Muni's $729,000 hammer

by Trinity Plaza Tenants Association (reposted)

Fri, Mar 4, 2005 11:15PM

The Chronicle's Monday editorial "A timely fare hike" endorsing a
Muni fare hike is no surprise: we progressives know the right-wing California Hearsts are pro-business/anti-consumer and responsible for leading the war to grant downtown businesses tax breaks that are forcing the city's residents to assume the financial burden of balancing San Francisco's budget.

It is also no surprise that SPUR's Jim Chappell endorsed the fare
hike: the right-wing think tank is also aligned and in league with the Chamber of Commerce's plan to reduce taxes for downtown businesses.
It's also obvious Muni "chief" Michael Burns considers himself one of the rich elite; at an annual salary of $280,000, he certainly cannot be considered one of the suffering "straphangers".

(I wonder what would have happened if four members of the MTA board had voted AGAINST the fare hike. Would the Chronicle's Golden Boy God Newsom have pulled a Schwarzenegger and removed the offending members?)

Enter the Tuesday Examiner's headline "Freeloaders hurt Muni bottom line." In its shift to the right, Marisa Lagos' article "Muni riders getting a free pass" attempts a sleight of hand to shift Muni's budget woes to the riders of the system: those people who refuse to pay while they board through the back doors.

But the article fails because even the highest estimate of lost
revenues by riders who refuse to pay would only put a dent in the Muni deficit.

However, thanks to Ms. Lagos' article I have now had my previously unvoiced questions answered regarding Job Code 9132: Transit Fare Inspector.

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