I work in Portland. I’m writing to inquire why the Metro runs buses up and down routes when they’re practically empty, instead of allowing people to ride the bus for free. Why is filling up the gas tank of a bus to drive routes with only a few riders – whose fare doesn’t even cover the energy cost of the ride – better than allowing people to ride the bus?

What is Greater Portland about if we’re wasting taxpayer dollars on fuel for empty buses when we could be helping people who don’t yet have money because they aren’t allowed to work, and won’t get to work any faster if they can’t get on the bus to the appointments that they have to keep in order to jump through all the hoops required before they can start contributing to the Greater Portland economy?

Not letting people who don’t have money ride the bus doesn’t make them less poor. It only adds yet another obstacle to the path toward their ability to make money and start spending it here in our community and become contributing taxpayers, too.

There is no need to hike fares or increase taxes to accommodate this suggestion because, as I mentioned, the buses are running without riders right now anyway; the costs are clearly already covered by taxpayers.

Noreen Benjaminsen
Westbrook

Copy the Story Link