[Ohio-talk] Cleveland For Public Transit Meeting Notice

[mzavoli at roadrunner.com]

Milena Zavoli 

Greetings Friends,

I've received a recent meeting notice from Clevelanders For Public Transit about improving ridership in our city.  All are invited.  Please read on:

"Dear Milena,

You may have heard, GCRTA ridership is down 7% from last year!

There are a couple reasons ridership is down.  

First, fare hikes and service cuts reduced service on 18 bus routes and 2 rail lines went into effect in August. Additionally, the closure of Public Square
required rerouting of nearly every bus line in the system, adding unnecessary delay to thousands of trips daily. These service cuts and disruptions make
transit less convenient and lower rider satisfaction, causing riders to find alternative means of transportation. 

Further service cuts and increased fares will lead to a spiral of deteriorating service and declining ridership, a worrisome prospect for thousands of
riders.

What can we do?

Read and share our full statement here.
 
TransitCenter, a national foundation that works to improve urban mobility, has helped other cities turn this around and they will be coming to Cleveland
to help do the same! 

You are invited to join TransitCenter for a free event and panel discussion. 

The event will be held 7pm on Wednesday, April 5th at Market Garden Brewery, 1947 W 25th Street. 

The 22, 45, 51, 79, 81 buses and red line all stop nearby. A 
UH Bikes
 bikeshare station is also available. 

We hope you will join us as we kickoff our local campaign to improve transit.

RSVP to the event and share on Facebook here!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Don't forget to contact your state senator about transit funding! #63cents

Ohio is one of the worst states for funding public transportation. We only spend 63 cents per person on transit, less than 1.5% of Ohio's transportation
budget.

Due to a state budget changes in the way Medicaid is taxed, RTA will be losing over $20 million starting in 2019. That will mean massive cuts in service,
layoffs, and potentially more fare increases. 

The Ohio State Senate is poised to make a decision about our biennial Transportation Budget as soon as the end of the week!

Take action NOW! 
Click HERE to send a letter to your state senator to demand more funding for transit in Ohio!

Please share this with friends nearby, especially residents of Lorain and Huron counties as well as Twinsburg, Hudson, Stow, Fairlawn, Wooster. Their senators
need to be engaged on this issue!"


There you have it, friends.  We need to stand together and let our state senators and reps know that transit cuts are not in anyone's best interest.  

Thank you for reading.

Milena