Two years down the drain

If things are going south in an area you care about – your neighborhood, for instance, or for the industry in which you work – it’s a great thing to grab the attention of lawmakers. 

Maybe they’ll fix it! Or maybe they’ll refer it to a task force. But, ah, beware of the study, as state Sen. Catherine Blakespear is finding out. She’s not happy and neither is one of the members of the task force. What’s at stake? Well, if you use any of San Diego’s transit options, from buses to the trolley to the Coaster, a lot.

That’s because transit agencies are headed for a big fiscal crunch, driven in part by a dated funding formula – it’s more than 50 years old – and tech upgrades that are proving to be more expensive than anticipated. Will those hurdles end up with service cuts for riders? 

That’s what Blakespear wants to avoid – me too, as transit is a great option when I want to avoid paying for parking downtown. She’s well aware of the issues and wanted the task force to provide some potential solutions, especially exploring funding options.

Essentially, though, they restated the problem. 🤨

As our Drew Sitton writes, “The financial state of transit agencies has only worsened,” in the two years since the task force started its work. We’ll let Drew tell you more and what Blakespear plans to do next.

And hey! We have a surprise for you Sunday. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s newsletter where we tell all.

Thoughts? Opinions? Share them with us at news@timesofsandiego.com.