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Lodi City Council weighs raising fares to restore some bus service
In the wake of cuts to the city's bus system, the Lodi City Council will discuss at its meeting tonight a proposal that would increase fares to restore some of the city's weekend service.
To deal with a $373,000 shortfall in state funding, the council made cuts to the transit system that included decreasing the hours of service Saturday and eliminating all service Sunday. The cuts started Nov. 2.
With the fare increase, the city would be able to restore service Sunday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and extend Saturday service from 9:15 a.m. to 3:09 p.m. to an earlier start of 7:45 a.m. to 3:09 p.m, according to a city staff report.
Under the city's proposal, here are the rate increases:
Fixed routes:
Dial-a-Ride and VineLine (which is the equivalent of Dial-a-Ride for people with disabilities):
The council will decide Wednesday if it wants to set a future public hearing to discuss the rate increase. By law, the city must give 15 days notice of any hearings to consider fare increases.
City staff said if the council holds a public hearing Dec. 19, the cuts could begin Jan. 2, 2010. Another option is to hold a special meeting this month, and then the fare increases could start Dec. 1.
The increased fares would raise $32,100 if they started in January or $37,450 if started in December. The cost for Sunday service and extra hours on Saturday is $53,000, but city staff believe they can make up the difference through cost-cutting measures, according to the city staff report.
In the 2008-09 fiscal year, which ended June 30, the city had 5.2 percent of its ridership on Saturday and 4.1 percent on Sunday.
Contact reporter Maggie Creamer at maggiec@lodinews.com or read her blog at www.lodinews.com/blogs/citybuzz.
Meeting in brief
Issue: The Lodi City Council will consider increasing fares to restore service on Sunday and extend service on Saturday. Starting Nov. 2, the city's bus service hours were reduced to deal with a $373,000 shortfall in state funding.When and where: 7 p.m. tonight, Carnegie Forum, 305 W. Pine St., Lodi.
Here's the city's new transportation hours:
— Monday through Friday, fixed routes, Dial-a-Ride and VineLine will operate from 7:45 a.m. to 6:10 p.m. Express routes will continue from 6:10 a.m. to 7:40 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
— On Saturdays, fixed routes, Dial-a-Ride and VineLine will run from 9:15 a.m. to 3:09 p.m.
— All service on Sundays will be eliminated.
— Service on nine holidays will be eliminated.
— People will no longer be able to call and make same-day appointments for Dial-a-Ride and VineLine service. Instead, everyone will need to make advanced reservations.
News-Sentinel staff
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