I said this once, I'll keep saying it again so those who don't like this can NOT try to convince me of anything against this=>I DO NOT CARE ABOUT THE FARE INCREASE!!!!  As long as I'm able to keep using METRO to get where I need to go, they can increase it to $2---don't matter to me.

How about TAs not in the US?  How about Canada?  Has anybody looked at fares there?  NOPE!  For one example, OC Transpo's regular fare is the same as what you pay full fare on P&R routes such as the 214---$3! This is MY way of not just worrying about TAs in the US.

METRO needs money just as much as the average Joe Schmoe.

I can pay the extra 25 cents, can you?

I just wish METRO would:

1.  Give ops a liitle more money.

2.  Be articulate with new fleet puchases.

3.  But some mini's and Micros might also help.  but PLS, 2 DOORS on the 29.9 foot buses!

We're a few weeks into the post-announcement phase of the imposition of this fare increase. Mary, what exactly is the reason for the fare increase for local service? It is clear that those that will ride quick line service will benefit, that suburban park and ride commuters will benefit, but where is the benefit to local service?

If you cannot provide specific examples of improvements to local bus service, please give me a break down on a cost per fare-payment basis of the costs to service a local route and tell me why the sum of these costs has risen 25% all of the sudden.

Metro bus service is not even worth $1 now, so it's a slap in the face for Metro to cry poverty and raise the fare and make jokes about it.  If Metro needs so much money cut the CAR ALLOWANCE from Frank "Sleazy Pass" Wilson's contract.  You pay the guy a few hundred thousand, I think he should be able to afford his own car.  You're basically saying Frank is too good for your crappy bus service, but in fact they go hand in hand.  What a fitting punishment for Frank, being forced to endure the same horror the rest of us plebians face everyday.

And I'm sick of hearing about what other transit agencies are doing. Other transit agencies have better bus and rail service, better driver compensation and better communication to the public.  Those are things that justify a fare increase to pay for them.  Metro's buses are falling apart, service is dismal, driver morale is in the pit and you want me to pony up?...I don't care about Hybrid buses running on fairy dust, worthless quickline service or more useless rail.  None of that is worth a 25% fare increase. WHAT AM I PAYING FOR!!!!!!!!???????

And can you PLEASE clean up the LRT cars, the stench of homeless seems to be engrained in the seats.  And fix the signals!  If I wanted to sit at a GREEN LIGHT while cars raced by us on Fannin, I would have rode the bus circa 1999!  Where are those transit improvements again?  You can take every quarter you fleece from us local riders and stick them where the sun don't shine!

Thank you bus driver on bus 3306. Nov. 1, 2008 at

7:30 p.m. (Route 46). Very helpful in explaining new bus fare. Any other driver would not have taken the time nor would have been so courteous.

 Second comment. You have not had a rate hike in many years. Fare just went up for the disabled by 10 cents. Is it going to go up again? As far as fuel cost is concerned, fuel has actually fallen far below what it

was last year. Watch the news!

 It is a shame that in a city like Houston, Metro does not provide a route near to where I needed to go

last month. (I-10 and Beltway 8). I called Metro Route Information and was told to take the 46 to I-10 and walk to the Beltway!!!

Well J. Garcia, Metro has long term fuel supply contracts negotiated years ago that are about to run out, IIRC.  The price of fuel may go up and down but Metro locked in a lower rate but the increase will go to pay for new fuel contracts.

The is the second fare increase in about 6 months.  The Q-Card was a fare increase from the heavily discounted mag cards.

The fares collected only account for a small part of the Metro budget, so they could have stayed the same.  Metro gets 1% sales tax from the counties it serves which is the same as the City of Houston and the City and County raid the fund to work on the roads.

Most if not all transit systems run at a loss on the fares since they are seen as a public service and were not meant to make a profit or break even, just like the Police department of the City.  The police are not expected to make a profit, they provide a public service that is funded by taxes.

I actually don't mind the local 25% fare increase and think it is probably justified, but I don't think the 30% increase in the Park and Ride fares is justified.  The P&R fares were already paying a larger portion of the cost of service and may even be running a profit.

Maybe they can use some of that extra money to repair the electronic destination signs on the buses. Lately I would guess that about 20% of the signs are not working and there is a tiny sign taped inside the windshield with the destination barely legible. I was at the Heights transit center last week  and a bus pulled up with an electonic sign reading "44 Acres Homes". When he got closer I could barely make out a small sign reading "9 North Main Gulfton". By the time I realized it he had whizzed on through. I sort of feel like this was done deliberately by the driver.

Nah was not done on purpose.

The problem is that there is only 1 individual working on destination signs at each facility.

This is probably due to cuts in workers by management.

Also the ability to rob parts from DEAD buses is severely hampered by policies enacted by Metro. Better to throw it away than to use it. Look at the defect rows in the different facilities. There are buses in some of them that haven't moved in ages. Some exterior parts have been robbed, but the ones that make YOUR life easier are still on them turning to dust..

Reasoning? Don't know.

Metro is, IMHO looking to just be a shell company feeding executives fat salaries and handing money(grudgingly)to contract firms doing the actual work.

john

"3.  But some mini's and Micros might also help.  but PLS, 2 DOORS on the 29.9 foot buses!"

Dominic,

       There's a number of folks who can build a "baby" bus with two doors.  Orion is one of them.  Maybe Gillig?  Perhaps NABI?

All in all, I'm fine with it.  Just pay the fare and ride, IMHO!

Don as an operator....I am, don't think it was done purposely.  As far as the signage goes...we are as disgusted as you all maybe more!  we are driving,, bad buses, bad schedules, and bad signs! making stops at every corner seeing if someone wants the bus time consuming and redundant!

yes there is only one man who works on signs at the garages and he is ther in the mornings only! he runs from bus to bus making no progress whatsoever because the problem is far beyond a quick troublesooting fix.

The Paper Signs....are not legible because in the event of sign failure, they should be pre-printed and ready daily at pullout or carried by supervisor on the street.  right now after the "sign-man" holds you up for 5 mins., one must...walk across the entire bus yard,  go back in clubroom, find marking pen, and blank sign, and print sometimes two to three maybe even four signs for the day including his/her relief drivers destination. mind you if you are a dedicated operator you will make sure that paper sign is legible, and traced dark so it may be read....this takes approx 5 minutes or so when there aren't 5 operators doing the same thing and trying to use 1 marking pen!

I you are an operator driving out of DIV 2 polk and DIV 5 Hiram CLark operating facility you must walk across bus yard back to clubroom maybe 1/4 mile.

DIV3 west, DIV6 Fallbrook, DIV8 NORTHWEST (first Transit) Clubrooms are Upstairs. DIV 4 Kashmere is the most accessible.

By this time, normally you are approx. 5 mins late for pullout!!

Also DOM and CED....mini's are a waste I don't care if they had 3 doors!!  remember the 30'ft neoplans used to run the  42, 97, 35, and 48?  they had a front and rear door.  Short Wheel Base....rough riding, and not feasible in Houston when our ridership is at its peak and we have the worst streets in texas.  These bused when needed on other routes, cannot accomodate the passenger load.  they are the same bus, but smaller so get the bigger buy for the money!

 need more artics!!!!!

The Orions are nice but we need people movers not corvettes!!  

Couldn't the driver at least turn off the incorrect sign?

No Don!!  We cannot that can only be done Through the maintenance department.  we have requested that be done time and time again!!!  The system is High Voltage and requires someone who knows how to do so!!

Trust me we are as disgusted as you are...If it doesn't work...seems to me the logic would be to just Disconnect it!!  so it would be Blank therefore one would see the error and pay attention to the window sign!

MAYBE MARY CAN HELP US GET THIS GOING???  YA THINK?

Fix the 2 - Bellaire Sunday schedule!  just because you ignore us, it does not go away!  What am I paying for again? Oh yeah, Frank White --er, Wilson's car!

And I hate the artics, they are in TERRIBLE shape, old, and cumberson.  Put them out of our misery Metro.  And those Orions are lemons.  NYCT has had problems with them for five years and TTC (Toronto) is having buyers remorse as well.

mizz_porkie,

            I can agree with you in one aspect---METRO NEEDING MORE ARTICS!!  The only reason I can think of in terms of why Dominic and I think minis are needed is ONLY for certain routes that don't even need a 40' bus running.  He can probably fill ya in on that.  YES, I remember the 30' Neoplans---even I have NOT ridden one since I started riding buses.

J. Liggins,

          Just because NYCT and TTC has problems doesn't mean we may suffer the same fate.  Obviously you're talking about NYCT's old style Orion VII hybrids.  TTC was the launch customer of the Orion VII NG hybrids.

We may fair better or we may fair worse.  Who knows?

OC Transpo is also getting the SAME type of buses we're getting---202 to be exact and they're vowing that their buses will NOT suffer the same fate as the TTC buses.

I would rather wait for a while and not jump the gun on this one to see how they hold up and then---ONLY then---would I see if they're lemons or not.

P&R Rider said:  

"The is the second fare increase in about 6 months.  The Q-Card was a fare increase from the heavily discounted mag cards."

-----------------------------

Agreed!  I wish Metro would just admit to that fact, when their own representatives admitted that the changeover to the Q was, in effect, a fare increase.  

I have no problem with the extra quarter each way, but I have some friends who take P&Rs who are looking at a lot of extra money per month, and they're seriously considering driving instead.  With the cost of gas going down right now, it's cheaper for them.  It doesn't help that these friends take the 298 and more often than not have to stand the entire way.  Paying that much to stand doesn't make sense, any way you slice it.

The buses are getting worse, breaking down more often, and riding some of those older artics (can't Metro get some new ones?) down streets like Harwin are enough to send one to the chiropractor.  I swear I'm gonna lose a filling on some of those buses, which apparently have little to no decent suspension system.  Oh yeah, a lot of the seats look like dogs have been chewing on them, or they're half off.

J. Liggins, you're right about the smell in those rail cars.  Gross.

And why are so many of those Q card readers out of order on the rail platforms now?  One at the Wheeler station was out of order all last week.  Geez.

elizabeth,

told ya METRO has a track record of making huge expensive purchases of items that do not work!

only thing about that CED is when it is necessary to use it on another route, it is too short!!

just think back a few years ago...like 10 plus, we had the 2700 IKARUS which was used on both locals and p&r's they had cloth seating pile of junk, but could serve dual purposes. also the MERCEDES again dual purposes.  

and before the circulators, when many of the circulator routes were branch buses we used sometimes 40 footers and also artics even in tight spots!!

But i do argue that if we're going back to that, we need to improve the training of new hirees....THEY NEED TO BE TRAINED AS WE WERE!!  

With the growing population, i just don't see the FEASIBILITY!!

A couple of years ago when the artics and a number of New Flyer buses were out of service at West, Metro used MCIs and New Flyer minis on busy routes such as the 2 and 65 to HILARIOUS results.

I saw another bus broken down yesterday, 3512.  Remember when the only buses breaking down were the worn out Grumman 1600s?  I NEVER saw an RTS out of service.  These New Flyers are pathetic, especially the 3xxx series.  The 4000s are old and slow, but are generally more reliable.

I feel bad too for the drivers who have to nurse a bus with electrical problems, front doors that don't open without someone pushing them, bells that don't work, Q-card readers that don't function, broken air conditioners, and - last but not least - passengers griping at them about the whole mess.  This fare increase can only add to the joy.

It seems pretty clear to those of us in the trenches who ride local routes that Metro isn't spending much on bus maintenance.

j liggins...not the GRUMMAN'S? AND YOU'D BETTER HAVE THE SEATBELT FASTENED...OR ELSE YOU'D BE IN THE AISLE!!!  LOL!  

Yeah the New Flyers are a bit troublesome but I guess we learn to drive them...defected and all!  

the MCI's and mini's on the 2 is why i say mini buses are NOT feasible.

mizz_porkie,

           Surprisingly for you, YES I also remember the 2700 Ikarus buses---and YES, I have ridden ride on a local route.  RATZ about not riding one of those 2770-2799 Mercedes buses.

The Mercedes buses were great!  It seemed that in the 90's Metro was testing the waters by making certain routes "suburban" by what sort of buses were placed on them.  The 4 - Beechnut is the best example of this practice.  At one point about 35-40% of buses running on the 4 were dual use buses including the EXTREMELY loud and fast Mercedes buses.  Why they were retired in 2001 at the age of NINE I'll never know.

The 1600 Grummans were a guilty pleasure of mine.  Their last stand was at West in late 1997 and were mostly used on the 2 and the 65, though they'd show up randomly on other routes as well.  They were loud, they'd lean, and the rattling, oh man!  They also used to "sneeze."  I'm sure no one hear remembers that.  

The last Grumman I saw was 1685 in Oct. 1997.  You could hear it rattling along Fannin before you saw it.  It was on an employee shuttle which in those days was where some old buses went to die.  2095 is another example of ES death.

Anyway, back to the bland and modern times.....

The 29.9999... ft. NeoPods did ride rough.

But a 29.9999.. bus, with P&R seats would be nice for the MAD.

Some 29.9999ers would also be good for off peak service, like late evening and weekend.

I think it is very nice that metro isn't providing free rides to the polls like they used to.  As a result I will have to walk a mile to the polls tomorrow. I have moved but have to vote in my old precinct. either way my new precinct voting place is over a mile a way too.  I have to save my money for the fare increase that will affect me since I ride the bus daily to and from work. thats an extra 12.50 a month for me.  and I do agree that the Q card was a fare increase. With a daypass we bus riders could run our errands and come back and forth all day (it's very difficult to drag laundry to the washateria, buy heavy groceries, pick up packages at the post office, etc on one trip.

It's a sign of the times.   More money for less service

yeah j...i remember the sneeze!!  i used to drive the 60 out of hiram clark when old gus was still around.  just prior to his retirement, i think he and mr. spencer were the only two who took their bus with em from garage to garage or better yet had their own buses!!!  this is great ......isn't it?

yes the mercedes was a good one, i used to drive the 137 out of KG and it was a joy to ride and the w/c lift was super fast!@@

Ah, I remember a few years ago Metro used to assign certain buses to drivers or runs.  I only see one instance of that today; 3523 always on the same run on the 52 - Scott.

And wasn't Spencer the one who retired in 1998 after 50 years of working for Metro and it's predecessors?  I also remember after Fallbrook opened in 1997, on Saturdays all types of buses would show up on any route.  I saw a Neoplan 1100 on the 40 and numerous times the old 1400 series Neoplan artics would show up on the 52 or the 5 along with the occasional Mercedes.

Back to reality; Metro was running announcements on the buses about the fare increase and they made sure to note that Metro is no longer giving free rides to the polls.  This is one of the most important elections in decades and Metro pulls the rug out from under us again.

Fix your Q-Card loaders guys.  I get on two buses and both machines are broken.  What's up with that?  That's a fare object and if it's broken I shouldn't have to pay 1.25 and lose my free transfer.  You guys are supposed to keep those up.  And the artics don't have Q loaders or bike racks.  JUST GET RID OF THEM ALREADY!!!!!!!

According to an advertisement I saw on board a bus today, the two-month anniversary of the launch of 420-QL Bellaire was October 25th. Where's the self-congratulatory press release, METRO? Oh yeah, that bus STILL isn't running.

Q card machines down on TWO buses today; 3300 and 3258.

And Mary, I definitely want a response on this; yesterday I used my Q card and was left with .75 cents.  Today I get on 3300 and the reloader was down.  The driver tells me to press my card against the reader and go.  It says no credit available.  Odd, I think, I remember having .75 cents.  I don't think too much of it though as maybe it meant no credit for a bus ride.

I reload the Q card on the next bus I catch, 4300.  I put a dollar in, put my card in the holder and I am credited with .25 cents.  Um, okay?  I put in another dollar and now I have $1.25 cents.  What happened to my first .75 cents and how was I NEGATIVE .75 cents when I loaded my card?  I smell a rip off.  The Q card is the crap card.

Ummmm---James?  I can safely tell you to give it up because we're not going to hear of this service running until they feel everything is a go.  I want them to speed it up, also but I'm thinking there are certain stuff that METRO can't deal with---like construction somewhere in the Med Center.  Hopefully METRO can provide y'all with better explanations as to why the service it still not up and running.

J. Liggins said:  "Ah, I remember a few years ago Metro used to assign certain buses to drivers or runs.  I only see one instance of that today; 3523 always on the same run on the 52 - Scott."

My question to ALL the B/Os on here:  Is this still possible as of my posting---certain buses always being seen on the SAME route each day---like your spotting of 3523 on the 52 line?

After 3 days of my morning bus driver trying to tell many Spanish-speaking passengers they needed to add a quarter to their fare, I think Metro should have provided training on how to say "vente cinco centavos mas, por favor."

speedywiens, what would we say when we're on bellaire and beltway in chinatown?  or beechnut and bissonnett beltway with the  folks from africa?  

METRO tried to make conversational spanish classes mandatory but it failed b/c of my point and we would becom bilingual....i want more money for my talent and they wouldn't do it!!

p.s. btw-all of the fare brochures and everything else printed for the public is in spanish and english

J.

not suppose to be done.  i think they just give the older drivers something they are used to  on an everyday basis! like  in the case with GUS and MR SPENCER MR ONEIL FRANK JOHNSON  they earned that respect!!

Metro seldom gives the same buses to the same operators everyday.

If they did that, and a bus was written up with a defect several days in a row by responsible operators then it would become a bell ring pointing to no maintenance being performed on said buses.However I KNOW that bus 3231 is on the 66 everyday as I see it every morning at 6:00 am when I get on with that fun guy driving.

john

P.S. He was there Monday morning..

He hasn't been on there since..

Sick or what?

His tag says Will F.

john

NEWS FLASH !!! METRO ALREADY RAISED FARE WHEN THEY INTRODUCED Q-CARD !!!

Old Senario - SVC

-----------------

1) I paid $150 (thro' my employeer sponsored rider program) to get SVC.

2) SVC is worth about $200

New Senario - Q-(CRAP)-CARD

---------------------------

1) I pay $150 (thro' my employeer sponsored rider program) to get Q-(CRAP)-CARD voucher.

2) I take it to Metro "Treasury" to recharge my Q-CARD with voucher.

3) Guess what, Q-CARD value is $150. I LOST over $50 in ride value.

On top of this, they want to raise the fare ! What a suck-up.

BN

mizz_porkie said "p.s. btw-all of the fare brochures and everything else printed for the public is in spanish and english"

I wonder how many Spanish speaking Metro riders can read Spanish?  My wife is Hispanic and is fluent in Spanish (actually Tex-Mex) but she cannot read Spanish.  She grew up in a Spanish speaking household in South Texas and it was her first language, but she learned to speak and read English in school.  My point is that although people speak Spanish, they may not be able to read the brochures.

J. Liggins said,  "I think, I remember having .75 cents.  I don't think too much of it though as maybe it meant no credit for a bus ride.

I reload the Q card on the next bus I catch, 4300.  I put a dollar in, put my card in the holder and I am credited with .25 cents.  Um, okay?  I put in another dollar and now I have $1.25 cents.  What happened to my first .75 cents and how was I NEGATIVE .75 cents when I loaded my card?  I smell a rip off."

Your Q-Card is working correctly and here is how I see it:  You had $0.50 balance on your card (not $.75) so when you tapped on bus #1 it subtracted $1.25 so your balance went to -$0.75 (yes the Q-Card will run a negative balance).  When you added $1 on the next bus the balance went to $0.25, then when you added the 2nd $1, your balance went up to $1.25.

Someone at Metro told us that the Q-Card will go down to a negative $8 balance before it quits working.  They figure that when you add $20 to the card, the balance will be back positive.  When the fare was $1 you could get 8 rides before you had to add money to the card with no money on it to give you a chance to put money on the card and still ride Metro in the meantime.

I wouldn't take what a Metro rep says as gospel.  My Q card stopped working after I got to negative .75 cents.  And when it gets to the point where it says "no credit left on card" the Q reader will flash red meaning you will either pay or get off unless the driver is kind enough to let you go on.  I never heard or read about the Q card allowing negative balances and alot of other people seem to have not either.  An older lady on the bus had the same problem I had.  She most likely tapped her card thinking she was just getting the free transfers and when she reloaded it, it deducted those "free" rides.  

One of my co-workers had a problem with his Q-Card and called Metro Treasury not too long after they were rolled out and she told him about the $8 negative balance but they may have reconsidered and re-programed the Q-Box.  I have run mine negative once then it switched to my personal wallet.  I think it is set up to deduct a full fare from any positive balance and go negative if necessary.  The may have set the limit to 1 ride so you don't keep riding the bus and then just toss the card away when you hit -$8 balance.

I suppose you are aware that there are 2 contracts or wallets on the Q-Card (if you have a ride-sponsor card where your employer contributes to your card).  The fares are deducted from wallet 1 which your employer puts money in, and it will go negative to deduct the fare.  When wallet 1 is depleted or negative the box switches to the other wallet which is your personal wallet.  Each wallet has a ride counter so that you have to total 50 rides in wallet 1 before you get your 5 free rides.  Wallet 2 also has a counter and when you get 50 rides on it, you get the 5 free there too.

In my case, my company gives me $80 per month subsidy which lasts me 12 days of 2 way rides.  When the $80 is depleted, it switches to my personal wallet which has about $300 from Blue Mag Card transfers.  I can only get the $80 subsidy once every calendar month so I use the personal wallet for the rest of the month's rides.  On the 1st day of the next month my wallet 1 receives an $80 credit and the fares start coming out of wallet 1 again.

well last week I went to the grand opening of a new store in my area. it's only about a mile from my home but roads are dug up which means the sidewalks are gone and I would have to walk out on the narrow street to get to the store. Took the bus to the store 1.25 off Qcard , got off, came back 30 minutes later got back on bus in same direction and another 1.25 taken off although it has always been a continuing transfer before, got off bus to cross street to get on opposite side to go back to where I live (this particular bus doesn not come back the same way as it goes (number 72 westview westbound on westview, eastbound on katy freeway means getting off bus and catching one going other way to get to original starting point) another 1.25. 3.75 total and then I went to pick up daughter a few hours later, 2.50 round trip for a total of 6.25 in one day for 2 short round trips not far from my home, and the next morning another 1.25 to go to work. total spent in less than 24 hours 7.50 which on the day pass system would have been only 2.00.  I see I am going to have to do alot more walking with this Q card and rate raise as I can't afford to spend 5 dollars a day to go a mile or 2.   Metro needs to reinstate the pass system for us frequent riders as anyone knows that when you have to shop, do laundry, go to work, pick up kids, etc on a bus, you have to make several trips, it can't all be done in one directions and in 2 hours.

My thoughts on the day pass:  Logistically there is no way Metro will bring it back because the driver/operator would have to change the fare for a patron who requests a day pass and then change it back for regular patrons.  This will slow down boardings to a crawl.  

The only way I see it working is for Metro to sell a special Day-Pass Q-Card for local bus riders.  They already have a class of Q-Card for the elderly that only deducts 1/2 of the regular fare, and there is the Metro Employee Q-Card that is free for the user.  The Day-Pass Q-Card would deduct double the local fare ($2.50) and allow free transfers for 24 hours, but I think it would require a lot of computer programming to implement.

Call Sheila Jackson-Lee and tell her there is a camera opportunity if she gets behind the Day-Pass Q-Card.

ha, im sure Ms Lee would jump at that opportunity

But I just laughed when I found out METRO had started to give out lines of credit via the Qcard... next theyll hit us with overdraft charges...