults can't manage money? let's blame bloomturd for building h.s open to anyone and all over the place, which kids have to travel to. i own a house, i pay school tax and my child attends a private school, and yes i relied on the free mta... when you pay a high tuition, it was nice to know at least i saved on transit. let's take bloomturd's salary and all the damn raises and give it to the children.. oh and please don't give me crap wah wah wah send your child then to public, nope they suck and i pay my fair in school taxes for all the illegals! that's why this state going to shit! like califoria. we give to illegals and get nothing in return,oh so they can send it back to their families.. read crappers other blog about the bastard locked up in Az.. lmfao.......
If you can't afford to get your own damn kid to school!!! Well stop having them. I am sick and tired of people thinking it's the MTA's responsibilty to make sure your kid gets to school:( Bullshit!!! and for people to say "Well if they don't get their Metro cards they won't go to school:( My child is My responsibility NO ONE ELSES!! I make saure my child gets to school thats my JOB!!! Everybody has to have their hand out!!
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