Attn President Cohen,
I am writing to express my disappointment in your decision to endorse the reduction of the Allegheny County Port Authority. As an employee of the University for four years, I have found the bus pass benefit to be incredibly useful - so useful that last summer I felt comfortable selling my car and relying on public transit. I feel that the transit cuts will hurt the university community (particularly with the loss of the 28X, but also including at least the 61F, the 67s, and the 69A), and that they will also hurt the city - the economies of scale with public transit make for a more efficient, social, and modern society than relying primarily on individual car ownership does. I understand the concern that failing to make funding match service costs jeopardises the future of the system, but increased funding through tax-based subsidisation or increased fares is a more appropriate solution than reduced service. I imagine you don't have occasion to take the bus frequently -- at many times of day, the busses I've been on have been very full (sometimes so much as to be unable to take new passengers), whether going downtown, to Squirrel Hill, or elsewhere. It's important that the city not decide that such travel is unimportant or move towards being a car-centric place.
Respectfully,
Pat Gunn
(actually sent this handwritten through campus mail)
