Reliable local transit a linchpin for many

We live in times marked by something akin to a crisis a day, if not an even more frantic crisis of the hour or minute. It’s so dizzying, it can numb us into a state of near paralysis.

So one of the latest local curtain of doom warnings, this one emanating from Director Cynthia Thompson of the Yamhill County Transit Authority, seemed to barely raise a ripple on the surface of the public conscience.

The fact many of us are card-carrying members of the two-car garage crowd may add to the muted reaction.

But reliable bus service is a make-it or break-it proposition for a less economically blessed segment of our population. It can make the difference between holding a job, thus remaining housed, and holding a sign at a busy intersection, begging for handouts.

To some, it’s a last resort option, seldom if ever to be tapped. To others, though, it’s an absolute necessity, an irreplaceable element of daily life. And that makes it incumbent on all of us to take heed.

One of McMinnville’s most salient selling points is its proximity to a lot of places deemed worthy of at least periodic visits. Those of us making our homes here are only an hour east of a broad expanse of oceanfront, an hour south of one of the nation’s vibrant metroplexes, an hour west of a storied state capital, an hour north of a major university center.

That’s by motorized transit, of course. By foot it would be an entirely different matter, and therein lies the rub.

The Yamhill County Transit Authority currently contracts with the French transit goliath Transdev for 39,000 hours of regularly scheduled commuter service, all on a fare-free basis.

That allows it to run south, north, east and west routes in McMinnville, along with cross-county routes to West Salem, via Amity; Grand Ronde, via Sheridan and Willamina; Hillsboro, via Lafayette, Carlton, Yamhill and Forest Grove; and Tigard, via Dayton, Dundee, Newberg and Sherwood. The cross-county routes feature connections with other transit providers, including Portland’s expansive TriMet system.

But the contract, which Transdev inherited when it acquired First Transit, is due to expire later this year. In the face of rising costs and flat revenue, Thompson hopes to retain 35,000 hours, but says 32,000 may be the most the county can afford.

The authority also offers 18,600 hours a year of specialized, short-notice service through its Dial-A-Ride arm. That could fall as low as 6,200 hours under a new contract, whether the county sticks with Transdev or looks elsewhere, Thompson warns.

The communities served by the system all join the county in helping fund it. But they are straining to continue their current commitments, leaving them in no position to absorb a substantial increase.

The system used to charge a fare, but the staff, equipment, accounting and enforcement associated with its collection made it problematic. What’s more, even a modest fare would price some users out, and fare revenue doesn’t count toward state and federal match requirements, which represents a significant drawback.

Reality suggests cuts are a virtual certainty, and the supplementary Dial-A-Ride service will have to bear a disproportionate share. But that barely scratches the surface of the difficult decisions the county is facing, as the devil is always in the details.

County Commission Chair Kit Johnston cited ridership patterns would be a key factor, and that’s no doubt true. But given the complexity of the issues, the county is also going to have to also consider other factors.

It seems to us that the guiding overall principle has to be how to best serve the most riders in a manner that takes equity among the contributing communities into account, and that ample opportunity needs to be provided for direct user input.

We also hope the county will consider a full range of options, including opening the bidding to other providers, assessing the potential for at least modest additional assessments for system partners, and taking another look at the fare equation to see if fare-free remains the best way to go, all things considered.

In the hierarchy of basic human needs, transit doesn’t rank all that far behind food, water and shelter in today’s world.

Many of us have the luxury of taking it for granted, but many others don’t. It behooves all of us to keep that in mind as we help our leaders address the issue over the course of the coming months.